Angela Hausman, PhD January 14, 2021 
YouTube statistics seem daunting if you want to grow your YouTube channel. With 30,000 hours of videos uploaded every hour, and 5 billion videos watched every day, standing out from the crowd looks nearly impossible. With all this competition, many channels never gain the traction required to become one of the 10 thousand videos that generate over 1 billion views between them. Fortunately, we’re sharing some strategies designed to grow your YouTube channel and achieve the success you seek.
And if you use them, your YouTube channel has a potential audience of 2 billion monthly users. And it doesn’t matter if you’re new to YouTube or a seasoned pro. These promotional strategies work for everyone.
So, without further ado, here are the 7 tips you need to grow your YouTube channel.
7 tips necessary to grow your YouTube channel
1. Use SEO to make your content searchable
Image courtesy of Yoast SEO Plugin
SEO (search engine optimization) is all about increasing traffic flow to your YouTube channel by using targeted keywords that YouTubes’ algorithms then use to identify, source, and connect users to your content. For SEO to work in your favor, you must choose understandable search terms that people are highly likely to use and that YouTube’s algorithms will understand. For help with this, use Google Trends for Search or Keyword Planner, that is part of the Google Ads network. Several other companies also offer support for keyword research based on actual search data. You want to choose a few keywords (actually phrases) that match your expertise while producing a large number of searches with low competition. Of course, that isn’t always possible, so that’s where experience comes into the choice.
Once you identified your keywords, review all other ranking videos for that search term to ensure your keyword aligns with the searcher’s intent (the subject matches the keyword), as well as to assess your competition. If your chosen keywords if not, choose another keyword.
To maximize your channel’s viewership, first identify the optimal keywords for your content before building your video. Then create your content around that specific term and insert your keyword naturally throughout your video.
Next, optimize your title and descriptions and make the intro as attention-grabbing and informative as possible because 20% of viewers leave within the first 10 seconds. And the most successful videos on YouTube are usually under 5 minutes long.
So, keep it short, engaging, and to the point.
2. Use branding to create awareness
Professional branding is now an essential design element for all platforms, including YouTube, as it increases brand awareness, provides viewers with recognizable visuals, and shows them that your YouTube channel is serious about its content.
Branding also makes your channel visually appealing and instantly recognizable to your audience. And most of all, it differentiates you from your competitors. If you already have a blog, you probably already have a look and feel that you can transfer to your YouTube channel, and in doing so, you’ll start creating brand-connections throughout all your platforms.
If you have a company logo, use it on your channel, but ensure its compatible and up-to-date by checking out some YouTube logo examples before uploading. And if you’re an independent blogger, you can always go with a headshot. You can also use your branding to add links to your website and other social media platforms using links in banner images. And use self-branded overlays if talking about a specific product in your video, it’s a powerful strategy for retaining viewers while watching your video.
3. Nail it with thumbnails
Thumbnails are another crucial branding strategy for capturing user’s interest when they browse on YouTube, and for making your content more appealing to advertisers.
They act like mini billboards by giving viewers a quick snapshot of your video, helping them to decide whether to click through and watch. Effectively designed thumbnails and titles make your channel instantly recognizable and are great for attracting more fans to your YouTube channel.
Highly optimized thumbnails are relevant to your video’s content, include short catchy descriptions (taglines), and high-quality images, so viewers instantly understand what your video is about. Your thumbnail and title should leave viewers wanting to know what happens next, thus encouraging them to watch your video.
When you’ve completed uploading your video, you can either choose to upload your custom thumbnail or use the three options that YouTube automatically generates for you.
In addition, here are some helpful tips for custom thumbnails:
- Include your video title in your thumbnail.
- Use high-quality images.
- Only use standard video sizes: 1920×1080 or 1280×720.
- Use the following Image: PNG, JPG, GIF, BMP, or TIF.
- Use the 16:9 aspect ratio.
- Keep your branding consistent in all your thumbnails.
- Make them visually appealing and direct.
4.Include CTA’s and increase engagement
CTA’s (call to action) buttons like the one to the left encourage viewers to take your desired action, such as click through to your website, buy a product, or join an email list. And on YouTube, they’re also an excellent way to increase user engagement and subscribers.
But CTA’s can also be off-putting because we don’t like being told to take action. You have to use them right by designing yours so they act as a natural progression from your video. Make them clear and concise, and try using humor in your CTA’s, so they don’t appear as just another sales pitch. It pays to put the work into designing your CTA’s, get them right, and it’ll be well worth the effort.
5. Engage your YouTube community
You might not think of YouTube as a typical social media channel. However, the platform represents a community of 2 billion monthly users, a large percentage of whom actively engage with content using likes and comments. As with other social networds, the more you engage with users, the better YouTube will view your channel because YouTube views any engagement as a positive signal, it is, after all, how they generate revenue.
But engaging with the YouTube community also helps you, as subscribers see that you’re actively taking part in the community, enabling you to establish a deeper connection with your audience. And all you have to do to make that happen is take a few seconds “liking” comments.
6. Promote your YouTube videos on all your social media platforms
There’s no marketing platform as robust as social media for cross-promoting your content and brand, and YouTube is no different. And by sharing your videos across the internet, you extend the reach of your YouTube channel to an almost inexhaustible audience.
Video sharing across social media is fast becoming a fundamental way of growing a brand because users love videos. It works best by being active in all your social media channels and publishing your latest videos in a style that befits the platform you’re promoting them on.
Every platform has its own cultural demographic. To ensure you drive the maximum traffic towards your YouTube channel, you must use a proven approach to ensure users receive your efforts positively and provide you with the highest ROI.
7. Reformat existing content
Content drives the internet, and everything on it, including YouTube. And several content rules apply, regardless of the platform you’re using. Content must be relevant, consistent, of high quality, and SEO-orientated.
However, that takes a lot of work and time. But did you know that almost all successful bloggers, websites, and YouTube channels regularly reformat existing content to drive it up the rankings? All you have to do is revisit and review your existing videos and add up-dated information and newer marketing strategies. Remember, nothing online is inert, and there’s always something you can do to improve and reuse your existing content.
That’s A Wrap
While the statistics and competition on YouTube continue to grow, ff you use these strategies so will your channel.
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