In this time and era of information technology, the human race is considered to be at the peak of the 2 components that set them considerably apart from all other living beings; the act of clear verbal communication and intellectual creation.
So, what happens when you bring both together? One of the fastest-growing influential platforms, that’s what! We’re talking about YouTube.
While it can be heavily debated whether YouTube is actually the biggest platform, we have seen through the years multiple individuals switch from the platform that gives them initial fame to YouTube to keep generating their content.
YouTube, as of 2018, has 23 million YouTube channels. That’s A LOT of channels. Moreover, as the days and months pass, the platform seems to become more saturated than it has ever been before; namely in reaction, make-up and gaming videos.
How does one separate their creative content from the enormous existing content on the platform? It’s not simple and requires a lot of hard work, but we have your back!
Listed below are a set of targets that you can use to become a better YouTuber:
Plan the Content:
Before actually creating your account and username, you probably decided what kind of content you would be creating. Stay true to your initial goal.
By doing so, you keep a clear focus on the kind of videos you will be making and the kind of topics you want to address.
Creating a content planner well in advance of the month allows you to create content that is relevant for that particular month, for example, December = Christmas and New Year; October = Fall, Pumpkin Spice, and Halloween
The right equipment matters:
We genuinely can not stress this enough. When you are investing in your YouTube channel and hope for it to, with time, become your sole source of income, it is important for you to make sure you have the right camera that will last you at least a couple of years.
This important solely for the level of quality you can shoot with. The better the camera, the more you can do with it, shifting from indoor, outdoor and various other styles of shooting.
While you’re investing in a good camera, make sure you have the equipment that stabilizes your camera as well.
For example, a sturdy pan and tilt tripod that’s best for still and stable shots. If you shoot very often in your car or public spaces, you can opt for a hand-held mini tripod that stabilizes your device but is easy to manage when on the move.
But the camera isn’t everything:
But also remember, a good camera is not all that matters. Having good footage needn’t mean you have all the other aspects that make a good video, at least not technically. You need to make sure you have correct audio equipment to pick up on the right sounds that you need.
For example, a shotgun microphone would cancel out all sounds from behind the camera and pick up only the sounds that are immediately in front of the camera.
A lavaliere microphone is comparatively smaller and can be attached to someone’s clothing or placed in front of a speaker’s mouth, it allows for clear diction with a more hands-free experience.
Look for the right inspiration:
When you actually get down to creating your content, once all your equipment and ideas are in place, look for inspiration. Being uninformed in information is a mistake that a lot of online personalities face. Don’t throw yourself under the bus that way.
Instead, be on top of the game, watch the news, read books, magazines and watch tv shows that are relevant for your content generation. Gaining perspective and making your own ideated and well-backed opinions makes you a more trustworthy person. This trusting aspect will come into play when people choose you over other influencers in the same field area as you.
Act Fast:
Time is always running, but video production is known to create an illusion of time, making someone lose track of where they are and how long they’ve been fixated over their screen. As a creator, you must take this to your advantage.
When curating content, go back, again and again, to re-check whether every second and every minute of your video is worthy of being in. When there’s a lot of content that needn’t be there in your video, there exists a higher chance of your viewer to click away, or worse, never choose to watch your content again.
Do not reduce the quality of your video to make your video 10 minutes long.
Take Editing Seriously:
The footage is just footage until brought on the editing table. Just like the previous point, making sure that you are consciously aware of everything that is in your video and aware of how you are presenting it is important.
That’s why when you first start off your YouTube journey, try to stick to easier editing applications. With practice, you’ll become more hands-on making you better and more efficient at editing. As you learn and progress you can take up more challenging editing tasks. The first few that you should probably start off with include Apple’s iMovie and Windows Movie Maker which come inbuilt with your system. They offer a wide range of editing styles that are currently the most sought after.
If you intend to get more creative and artsy with your work, you can go ahead and get handsy with Adobe Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro.
SEO’s are more important than you realize:
Search Engine Optimization or SEO’s are extremely important. In the initial part of this article, we spoke about how it’s really difficult for creators to have people access their videos. This is mostly because of how heavily saturated YouTube is.
The best way to deal with this? When uploading your video, add in a description, appropriate tags and make sure that the title of the video is very relevant to the video you have created. Keywords and key phrases are important. They help the YouTube algorithm pick up on these words and boost them up on the search page when someone searches for those keywords.
Socialize, share and collaborate:
Expand your network. Once you’re down a couple of videos and you’re gaining traction on your site, you should put in the effort to make friends with people in the same field as you. This helps in collaborations and allows you to tap into their audience and for them to do the same with your audience. This automatically makes both of you more relevant and makes viewers also want to click on more videos.
Not only does socializing help in creating a more lasting image of yourself amongst your peers and colleagues but it also gives you more personality and variety on your channel.
But of course, as with everything, make sure you have the right people around you. There are a lot of cases of drama and false friendships online. Keeping the right growth around is also important. Do not put up with personalities that you are not fully comfortable with only to gain traction of popularity.
Don’t compare:
You are not your peers. Stay clear of thinking that way. When you create content and decide to publish it online for a larger mass to access, you need to remember that what you create may already exist, in a far better version than what you are capable of. But, at the end of the day, you made this, and it is your proud creation. You shouldn’t compare your skills, qualities, and traits to someone else. By being genuine to yourself and your audience, you become a more likable personality and name.
Speaking of the audience:
Since we’re talking about audiences, make sure you put in an effort to connect with your viewers. They take a certain part of their time and day to watch your content. With time they may help you earn your living. Keeping this humble attitude right from the start helps in connecting and staying relevant and relatable.
Moreover, this is around the best time to make your social media presence an interactive ground. Use your Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter to share your YouTube videos, interact with your audience through comments and likes and to share opinions.
Engaging in a two-way conversation with your fanbase is more than important.
Ignore the Negativity:
Negativity is a huge con of existing publicly on the internet. From online bullying to harassment, the internet is known for being a notorious and extreme platform. When you signup to be a part of the online public space, you consciously agree to be placed on a pedestal at all times, being constantly watched.
This means you may garner a lot of hate comments, regardless of how small or big your channel is. These hate comments can be used as a good reminder of where you can put in more effort to become a better content curator. Seek strength from such comments instead of letting them force you to crumble. Moving through negativity through learning and acceptance is the best way to tackle it.
Consistency is the Key:
Most YouTubers create a strict schedule to follow and this helps in keeping their audience engaged. Your content may be imperfect, but that shouldn’t cause you to stop or hesitate in posting your stuff. A steady flow allows viewers to know when to expect a video. A fixed schedule like once a week or on every Friday and Tuesday allows the viewers to know when you’ll post next, allowing them to tune back in on that day so none of your videos go unwatched.
Keep S.M.A.R.T goals:
All your goals should follow the S.M.A.R.T criteria i.e. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. When you keep goals that abide by the above it’s easier to fulfill your goals faster and more efficiently.
Specific goals make sure there are a clear path and purpose for the goal.
Measurable helps you know the quantitative aspects of reach and growth, it allows you to effectively watch your progress.
Attainable makes sure these goals are not too far fetched and can be within your arms reach of success.
Relevant means your goals are important and help you in a very specific way. It’s not smart to have goals that do not increase your progress in any way.
Timely allows you to give yourself a certain amount of time and deadline to achieve your goal. It makes sure you are achieving as you should and allows you to pick up the pace whenever you can.
At the end of the day, there’s a lot of aspects to keep in mind when opening your YouTube channel and you should make sure you have the commitment to fall and get back up in every aspect; whether that aspect is your social skills, editing skills or creative abilities. We wish you all the luck in your endeavors!
