YouTube Channel: How To Create, Grow & Succeed 

I Was Ready To Give Up After Posting My First Video

I clearly remember the moment when I uploaded my first YouTube video. I recorded it on my mobile phone, edited with some free tools, and pushed the "publish" button. I felt pretty excited and anticipated the views right away.

In the first few days after the upload, my video was viewed by just a couple of people, mostly from my friends and family. Honestly speaking, at that point, I felt discouraged and believed that it was impossible to become a successful YouTuber being a complete beginner.

But I didn't give up and studied how successful channel owners did their job. I worked on my thumbnails, got some basics of video editing, used more relevant titles and posted new content consistently. Gradually, it worked: my videos became recommended and my channel was growing.

If you're going to start your own YouTube channel, then you probably feel the same mixture of feelings. And here's good news: you don't need anything expensive to start your adventure.

So let's discuss everything you need to know.

YouTube Channel Definition

A YouTube channel is your personal territory on the YouTube platform where you post videos for the viewers from all around the world.

It could be related to nearly everything, such as:

Technology

Games

Cuisine

Education

Health

Travel

Internet money-making

Product reviews

Lifestyle

Do-it-yourself activities

Entrepreneurship

Consider it as your personal television channel where you are both the producer and broadcaster.

Why Should You Start Your YouTube Channel?

There are various reasons why people create YouTube channels.

Sometimes, there is a desire to spread information.

Other times, one just likes filming videos for fun.

And, most likely, those people will start earning money by placing advertisements, working with sponsors, affiliate marketing, or promoting own products.

Some of the advantages are:

Creation of your personal brand

Ability to reach millions of viewers

Acquisition of useful skills

Generation of passive income

Resolution of people's issues

Development of the Internet business

Though earning money might not be your priority right away, there are lots of other opportunities that await you.

Selecting the Correct Channel Niche

A bad decision that I made early on was posting arbitrary videos.

One week, I posted a gaming video.

The following week, I posted a tech tutorial.

After that, I posted an entirely unrelated video.

The outcome?

People were confused about what my channel was all about.

In time, I realized that most popular channels had a common theme.

Common niches in YouTube include:

Technology reviews

Mobile technology

Computer tips

Gaming

Education

Personal finance

Beauty

Health and fitness

Culinary

Travel

Motivation

Pick a niche that you love since you will be making videos on it for long periods of time.

Steps on How to Make a YouTube Channel

It will take just a couple of minutes to make a YouTube channel.

Step 1: Make a Google Account

If you're already using Gmail, it's done.

Step 2: Go to YouTube

Log in via your Google account.

Step 3: Make Your Channel

Click on your profile photo.

Choose Create Channel.

Enter a name for your channel.

Add a profile picture.

Provide a short description for your channel.

That's all.

You now have your very own YouTube channel.

Make Sure Your Channel Has an Appealing Appearance

Branding is often neglected by novice YouTubers.

Tiny changes will make a huge difference and your channel will look more credible.

Make sure that you have:

Profile Picture

Banner

Logo

Channel Name

About Section

Such free resources as Canva can be really helpful.

Equipment You Don’t Really Need

Most assume that you have to have an expensive camera to begin with.

This isn’t the case.

The first few videos I made were shot with my smartphone.

Here is the basic set up:

Smartphone with a relatively good camera 

Tripod 

Inexpensive microphone 

Natural lighting or ring light 

Quiet environment 

As your channel starts growing you can upgrade the equipment.

Best Video Editing Software 

Video editing does not have to be hard.

Some video editors which you can try are:

CapCut

VN Editor 

DaVinci Resolve 

Filmora

Adobe Premiere Pro

I used to spend too much time trying to make fancy edits at the beginning of my channel’s life.

Later I understood that clean editing was way more important than any fancy transitions.

Planning Your Videos

Succesful YouTubers never shoot videos unprepared.

Before shooting your video, write down:

Topic of the video

Key points

Introduction

Examples

Conclusion

Even a small outline will help you keep everything in order.

Making Better Quality Videos

You do not need to have an amazing voice.

You do not need to speak perfect English.

All you need is to explain the information clearly.

Some easy steps:

Talk as you talk normally.

Speak smiling.

Minimize the noise around you.

Look at the camera.

Do not rush yourself.

In case you made a mistake, pause and redo the phrase.

This can be edited afterwards.

How to Write Engaging Titles?

The title is one of the first things your viewers see.

Instead of using:

"Phone review"

Go for something more specified:

"Samsung Galaxy S24 Review after 30 days of daily use"

Such titles tend to work much better.

Making Thumbnails Eye-catching

I have had videos which contained very good content but not many views since the thumbnail was not eye-catching.

An eye-catching thumbnail will:

Have bright colors

Contain readable text

Evoke emotions

Focus on the topic

Be simple

Do not make it crowded.

Uploading Your Video

When uploading your video, you will need to ensure you have:

Title

Description

Thumbnail

Tags (optional)

Playlist

Audience setting

A complete video is much more professional.

YouTube SEO Basics

YouTube is also a search engine.

This implies that people are searching for videos daily.

Use keywords naturally in:

Title

Description

Spoken words

File name (optional)

Do not keep repeating the same keyword.

First write for humans.

Be Consistent

This is the most important thing I learned in YouTube.

It takes not one but several great videos to make an effective channel.

What really matters is uploading regularly.

Try uploading in this way:

One video every week.

Two videos every week.

Find a way that is realistic for you.

Being consistent helps build trust in your channel.

Interact with Your Audience

Respond to their comments.

Ask questions.

Say thanks for watching.

People who feel involved in your channel are much more likely to subscribe to it.

I even had some of my best ideas in the comments.

Learn from YouTube Statistics

Once you've uploaded a few videos, take time to look into YouTube studio.

The most important statistics to consider are:

Views

Watch time

Click-through rate

Audience retention

Subscribers gained

How You Can Earn Money on YouTube

There are many ways that you can earn money after your channel is established.

They are as follows:

YouTube Partner Program

Affiliate Marketing

Branding

Sale of Digital Products

Merchandise

Online Courses

Most creators opt for more than one source of income rather than solely relying on advertisements.

Common Mistakes Made By Newcomers

I have committed most of these errors personally.

Things to Avoid If Possible Are As Follows:

Posting Videos With Irrelevant Topics

Only concentrate on one niche.

Bad Quality Audio

Although people may overlook poor quality videos but will never let off poor audio.

Giving up too soon

Most successful channels take months to get some traction.

Ignoring Thumbs

A good video requires a nice thumb as well.

Real-Life Example

Suppose an individual wants to make a technology channel.

Rather than publishing anything, they select a particular area:

"Low-budget phones"

Each week they upload:

Phone reviews

Camera comparisons

Battery life test

Hidden phone features

Purchase guide

Within some months, even YouTube will be able to detect the theme of the channel.

Those who are interested in smartphones start subscribing to the channel.

Such approach almost always turns out to be more successful than just posting some videos.

Is It Worth It to Start Your Own YouTube Channel?

Starting your own YouTube channel can be worthwhile provided that you do not expect overnight success and are ready to work hard. Even though it will take time before you gain the necessary followers, YouTube is one of the most valuable means for disseminating information, developing one’s personal brand, and making money online. Many successful YouTubers have started their journey with primitive tools and a minimal number of subscribers. All you need to do is create useful videos and get better at it with every upload.

Conclusion

Starting on YouTube may seem scary, especially when you keep in mind that not all people who watch your videos do so after watching some certain number of your first videos. That's completely understandable. Not even famous YouTubers had millions of subscribers right from the beginning or a lot of experience.

The main difference between successful channels and unsuccessful ones lies in the ability to persist and improve yourself. With every video that you publish, you gain an important experience about how to talk, edit videos, come up with catchy titles.

If you are waiting for the perfect camera, perfect script or perfect moment to start making videos, you will never start at all. Start shooting videos with your phone and make them as good as you can. After a month or two you will definitely thank yourself for that decision.