4 min read
YouTube - as you almost definitely already know! Is an incredible platform for creators like you to share your passions, connect with a global community, and even build a thriving career.
Counting 2.7+ billion active users, the potential audience reach on YouTube is vast. So if you've been thinking about starting your own channel, now is the perfect time to get started. In fact, a recent survey found that 29% of children in the U.S. want to become YouTubers or vloggers when they grow up! Of course, there’s more to YouTube success than just starting, so we’ve gathered together the key steps to launch your YouTube journey and set yourself up for success.
Let’s go!
Step 1: Choose Your Niche
The first step in creating a successful YouTube channel is deciding on your passion - or, as we call it - your niche. Which topics are you passionate about? What could you happily talk about for hours? Or, as some creators say, what could you teach someone a class about? While passion is key, you need to choose something that you’re knowledgeable about and that has a good, active audience. There is such a thing as “too” niche!
Popular YouTube categories include tutorials, product reviews, gaming, comedy, fitness, cooking, and more. Do a search on YouTube for something unusual - there’s probably a channel dedicated to it (one of our favorites is BlendTec, who demonstrate the power of their blenders by literally blending household objects - and have 6 million subscribers).
When choosing your niche, think about the unique value you offer, based on your experience and expertise. For example, instead of a general "cooking" channel, you could focus specifically on vegan desserts or budget-friendly meal prep. The more targeted your niche, the easier it will be to stand out and attract a dedicated audience who will ideally one day become your community.
Step 2: Clarify Your Channel’s Brand
Once you've settled on your niche, now it's time to develop your channel's brand identity. You need a catchy, memorable channel name, a creative, attractive logo and banner, and you’ll also want to create a consistent “visual style” for your videos. This means using the same ‘skin’ for the start and end of the video, having the same font, the same graphics, so your subscribers can recognise your videos at a glance.
Your channel artwork is often the first thing potential subscribers will see, so it's important to make a strong first impression! Things like Canva offer really user-friendly templates to create pro-looking graphics, even if you don't have design experience, and their free plan is a great place to get started.
Make sure you set some time aside to create your intro video or channel trailer, too. This short video should cover a few things, such as:
- Introducing yourself
- Explain your channel's purpose
- Encouraging viewers to subscribe.
If you can optimize your "About" section with relevant keywords related to your niche, you’ll also improve your channel's discoverability (how easy it is to find) in search results.
Step 3: Choose Quality Equipment
While you don't need to spend a fortune on equipment when starting out, investing in a few key pieces can hugely improve the quality of your videos.
At the very least, think about getting a good microphone! This is because audio quality is critical for keeping viewers engaged. Natural lighting (by a big window), a tripod for stability (no one likes a wobbly video) and a reliable camera (which can be your smartphone!) are other essential items.
As your channel grows, you might want to upgrade to more advanced equipment like a ring light, backdrops, and higher-end cameras. Amazon offers curated "YouTuber kits" with everything you need to set up a basic home studio, and often at quite affordable prices, too.
Keep in mind that viewers are often more forgiving of lower visual quality than poor audio, so prioritize sound in your equipment choices!
Step 4: Create Valuable, Engaging Content
The heart of your channel is the content you create. This really is the core of your community and it is what will keep people coming back for more.
If you focus on producing videos with value - and by value, we mean things that educate, entertain, or inspire your target audience - you will find success sooner or later. Whether it’s sharing helpful tutorials, insightful product reviews, or hilarious skits, always aim to provide value to your viewers. Things that seem really obvious to you might be mindblowing for other people, so don’t be shy about sharing what you know. The smallest idea could be a viral video.
To help spark great ideas, have a look at YouTube trends, explore relevant online communities, and research the content your competitors are creating. Tools like vidIQ and TubeBuddy can also provide valuable data on popular keywords and can help optimize your videos for search, too.
Aim for quality over quantity, but try to maintain a consistent posting schedule that you know you can maintain to keep your audience engaged. Creating a content calendar can help you stay organized and ensure you're covering a variety of subtopics within your niche. Planning things out in advance, especially if you can take advantage of a burst of inspiration, will save you thinking time and energy in the long run.
Step 5: Community Engagement
We’re sorry if you’re nervous about this part - but unfortunately it is not enough to just create content and hope people will find you! In the beginning, you have to promote your channel.
While it can feel like hard work to build a strong community around your content, some effort and consistency in the beginning can really pay off later. Promote your channel by sharing your videos on your social media profiles, embedding them in relevant blog posts, or even by collaborating with other creators in your niche to “borrow” their audience and do a bit of cross-posting and promotion.
And if you’re not responding to comments, hosting Q&A sessions, and using interactive features like polls and live streams, please start to do so! These are great ways to create community. If you’re building genuine relationships with your viewers, this will help boost watch time, encourage subscriptions, and foster a loyal community around you and your content.
Yes, starting a successful YouTube channel takes dedication and persistence, but the rewards can be huge!
No matter if your goal is to educate, entertain, or build a business, these steps will help you start your YouTube journey on the right foot. Every popular creator began with their first video, so don't be afraid to hit record and what you have to offer. We just know someone out there is going to love it.
