Transcription
You want to start a YouTube channel, but you're lost. There are tons of videos, and you're getting overwhelmed. But don't worry, I got you. And by the end of this video, you will exactly know where to start, what to do, and how to do it. This is the only video you need to watch to start and grow your YouTube channel.
So, how and where to start? First of all, we need to understand how the algorithm works so that you won't get emotional and blame the algorithm for hating you and not recommending your video to other people, like I used to do. Initially, it starts by testing your video with a small audience. It observes their reaction, you know, how long they watch the video, whether they like it, share it, comment, and so on. And based on the response, the algorithm determines who else to recommend the video to. That's why it sometimes takes time for videos to gain views because YouTube needs time to figure out the right audience. So, for lucky channels, the algorithm might find a right audience immediately, and for those unlucky people, it might take some time. That's why it's important to focus on what you can control and be patient. And if you improve your video with each upload and remain patient, you're already ahead of 90% of people. So, my advice would be, stop crying, improve your videos, and keep going. And I need to remind this to myself too.
So, why do most people fail on YouTube? Title, thumbnail, hook, and editing are important, for sure. But there is one crucial element most people skip, and that's why most people fail on YouTube, and that is personal branding. So, they're already established, amazing creators out there. So, why should people watch someone new, less experienced, and unknown? We need to give people a reason to watch us and remember us. If you were a copy of any other YouTuber out there, we will just be thrown in the content sea. So, how can we differentiate ourselves? In my opinion, it's done through personal branding. Personal branding is the thing that will differentiate you from the crowd. And there's a whole depth to personal branding, but the most important thing you need to identify is your main message. So, what do you believe in? What are your values to our life? I know it's hard to to answer, so let's make it easier. Let's say you get the chance to scream to the whole world, and everyone is listening to you carefully. What would be something you would say in one sentence? For example, for me, resilience and not giving up are my main core values for life, and I also try to send that message with my videos too. I've been doing YouTube since 2016, and for the first four years, I didn't even hit 1,000 subscribers. I remember the days where I was getting like maybe 36 views or something, and people made fun of me because I was in high school. Like, imagine that environment, but I still kept going because I didn't care. And now we are at 1.3 million. And also, another thing can be, I couldn't get into my dream uni at my first try, and even people on my YouTube comments made fun of me, you know, said that I'm actually lazy and stupid and stuff like that. But I didn't give up, and I eventually got in. Another thing is, my dad got scammed by my uncle, and our family almost went like bankrupt, and I talked about it quite a lot of times, I think, on my channel, but I still decided to keep going and make money online and support my family. Family. I never give up, like, no matter what, till the day I die. And that's my core value and also important part of my personal branding. Whether I'm talking about like diet, whatever I'm talking about, exercising, online business, YouTube video creation, I try to give that main message through all of my videos so that my personal branding stays consistent. So, now, stop the video and think about yours. What is your core value?
Let's talk about an important question that people always ask: how to pick a niche? Do you need a niche channel? In my opinion, don't pick a niche first. Identify your target audience. So, some YouTubers continue to thrive even after years of publishing, while others blow up and then tank. The difference, in my opinion, lies in focusing on your target avatar rather than a niche. If you stick to one niche, you risk becoming repetitive. However, if you identify your target avatar and create videos that cater to their interests, then you can evolve alongside your audience. So, first, determine who you're making videos for. You need to understand your target avatar, like considering their gender, age, location, occupation, fears, goals, and values. And one of the most important aspects is identifying your target avatar's problems. Why? It's based on actually human psychology. When someone helps us or provides us with something of value, we naturally want to give back. For example, if somebody compliments you, says like, "Oh my God, you're so pretty," so you'll be more likely to compliment them back, even if you don't think so. You might say like, "You look nice too." So, for YouTube, if you solve their problem, right, or if you give some sort of a value with your videos, in return, you will get more engagement, and maybe they will subscribe to your channel. And if they really love your videos and really find value, they might become loyal viewers. This giving value first, solving their problem first, is the core principle for building your audience and growing your following, not on YouTube, but on any platform. So, after you identify your target avatar's problem, try to identify why they're able to achieve the results they want and what objections they might have, and figure out how you can assist them. Let's say if you have a fitness channel, and if you're helping people to lose weight, first, you need to identify why is your target avatar not able to lose weight? Is it because they're binge eating? Is it because they have a bad relationship with their body? Is it because they just don't know how to cook healthy food? It can be various reasons, right? So, for example, for my channel, one of the biggest issues my target avatar has is procrastination, task management, and getting overwhelmed because these are the things that I struggle with. I struggle with it my whole life too. So, first, I experimented with a bunch of stuff, read all the books that you can ever imagine, and shared the things that worked for me. And as you can see from all these videos, I always talk about those. So, I'm kind of like experimenting them on myself. If you have already solved the problem that you want to talk about, let's say you are overweight and you lost weight and you want to help people, then identify the reason why they're struggling and how you can help them. If you haven't achieved the goal that you want to teach the people, then first achieve it, and then identify the reason why they're struggling with it and share that knowledge with other people.
What equipment and tools do you need? Gear does matter, okay? But now, listen to me. You might think that cool transitions, super high-quality camera is the most important thing when it comes to video production, but it's not. Even though gear does matter, it's not the camera, it's the audio. So, for example, it's really bad, like my quality. Think about the quality, like it's so bad, okay? You know, if you have bad quality audio, no one cares about your 4K camera or cool drone shot or over-the-top transitions. It doesn't matter. You don't necessarily need to buy a super expensive mic, but make sure to invest on it if you're serious about YouTube. And here are some of my favorites. And nope, these my companies didn't sponsor me, just my pure personal opinion.
One of the easiest ways to elevate your content quality is using the power of music. So, the music you choose plays a huge role in setting the tone and vibe, and it enhances the overall experience when done correctly. But at the same time, if you use copyrighted music without a license, you risk demonetization. And also, it's quite difficult to find good quality copyright-free music. Licked is a unique music platform that allows creators to license mainstream music whilst being protected from copyright claims. With Licked, you can get access to over a million mainstream tracks from artists like Justin Bieber, Lizzo, and Bruno Mars, and over 100,000 royalty-free tracks for every situation. The platform is easy to navigate with helpful search filters and curated playlists to help you find exactly what you need. The best part is the benefits of Licked extends beyond just a vast music catalog. Recognizable music can lead to positive sentiment, increase viewer engagement and watch time, and help your channel grow. So, if you're looking to improve your content quality and viewer engagement, I highly recommend trying out Licked so that you can use the best music for your videos. Click the link in my description for a limited-time offer of a 14-day free trial. Sign up now while the offer lasts and elevate your content to the next level. Thank you, Licked, for sponsoring a proportion of this video.
Now, it's time to talk about camera recommendations. If you own one of the latest smartphones, there is no need to buy a camera if you're just starting out. In my opinion, for example, I began this channel like using Sony ZV-1 and continued to use it. I think around like I reached 300 or maybe even 500k subscribers. Now I use Sony A7C, and I have two lenses that I tried. I bought a bunch of lenses, tried them out, but ended up just like having two, and I sold other lenses that I have. If I were to choose a camera to start my channel, I would pick something super straightforward, probably something like Sony ZV-1, so that I wouldn't have to worry about lenses. So, just ensure that your camera can record more than 30 minutes. And here are some of my camera recommendations for beginners to consider.
For the lighting, I recommend getting a softbox because it simplifies dealing with changes in sunlight, which can be a hassle to manage and distracting to view, in my opinion. And you don't need to purchase anything overly expensive. Like, starting with a softbox, a random softbox from Amazon or Neewer or Godox is a good choice. While I'm a fan of Aperture, if you're a beginner, like, don't stress about investing in premium lighting. You have time.
So, how to create a video? Let's talk about an actual video creation process. The first step is idea generation. And for idea generation, you need to capture, capture, capture, capture. If you can tell me 10 YouTubers, uh, those that have similar target audiences like you, in 10 seconds in your head, you're not doing enough market research. You need to know the ins and outs of YouTube because to be a good producer, you need to be a good consumer first. You know, to get ideas, you need to consume a bunch of videos and combine them. What do I mean by that? Because to get ideas, you should watch a bunch of YouTube videos and combine them. As the Bible of creativity says, creativity is essentially connecting two dots together and creating a relationship with them. Because nothing is original, and everything you see online is created by combining different things. For example, Apple is created by combining technology and design. So, to be creative, you should be able to connect various ideas together. In the beginning, it might seem like quite difficult since most of us don't practice creativity. Unfortunately, but let me tell you, if you have ADHD like me or neurodivergent, this is your time to shine because we are naturally more creative than other people because our mind is always wandering. So, it's easy to combine ideas. But if not, don't worry, you can practice and get better at it with time. Creativity really comes with practice. One tip that I highly recommend is to open a new YouTube account where you only watch videos that your target avatar would watch so that you can see how their homepage looks like from their eyes, and you'll be able to understand YouTube trends and recommendations from your target view. And whenever you see a video that inspires you, save it to a one dedicated place so that you can go back and work on it later. These days, the way that I do it is I save them to my Instapaper because Notion can be slow and it annoys me. But on every Sunday, like looking at my Instapaper, I categorize them and I put wherever they belong in my Notion.
Now, let's talk about thumbnail creation. Title and thumbnail is essentially your pitch to the viewer. If they find it interesting, right? If you have a good title and a good thumbnail, they might click on it. If not, they bounce. You know, you can think that if your video is so valuable, really edited nicely, you can have a crappy title and thumbnail. No. If they're not interested in it, if you don't have an audience yet, you can't, you can't do that. And one of the mistakes I used to make is think about title and thumbnail after I created the video. Even if you might not create the complete thumbnail before scripting, at least have an idea of what you're going to do, like what kind of thumbnail you're going to do, at least. And I like doing some rough sketches on my iPad and have a rough idea. And I make sure to come up with at least five different titles for each video. And put the thumbnail next to other people, right? Like, once I create the thumbnail, I put it to the similar YouTubers that post like similar videos, and I try to compare it so that I can see whether it stands out. And let's say when I compare, like, my thumbnail to other YouTubers and it doesn't really stand out, then I try to improve that thumbnail by trial and error. In my opinion, it's like one of the best ways to improve your thumbnail because if you don't really know design, I mean, I don't know design that much, you will need to understand like all the rules and principles. But if not, you can do it by trial and error, to be honest. And the more you create, the better you get at it.
Some people can record a whole video with just bullet points and fix it in production. But I personally prefer writing my script word by word. For example, I also written this script word by word. I sometimes like do freestyle in between the script, but I make sure that I write the script so that I won't ramble and I know exactly what I'm talking about. Sure, like when you write your script word by word, you spend a good amount of, you know, time to writing. But when you write things down, it's so much easier to look back in the future. Let's say your video didn't perform well, you can give feedback to yourself and identify areas you can improve in your script. And if it does perform well, you look back and identify the areas that were good so that you can apply it next time. If you do a freestyle, it's quite hard to do that because you don't really know the process of, um, doing that over and over again because it was just a freestyle, you know? And I think it's completely fine to get help from AI to write, but don't write the whole thing using AI. I think it's like quite easy to tell when you write the whole script using ChatGPT or Notion AI. And I have tested it out actually with a couple of videos of mine, and the personal connection wasn't just there, and they didn't perform that well. So, who knows, maybe in a couple of years or even maybe months, who knows, there will be some sort of an update and ChatGPT will be able to replace all of us. But still, since it hasn't yet, keep continue writing.
No matter who you are, even if you're good at public speaking, talking to a lens instead of an actual human being is quite challenging, in my opinion. And when you are a beginner, it feels awkward. Like, sometimes it still feels awkward. But as you keep going, and when talking to the camera becomes your second nature, guess what? For me now, talking to actual human beings feels... No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Maybe not. But if you want to get confident in front of the camera, you just need to practice. That's it. To be honest, like, you don't need to take a camera confidence course or something. Just talk in front of the camera again and again and again. That's it. There's no shortcut. I mean, when I started this channel, I was awkward and nervous as well because English is not even my mother tongue. Like, it's like my third, fourth language. So, I was not only about conscious about myself, but I was struggling to articulate my thoughts. So, that's another level. If I can overcome that, you can for sure overcome your, um, fear of camera in your mother language. And also, another good news is, you've got all the time in the world to perfect your video recording skills because let me be real, like nobody's going to watch your first few videos, maybe even first 50, 60, 70, 100 videos. So, you got the opportunity to practice while no one is watching you. Isn't it a good thing? I think instead of feeling discouraged by your speaking skills, see it as a chance to improve, an opportunity. Most of us are short on time and learning how to create videos, like come up with ideas, getting comfortable in front of the camera, and there are so many things you will need to learn because making videos is a new skill that we don't really, you know, learn in school. So, during this time, I would recommend you to outsource your editing while you're getting used to other sides of the video production because even if you do a pretty simple editing, I think it takes still a lot of time. And if you know nothing about editing, learning is also going to cost you a lot of time. And also, if you don't know anything, even the cheapest editors are probably better at editing than you. For some reason, I used to edit my own videos, even though I knew I could like afford them, but I was like, "Oh, it's time to save money or something." But our most important asset is time, it's not money. If you're not obsessed with editing or you want to create cinematic content or know already have did it, I would just outsource it. Once you learn other sides of content creation, and if you still want to edit your videos, then you can always learn. The important part is to start posting because otherwise, you're going to come up with a billion excuses to stop you from posting the video. Like, I have an editor, and I still procrastinate on creating videos after 8 years of content creation. So, trust me, the fewer opportunities you give yourself to make excuses, the better it is.
Once you've created your video, it's time to upload it on YouTube. It's my favorite part. I can explain the satisfaction after publishing a video and seeing it live. And even when I didn't have subscribers, you know, even when I wasn't getting views, I just fell in love with that feeling. So, now, after this video, give yourself a promise, or make yourself a promise, I don't know which one is correct, to publish one video within the next 7 days. If you're not applying what you learned, then there's no point watching this video. You're just wasting your time, and you're just making yourself an excuse to not publish. Learning is best done by doing. So, get up, start brainstorming ideas, start scripting, and start creating. You got everything you need, and you got this. And if you enjoyed this video, check out this video of mine where I dive deeper into how to make money on YouTube.