Transcription
Do you know that a handful of creators on YouTube have reached ten million subscribers? That's more people than the entire population of New York City for each of them. How does one grow such a huge fan base?
I'm Matt Koval, a YouTube strategist and creator, and I'm here to talk about some of the techniques these top channels use to get so popular. So sit back and let’s talk creative strategy on YouTube. I'm sure you've seen by now that some of the most creative people in the world show their talents on YouTube. And a lot of them have found success through a creative breakout idea. It's not easy to come up with a hit video series, but there are certain things YouTube's top creators do to get tons of fans.
What I'm going to talk about today comes from over a year of studying successful creators and talking to them about what they do. The results of all this research, the ten fundamentals, is a framework that can help you in the development of your own video ideas. Whether it's a new idea for your channel or an existing series you've been uploading, run the idea through these ten to see how you might improve it.
Did you notice I keep using the word series? Well, one-off videos are great, but what do you think happens after everyone’s seen it? Your views tend to look like this: one huge spike and then back to normal. That's why, to have long-term success with your channel, it's important to come up with ideas that are repeatable, and one way to do that is in the form of a show or series, which I use interchangeably. So let's jump in.
Just keep in mind one thing: this is not meant to be a checklist or a scorecard. None of these are absolutely necessary, but each can help grow that loyal fan base that comes back again and again. Alright, are you ready? Bring an idea to the forefront of your mind and let's start at the beginning.
Fundamental number one, Shareability. Will viewers share your videos? Word of mouth is powerful because people are learning about you from the people they trust the most, their friends and family. I think the key thing is to actually make videos that people want to share with their friends, and it is as simple as that. If you make a video that somebody watches and that’s the end of it, well, that's going to get X number of views. But if they go, "Oh, hold on a second, so-and-so liked this," and they start to send it round, you build up people, so I think just, you know, videos that people want to share.
Now it's easy to say, "Yes, they're going to share my videos because they'll be awesome," but to really predict if your viewers will share, ask yourself why? Will they relate to it? Is it about a topic or trend that people are currently talking about? Will it make viewers laugh or move them to tears? Is it really useful somehow? It's good to consider all of these questions.
Also try this: Take a look at the last thing you shared on social media. What was it and why did you share it? I love to share videos that I think are frankly amazing; things that you haven't seen before, something new, something fresh and something exciting; something that you're going to want to share after I do.
My old pals Rhett and Link are two very successful creators on YouTube, and when they're brainstorming ideas for a really shareable video, they put each idea through a pretty tough test. They ask themselves, "Can we summarize what this video is all about in one sentence that is easily understood and also compelling in a way that people will want to share the video?" The point is, if you can't summarize it in one sentence, then it's going to take someone longer to explain it when they're trying to share it. You want to create a video that, from a concept standpoint, is easy to share. So before they've even written a script, they try to get into the heads of viewers and figure out why they might share it. What will your audience write when they share your video? Take a few minutes to brainstorm and write those share statements down, because if you can make your videos shareable, it can really help grow your audience.
Fundamental number two, Conversation. Are you speaking directly to your audience? YouTube is an incredibly social platform. There's a huge community here, and viewers often see their favorite stars as friends inside the computer. If you can turn to the camera and talk directly to the audience, the way I am now, it can be a powerful way to bond with fans and build loyalty. See, we're bonding right now, you and I. But it's not about talking to the lens like any host or reporter; it's about talking specifically to your viewers and maybe sometimes calling a few of them out by name.
Even scripted narrative content can be conversational. Just look at some of the biggest scripted successes on YouTube: ‘LonelyGirl15’, ‘The Guild’, and ‘The Lizzie Bennet Diaries’. Each of these involved fictional characters who talked directly to the audience. The fans knew they were actors reading lines, but they still loved it. How are you?
Of course, you don't even have to do that to be conversational. The hit series ‘Convos With My 2-Year Old’ ironically isn't conversational at all. The actors don't talk to the camera, but what they creators do is occasionally upload a video like this: "Hello internet, we wanted to answer a bunch of your comments, questions. There's been thousands of them, hundreds even." So even just making videos like that every once in a while is a great way to connect with your audience. However you want to do it, being conversational can help build that bond between you and your fans.
A question for you: What creators have you seen who are really good at being conversational? How might you do the same in your own videos?
Fundamental number three, Interactivity. Is there a way to involve the audience in your videos? One of the cool things about making stuff on YouTube is that you can get the audience to participate. You can do this in a lot of different ways, from answering fan questions to featuring their video submissions in yours. You can also ask them for ideas on what you should make next. Look at the comments, look at the likes and dislikes. It's a good idea to listen to your audience and take into consideration what they want to see. Being interactive shows them that you're willing to involve them creatively, and this also helps to build loyalty.
You may have seen ‘Epic Rap Battles of History’, a hugely popular series where they take two historical figures and have them battle it out. It's colorful, it's funny, and it'll get your feet tapping to the beat. But one of the coolest parts about each episode is that they're interactive at the end of every episode. "I make the whole world move, you play Community Theater. I gained your same fame from home on a blown-out speaker. Oh yes I've heard that EP and see I've transcribed it here, tell me what comes after the sixty-eighth measure of diarrhea? What kind of drugs does it take to enjoy this? I've no idea. I've seen more complexity in a couch from IKEA. You go piano to fortississimo. That means soft to very very loud, 'cause I'm guessing that you didn't know. Why don't you put down your Cubase and pick up a real bow? I rocked harder than you when I was five years old." Who won? Who's next? You decide. Who won? Who's next? You decide. With every episode, they ask their audience not only for their opinion of who won, but also who they should make a video about next. And when they make a new episode based on an idea from a viewer, they give that person a shout-out. Engaging people, or like actually featuring their names in episodes, like I do at the end of Fact Surgery, it's empowering; it makes them feel like they helped make the decision, they helped make the video, they were influential, which is really important because they become part of the process, part of the channel.
So what ways can you be interactive? Write down a few ways that your channel or series could involve the audience. It can be a lot of fun for your viewers and good for your channel.
Fundamental number four, Consistency. Are there strong, recurring elements to your idea? Talk to any top YouTubers, and one of the first things they'll tell you is that consistency is critical to a channel's success. But consistency means different things depending on who you ask. Some say it's all about consistency of schedule, that you’ve got to release your videos on specific days of the week. This works because, like traditional TV shows, you're tapping into the rhythm of people's lives. "Every Saturday, it says it on my banner. New recipes every Saturday." This is a great way to engage my audience, knowing that I have content coming every Saturday. It creates a sense of expectation and anticipation. For example, "It's Thursday night and I'm excited for tomorrow. You know why? Because I know that you upload your awesome videos every Friday."
Other creators will tell you consistency is all about having the same personality or face of the channel. The videos may change, but the same person or people are in them every time. There are also consistent formats, which are basically clearly packaged shows: Equals Three, Man Versus Pin, Good Mythical Morning. These are all formats that are consistent from episode to episode. Each also has a consistent opening sequence, consistent segments within the show, consistent branding, and consistent taglines. "My name is Robby Motz and I approve this message." Lastly, there’s consistency of voice. Now I'm not talking about literal voice, but a tone or theme to the channel that never changes. Vice News is a good example of this. Their documentaries are always raw and real. I always know when I'm watching a video from Vice News.
So what are the ways your series idea will be consistent from video to video?
Fundamental number five, Targeting. Is there a clearly defined audience? Usually when you first make a video, you want as many people as possible in the world to see it, right? But on YouTube, creators have seen that it's often more effective to target certain groups or communities; people who are passionate about who they are or what they do. This could be a large group such as moms or a small niche, such as toy collectors.
Here are a few ways you can target your audience. The first is from the channel level. BroScience Life is a comedy channel, but it's all about comedy at the gym. Now if you're like me and prefer sitting down when you curl, then you're going to love this: Bro Tip. Lie down for an extra chill session. This entire channel targets people who work out a lot; an audience that really doesn't have its own comedy show, and the creator behind this is doing quite well reaching that niche audience.
A second way to target is from the series level. I mentioned ‘The Guild’ earlier. Can you guess what community that series was targeting? You might say computer gamers, or specifically those who play World of Warcraft. That's a very passionate community, and back when ‘The Guild’ first came out, there really weren't many shows for them to watch.
The last way to target is on the individual video level. Here's a good example of this: "How to Piss Off New Yorkers in 36 seconds." Notice how even the title is targeted. So channel level, series level, video level; however you want to target. Creators have found that the more you can say about your intended audience, the more traction you can get with an idea. When dealing with, say, brands or other YouTubers who you want to collaborate with, it's good to be able to let them know who your audience are and for you to know as well so that you can cater to them.
Alright, a couple of questions for you: What are communities you'd be interested in reaching with your videos? Is there an underserved audience out there that you could tap into?
Fundamental number six, Sustainability. If the audience loves it, can you make more of it? Growing and maintaining a successful YouTube channel can take time. Some of our top creators have been uploading videos for 300 weeks without stopping. That may not be for you or for me, and that's ok, but it's helpful if you brainstorm ideas that make sense on a practical level. Ask yourself, do you have the resources to sustain the idea over time? Do you have the budget, the actors, the crew, the location? And most importantly, the personal energy.
Creator Jack Douglas has become really good at making sustainable yet still entertaining videos. One example is his series ‘Your Grammar Sucks’, where he reads horrible YouTube comments back to the camera. "This kid is going places not collage but places. He's back, halalugieugh. You'r face is like anglena goly. This give me think how short life is, lol. He drunks one beer and he is drunked? What a rubish. Yo what's up let's have linch." Jack shoots the show in front of a green screen, and since that's fairly easy to do, he's able to crank these videos out on a regular basis. And his sustainability is a large part of how he's picked up over one and a half million subscribers.
The Fine Brothers are another great example of sustainability. They started making YouTube videos back in 2006, and their channel is still one of the most popular today. They'll tell you they've survived this way: "If we can't shoot at least three episodes in one day, we move on to the next idea." They're talking about block shooting here, the practice of recording several videos all at once that you can release over time. It's definitely something to think about. If you want to be sustainable, think about how you can make lighter, less time-consuming videos. Or find ways to get more mileage out of your productions, like shooting more episodes at once or getting behind-the-scenes footage. Now look, you can of course make stuff with higher production value, but it's a good idea to also have a second, easier-to-make series to keep your fans engaged.
Alright, question time: What's the toughest part for you in creating a sustainable series, and what are ways you can make it easier on yourself?
Fundamental number seven, Discoverability. Will your videos get found through search, or related videos? This fundamental is all about seeing what you can do to help your videos get surfaced in either search results or related videos. Related videos are the ones that pop up on the right side of the watch page and also at the very end of a video. There are typically two types of things people search for on YouTube: trending topics or evergreen topics. Let's look at both. Trending topics would include stuff like elections, holidays, the Olympics, big news stories, sporting events. "The videos for us that tend to do a better job at getting new viewers in the channel is stuff related to big, you know, pop culture events." If you can piggyback on hot topics by addressing them in your videos, you can tap into the rush of people looking for those subjects. Evergreen topics, like evergreen trees, thrive all year round. They're often how-to videos, like, "how to tie a tie." Other times they're topics in pop culture that never really die, like Star Wars, Superman, or Justin Bieber. Being aware of current events or topics that are always popular can help your videos get found by new audiences, and this can lead to extra views and new subscribers.
You want to know a cool trick? Type in a single letter or word into YouTube's search box, and you can see what the top searches are. So right now it looks like if you type in "d" here, dubstep is first, then Drake. You can also type in "how to" and see which are the most searched tutorials. One other tip: If you want your videos to be discoverable, be sure to become an optimization expert. Know how to write effective titles, tags, and video descriptions. For more on that, check out the creator academy lessons on how to get discovered and optimize your videos.
Fundamental number eight, Accessibility. Can every episode be fully appreciated by a brand new viewer? Have you ever watched a TV show and you had no idea what was going on because you hadn’t seen the first three seasons? Yeah, me too. I won't name shows. This fundamental is all about making sure your videos always welcome new viewers. It's important because people might find any random episode of yours through a social feed, a search result, or a related video. And they may not know anything about you or your channel, so it's helpful to make sure you don't leave those people in the dark, or they might be gone in a second. Try to make each video fully understandable to a new viewer. For creators who are making a narrative series with a story that may take place over many videos, there’s a couple of things they can do. They can consider including a montage that helps the viewer get up to speed on what's happening in the series or that episode. They can also make it easy for viewers to get to episode one by using annotations or links in the description that link back to that video. So accessibility: Will each episode be understood and appreciated by new viewers, yes or no?
Fundamental number nine, Collaboration. Is there room in your idea to feature other YouTube creators? One of the fastest ways to grow subscribers on YouTube is to collaborate with other creators who have their own fans. We're talking about having them on as a guest in your videos or vice versa. Collabs work because when the other person promotes the video, you get seen by a whole other loyal audience that already understands YouTube: how to subscribe, like, and comment on videos. If this other audience likes you, they might subscribe to you too. I've seen channels jump by thousands and even tens of thousands of subscribers just off one collab video. You don't have to live in the same state; you don't even have to live in the same country. If people are like overseas, you can even just ask for footage, and it's just like you're connecting with your community. It's really fun. Collabs are also a good way to make friends inside this really active community. Reaching out to other YouTubers, whether it's a lunch or a Skype chat, it's really helpful to talk to someone else that does this and to create those friendships because, you know, only other YouTubers really understand what you're going through.
Just a couple of pieces of advice on making a successful collaboration: First, find a partner that has a similar audience to your own. If you make baking tutorials, it may not make sense to collab with a video gamer, or hey, maybe it does. But think about the audience carefully because the whole point is to get that crossover of fans who will love your stuff too. Often, if you're working with someone else who's known for a particular type of content, that's what that audience wants, so if you're not delivering that same type of content, you may see no benefit from the collaboration. Secondly, remember to make your collaborator proud of their role in your video. That's what will get them to promote. So feature them prominently and in a positive light. If they're proud of the finished product, they are much more likely to spread the word. Collaboration: a great way to introduce yourself to a bunch of new viewers all at once.
Fundamental number ten, Inspiration. Is this idea coming from a place of genuine interest? This is a big one; in fact, a lot of the top creators we talk to said it might be the most important factor in keeping yourself going and keeping yourself happy. Just look at some of YouTube's most successful creators. They're often overflowing with enthusiasm around what they do. "It's currently six o'clock in the morning and I haven't gone to bed. I've been up all night reading letters from you guys." It's powerful because true passion shows through on camera, and if you love the topic, your videos will probably be a lot easier and a lot more fun to make.
How do you find ideas that you're passionate about? Look at your favorite hobbies: sports, TV shows, and blogs. Consider brainstorming ideas that are well within what you love and what you love to talk about. If you're going to come up with something that you think people want but you're not going to want to do it after a couple of weeks, then it's not a good idea for you. I mean, it has to be a good idea for you first and then a good idea for an audience second. So inspiration: Is your idea coming from a place of genuine interest?
There you have it, folks. The ten fundamentals of a creative strategy on YouTube, told directly from our top creators. You can come back to this anytime and use it as a filter for your own ideas. Run something new through the ten or revisit a series you've been making. Just remember, none of these fundamentals are necessary, but each can help. I'm Matt Koval. You can find me at youtube.com/MattKoval. Thanks for your time.