Competition in the YouTube scene is fierce. The pioneer video sharing platform has over 2.6 billion users worldwide – every month, and has been labelled as the second largest search engine (following Google).
Although there are over 38 million active channels on the platform, building a strong community doesn’t always happen overnight.
The more subscribers you have, the more views each video is likely to receive, and this results in almost a domino effect, based on the YouTube algorithm. Channels that manage to reach a large number of subscribers, and receive more views and engagement are therefore more likely to get recommended to others.
The good news is, there are various actionable prompts you should keep in mind when strategizing on how to grow your channel, and we’ve compiled them below.
Let’s get into it!
Build relationships with your viewers
Audiences need to be engaged in order to build a long-lasting, loyal community around your channel.
It is almost the back-bone behind growing your YouTube organically and ethically, resulting in greater views and increasing the number of those subscribed to your channel.
Some obvious ideas to engage with your audience are to reply to comments, it shows that you acknowledge their support left on your page.
Other methods could be:
- Make reaction videos regarding your subscribers comments
- Do a giveaway to express your gratitude towards your supporters
- Be creative and fun, create a contest & pick a winner
- Collaborate with other content creators on the app
- Ask a question in a video and give them a CTA to reply
The end goal by doing all of this, is to depict to others that you genuinely care about those who watch, like and interact with the videos you publish.
Which then is reflected by your viewers, who will feel more emotionally connected to you and your brand online, resulting in a authentic relationship.
The video below illustrates how this creator did giveaway to her subscribers after reaching 100k and receiving the Creator Award from YouTube.
Up your upload frequency
As the same goes for every other social media platform, consistency is key!
According to an article written by Social Media Examiner, recent reports illustrate that the recommended upload schedule is minimum 2-3x per week.
It is highly crucial to effectively plan your upload and content schedule, because the key to YouTube is to create an expected workflow.
Regardless the type of videos you’re looking to make, it’s best to pick content that you can easily develop, and will be able to create regularly. This should consider the entire production process, such as filming, editing and uploading on time.
Letting your viewers know that you will be uploading “every Wednesday & Monday” for example, will allow this schedule to be imprinted in their minds weekly, and therefore you will have viewers expecting your video, as opposed to searching for it long after it has been uploaded.
Standing out & implementing SEO
Consequently, another element of YouTube to consider for channel growth is YouTube SEO.
As a creator you should look to optimize your videos in ways that encourage clicks, and seamlessly integrate keywords to boost your searchability on the platform. After all, it is regarded as a top search engine.
Including keywords in your titles, video description and tags allow you to reach a wider audience to increase the number of subscribers.
It is recommended by Sprout Social, that ’75 characters is the sweet spot for titles’.
Our top recommendations for title formats are:
- Tutorials & How-to guides
- ‘Day in the life with’…
- Posing a question ‘Why is…’
- Storytime’s & honest reviews
A good idea to conclude this, it to figure out what exactly your audience is looking for. Whether it’s entertainment, problem-solving or simply some inspiration.
Another aspect of optimizing your channel to gain more subscribers is to make you thumbnails visually appealing.
Typically this includes, a bright background to lure viewers, your catchy title in bold & highlighted, completed with an action-shot image.
Make sure the thumbnail and image used stick to the actual content of the video…no one likes clickbait.
Famous YouTubers ‘The ACE Family‘ have over 18 million subscribers and show a great example below, of how to really ensure your video thumbnail stands out and entices viewers.
Cross-promote on other platforms
Inevitably, you’re looking to grow an audience beyond those targeted on the platform itself.
If you’ve already got a following on Instagram, it is pivotal that you that you use it to your advantage.
Tease your followers for a glimpse into what they can expect from a video due to be uploaded soon. Creating a poll on Instagram to discuss or ask questions from your Twitter followers and make a video on it for YouTube.
You can even embed one of your videos into an email to clients for example (it will still contribute to the number of views), all that’s needed in this circumstance is a visually-appealing thumbnail that would urge someone to click and watch.
There are so many creative ways that you can cohesively integrate your other social media platforms into the world of YouTube, to widen your reach and build your online community!
A quick trick! Jump onto YouTube settings, and select ‘Connected Accounts’ in order to connect your Twitter and other social media accounts. By doing this, you can save a lot of time and hassle, as your published videos will automatically be promoted onto the accounts you log into and link.
See the caption below as an example on how to promote a new video through posting on Instagram.
To establish yourself as a professional on YouTube, you must attain a larger number of subscribers. The right way to do this is by creating high-quality content that is regular, engaging with your audience, and optimizing key areas.
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