What I Wish I’d Known Before Starting a YouTube Channel
Image courtesy of Unsplash
In May of 2020, I decided to make a YouTube channel. Along with many other people too, I’m sure #quarantine.
TikTok make me do it. There was a trend going around where you’d take your photos and make them look like a Vogue magazine cover. I had so much fun making that video, that I thought, maybe I should try YouTube videos too! I love photography, I will teach the world all about it!
I did so much research. I learned all about analytics, tags, video editing, ads, video file types, microphones, and anything else I could possibly find out about YouTube and videography.
True to my ADHD brain, I dove headfirst for about 6 months and then crashed.
Here’s what I wish I would have known before I started my channel.
Don’t pick your niche based on what you love, pick it based on what people are going to watch.
Hopefully, those two things will be the same. For me, they aren’t.
I love photography. I always have. But I’m not that good at talking about it. I find the technical stuff boring, to be honest. It’s all so ingrained in my mind at this point, it’s second nature. Imagine telling someone how to use a TV remote. Boring, right? I didn’t have the stamina or care to talk about something that bores the heck out of me. No one else is going to want to listen to me either. I don't have the personality to be a tech YouTuber. I am okay with that, they’re all kind of annoying, to be honest.
Don’t buy a ton of new gear.
You should just use your smartphone to film. That’s all you need. If you’re feeling fancy, buy a light or microphone. Don’t buy a DSLR or a new lens or a new computer or Adobe Premiere Pro. Use what you have.
Don’t use Google Ads to get followers. Just yet.
I used Google Ads to get more followers. The problem is that I didn’t have any good content yet to watch. Google Ads doesn’t care if people hate your content, they’ll take your money anyways. Great, they hit subscribe, and then never watch any more videos again. Bad use of money, I’d say. Use your time and money to create better content. Use this time while no one is watching you to experiment and get better. No one wants to watch your first 20+ videos anyways, trust me.
Don’t join YouTuber Facebook groups.
People are only there to promote their own channels. Sub 4 Sub is against YouTube’s guidelines anyway. It never helps you in the long run to get subscribers who will never watch your videos ever again.
Don’t tell your friends and family about your channel.
They’ll watch your videos because they love you. But it’ll be weird. They’ll comment and tell you how great you’re doing. But they are probably not your target audience anyway. You need to be able to make complete strangers want to watch your videos, not your mom.
It’s going to take MUCH longer than you thought.
It’s going to feel like you are just yelling into the void. For a LONG time. Your only commenters will be bots or people trying to get you to Sub 4 Sub. You’ll be tired of filming and editing. But then you’ll finally make a video that you’re super proud of, and you’ll be re-energized. This cycle will be on repeat for months. You’ll take a break. You’ll come back. You’ll try again.
Sometimes, it won’t be fun.
It’s hard work. It’s mentally draining. Hardly anyone will watch your videos and you’ll wonder why you bother filming at all. You aren’t going to want to set up your light and camera and put on a bra to film a video. You’d rather stay on the couch and watch Netflix. But eventually, you’ll muster up the energy to film and you’ll be glad you did.
You don’t need to be a YouTuber.
There, I said it. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you have to.
Do you like talking? Do you like editing videos? Do you like weeding out spam comments? Do you have enough interesting things to talk about?
I love to write. I have a lot of thoughts in my head that could translate to articles. But videos? Nah. I am not a great public speaker and most of what needs to be said about photography has already been said or someone else is already doing it better (in my opinion).
Speaking to a camera is not second nature to me. I am much better at expressing myself through writing or art. The sad truth about YouTube is that even if you have the best ideas, the fanciest camera, and the most followers- if you aren’t fun or interesting or likable to watch, you aren't going to do well.
If you try it out and you really don’t like doing it… you can stop. At any time. You are allowed to quit and try a new endeavor, or change your niche, or try a platform other than YouTube. Maybe you’d rather live stream on Instagram or Twitch. Maybe TikTok would be better for you. Maybe you’d rather plant a garden.
I will continue to make videos for my lifestyle channel and my partner’s gaming channel to complement my writing and social media. But that’s it, YouTube will not be the main endeavor. And therefore, it will stay fun (hopefully!)
Best of luck to all that are in the beginning stages of their YouTube channel journey! I do truly wish you all the best.
Leave your channel names or links below and we’ll follow y’all (but only if we actually enjoy your content, because what’s the point of an empty subscriber? The algorithm doesn’t like when you have subscribers that don’t watch your videos).
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