Ex-YouTube Employee Reveals How To Grow Your YouTube Channel

Summary

In this edition of Creator Office Hours by TubeBuddy, the host shares valuable insights for aspiring YouTubers. The key takeaways include launching a channel with at least five diverse videos to boost watch time and engagement, utilizing batch production and scheduled release for consistent content creation while balancing work and family life, leveraging search traffic through Google Trends and TubeBuddy's tools, and employing a four-step storytelling process to captivate viewers. Additionally, tips for improving iPhone camera quality and enabling high-quality uploads on Instagram are provided, ensuring creators can enhance their content without needing the latest tech.

Takeaways

• 🚀 Launch a YouTube channel with an initial batch of five videos to signal to YouTube and viewers that you are committed and to increase watch time.
• 🔍 Use Google Trends to identify popular search terms related to your niche and create content around those topics to attract initial traffic.
• 🎥 Batch production and scheduled release can help manage time between a job, family, and content creation by reducing context switching.
• 📈 Experiment with different video styles and formats within your niche to discover what resonates most with your audience.
• 📹 Improve iPhone camera quality by setting the camera resolution to 4K and using the rear camera for better results.
• 📱 For Instagram, enable high-quality uploads in settings to ensure your content looks its best.
• 🗣️ Tell compelling stories by following a four-step process: intro, problem, solution, and outro, with a call to action that relates back to the viewer.
• 🔑 Search is crucial for drawing in new viewers, especially when starting with no external traffic.
• 📈 TubeBuddy offers tools to analyze search volume, competition, and overall score for search terms on YouTube, aiding in content strategy.
• 🤔 Consider how your content can be made personal and relatable to the viewer, encouraging them to apply the lessons to their own lives.
• ⏱️ Consistency in video production and release can be achieved by dedicating specific time slots for brainstorming, scripting, filming, and scheduling.

Q & A

What is the 'five video rule' for launching a YouTube channel mentioned in the script?

The 'five video rule' suggests that instead of launching a channel with nothing or just one video, you should launch it with five videos. This helps to establish significant watch time from the start, showing YouTube that the channel can retain viewers and engage them effectively.

Why is it recommended to have different styles and formats for the initial five videos on a new YouTube channel?

Having different styles and formats for the initial five videos allows creators to experiment and determine what resonates most with their audience. It helps in identifying the most engaging content for their niche, which can then be used to guide the creation of subsequent videos.

How can a creator balance making videos with a job and family commitments?

The script suggests batch production and scheduled release as a solution. Creators should dedicate a specific time, such as once a week, to brainstorming ideas, scripting, and producing multiple videos in one go. Then, they can schedule the release of these videos throughout the week without disrupting their job or family time.

What role does search play in attracting new viewers to a YouTube channel?

Search is crucial for driving initial traffic to a channel. Using tools like Google Trends to identify popular search terms related to the channel's niche can help in creating content that is more likely to be discovered through search.

How can TubeBuddy's tool assist in deciding what content to create for a YouTube channel?

TubeBuddy's tool can analyze search terms, providing information on search volume and competition for those terms. This data helps creators decide what topics to focus on to build their initial audience effectively.

What is the four-step process for telling better stories in videos as outlined in the script?

The four-step process includes: 1) Intro - a hook to grab attention, 2) Problem - presenting an issue, 3) Solution - providing a resolution to the problem, and 4) Outro - concluding with a call to action, often relating back to the viewer's personal experience or actions.

How does the script suggest improving the iPhone's camera quality for video recording?

The script recommends going to the iPhone's settings, selecting the camera, and increasing the resolution to 4K, which is usually higher than the default setting. Additionally, it suggests using the back camera for better quality and, for Instagram, enabling high-quality uploads in the app settings.

What is the significance of the outro in storytelling for video content?

The outro is important because it ties the story back to the viewer, creating a personal connection. It often includes a call to action, encouraging the viewer to reflect on the content and consider how it relates to their own life or actions.

How can creators make their content more engaging according to the script?

Creators can make their content more engaging by ensuring a significant watch time journey in the first week, experimenting with different video styles and formats, and telling stories that resonate with the audience by following a structured storytelling process.

What is the importance of showing commitment when launching a new YouTube channel?

Showing commitment by launching with multiple videos indicates to both the audience and YouTube that the creator is serious about their channel. This can help in building trust and engagement from the start.

How can creators use Google Trends to their advantage when creating content for YouTube?

Creators can use Google Trends to identify popular search terms and topics within their niche. By creating content around these trending topics, they can tap into search traffic and attract new viewers to their channel.

What is the recommended approach for managing video production alongside a full-time job and family life?

The recommended approach is to batch produce videos during dedicated time slots, such as a weekend day, and then schedule their release throughout the week. This method minimizes context switching and allows for a more efficient use of time.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Launching a YouTube Channel: The Five Video Rule

The speaker emphasizes the importance of launching a YouTube channel with a strategy in mind, specifically the 'five video rule'. This rule suggests that creators should not launch their channel with just one video, as it signals to YouTube and viewers that the channel lacks content and engagement. Instead, creators should upload five videos at once to encourage viewers to spend more time on the channel, which in turn boosts watch time and signals to YouTube that the channel is engaging. Additionally, it's recommended that these five videos vary in style and format but remain within the same niche, allowing creators to experiment and find what resonates best with their audience.

📅 Balancing Content Creation with Work and Family

The speaker addresses the challenge of creating content consistently while managing a job and family life. The key advice given is to adopt a 'batch production scheduled release' approach. This involves dedicating a specific time, such as a weekend, to brainstorming ideas, scripting, and producing multiple videos in one go. The speaker suggests doing this during off-hours, like Sunday nights, to avoid conflicting with work responsibilities. The videos are then scheduled for release throughout the week, ideally in the morning before starting work, to ensure a consistent flow of content without disrupting daily life.

🔍 Attracting New Viewers Through Search Optimization

To draw in new viewers, the speaker highlights the power of search engine optimization (SEO), particularly for YouTube. They recommend using Google Trends to identify popular search terms related to one's niche and creating content around those high-performing keywords. Additionally, the speaker introduces a tool by TubeBuddy that can analyze search volume, competition, and provide an overall score for any search term on YouTube. This tool can help creators decide what content to produce to attract an initial audience and grow their channel.

📚 The Four-Step Storytelling Process for Engaging Content

The speaker outlines a four-step process for telling better stories in videos, which includes an intro, problem, solution, and outro. This method is exemplified by the success of Nas Daily, who has grown a massive following using this approach. The intro serves as a hook to capture attention, followed by the presentation of a problem that the viewer is not aware of or hasn't considered. The creator then provides a solution in a structured manner, and the video concludes with an outro that includes a call to action, making the content personal and relatable to the viewer's life.

📱 Enhancing iPhone Camera Quality Without Upgrading

For creators looking to improve the quality of their videos without purchasing a new iPhone, the speaker offers practical advice. They suggest going to the iPhone's settings and increasing the camera resolution to 4K, as the default setting is often lower. Additionally, they recommend using the rear camera for filming, which provides better quality than the front-facing camera. For those who post on Instagram, they advise turning on 'high quality uploads' in the Instagram settings to ensure that the uploaded videos maintain their quality.

Keywords

💡Creator Office Hours

Creator Office Hours refers to a session or a platform where creators can get their questions answered, typically about their craft or business. In the video's context, it is a series by TubeBuddy where the host, who has experience at YouTube and Instagram, addresses queries related to content creation and growth strategies on these platforms.

💡YouTube channel

A YouTube channel is a user-generated content space on the video-sharing platform YouTube, where individuals or organizations can upload, share, and manage their videos. The script discusses strategies for launching and growing a YouTube channel, emphasizing the importance of initial content and watch time.

💡Five video rule

The five video rule is a content strategy mentioned in the script, suggesting that new YouTube channels should launch with at least five videos to encourage viewership and signal to YouTube's algorithm that the channel is valuable. This rule is associated with MatPat, who has successfully started multiple YouTube channels.

💡Watch time

Watch time is a metric used by YouTube to measure the total amount of time viewers spend watching videos. In the script, it is highlighted as a critical factor for a channel's success because it indicates viewer engagement and can influence the channel's visibility in YouTube's search and recommendation algorithms.

💡Batch production

Batch production is a content creation strategy where multiple pieces of content are produced in one sitting or over a short period, then scheduled for release. This approach helps creators maintain consistency and manage their time effectively, as discussed in the script in relation to balancing a job, family, and content creation.

💡Google Trends

Google Trends is a tool that shows the popularity of search queries over time. In the video, it is recommended as a resource for identifying trending topics related to one's niche to create timely and relevant content that can attract search traffic to a YouTube channel.

💡Search volume

Search volume refers to the number of times a particular search term is entered into a search engine within a given time frame. The script mentions using search volume as an indicator to determine which topics to create content about to attract an initial audience to a YouTube channel.

💡Storytelling

Storytelling is the art of telling stories to engage and persuade an audience. The script outlines a four-step process for telling better stories, which includes an intro, problem, solution, and outro. This method is used to create compelling content that resonates with viewers.

💡Intro, problem, solution, outro

This is a storytelling framework mentioned in the script that helps creators structure their content effectively. It involves starting with an engaging intro, presenting a problem, offering a solution, and concluding with an outro that includes a call to action. This structure is exemplified by the script's reference to Nas Daily's content creation strategy.

💡iPhone camera quality

The script provides tips for improving the quality of videos shot on an iPhone, which is a popular device for creating content due to its accessibility and portability. It suggests increasing the camera resolution to 4k and using the back camera for better quality, as well as enabling high-quality uploads on Instagram for optimal visual presentation.

Highlights

Launching a YouTube channel should follow the 'five video rule' to ensure significant watch time and engagement.

Avoid launching a channel with nothing or just one video, as it signals low retention to YouTube's algorithm.

The initial five videos should be diverse in style and format to test audience preferences.

Batch production and scheduled release are recommended for creators balancing jobs and family.

To avoid context switching, dedicate time once a week for scripting and filming multiple videos.

Use Google Trends to identify high search volume topics for initial traffic to your channel.

TubeBuddy offers a tool to assess search terms' potential for YouTube content creation.

A four-step storytelling process (intro, problem, solution, outro) can enhance video narratives.

Nas Daily's success is attributed to their consistent use of the four-step storytelling process.

The outro of a story should include a call to action, making it personal for the viewer.

To improve iPhone camera quality, set the resolution to 4k and use the rear camera for better results.

Enable 'high quality uploads' on Instagram for better image quality.

Creator Office Hours by TubeBuddy is a platform for answering creator-related questions.

Engage with the audience by asking questions and providing answers in the next month's edition.

The importance of showing commitment to the channel by launching with multiple videos.

Experiment with different video styles to find what resonates most with your audience.

Utilize TubeBuddy's search term analysis to decide on content that can build your initial audience.

Make content creation a part of your weekly routine to maintain consistency.

Transcripts

- What's up guys?

Welcome to Creator Office Hours by TubeBuddy,

where I answer your questions

about how to make it as a creator

as someone who has worked at YouTube and Instagram

for the past eight years.

So let's dive into the first question

and I'll keep these as concise as possible,

so you get as much value as possible.

All right, first question,

what's the best way to launch a YouTube channel,

especially with no external traffic?

Make sure you follow the five video rule,

which is a rule that I actually talked about

in my interview with MatPat,

who has started multiple YouTube channels

with millions of subscribers each.

- So when you're starting a channel,

the biggest mistake everyone makes

is they launch the channel with nothing on it

or just one video.

Don't do that.

Come on, come on, guys.

Think about it this way, right,

watch time matters.

And so if you're telling people,

"Go watch this thing,"

and there's nothing for them to watch,

or there's nothing for them to latch onto,

you're telling YouTube,

this is a channel that isn't gonna retain people very long,

and so when we launch a channel,

we launch it with five videos.

So that way, people go on a significant watch time journey

in that first week period,

so that way, it tells YouTube,

wow, this is a great channel

that's gonna get people to watch

and they're gonna be really engaged.

And it shows your audience that you're committed to it, too.

- So don't launch with one video like most YouTubers do,

instead, launch with five videos,

and on top of that,

I'd say make sure those five videos

are slightly different styles and formats

while still keeping it related to your niche

so you can experiment with what resonates most

and double down on that for your next five videos

and so forth.

Next question,

how do I make videos consistently

if I have a job and family?

All right, this is something I thought about a lot

while I was making content during my off time

while working on Instagram and YouTube.

And the biggest advice I could give

is batch production scheduled release.

If you're working a job,

if you're gonna spend time with family,

you wanna make sure you're not context switching too much

between that and being creative and getting in flow state.

Because if you don't,

you're just gonna be waking up thinking about video ideas,

you're not gonna be that good.

Instead, I recommend taking time to batch your production,

spend time once a week

really thinking about different ideas,

scripting them out,

and trying to do three to four in one sitting.

And then, if you can,

film them or schedule another time

so you could take care of the production of it,

and that way, you batch it all together,

and then schedule the release.

So let's say once a week, you batch the production,

which I would do on Sunday nights

when I was working my day job,

so it wasn't on their time,

and then I would schedule a release during the week

in the mornings before my job started.

So I think about it like that,

batch production scheduled release.

Next question,

how do you draw in new viewers?

All right, search is gonna be your best friend,

especially when you're trying to get initial traffic.

And a great way to get content

that feeds into search traffic is to use Google Trends,

and use it in a way that most people don't.

So go to trends.google.com,

filter by YouTube search instead of web search,

type in the words related to your niche,

and see which one is highest

and start making content around that first.

And to make it even easier,

TubeBuddy has a great tool

which you could just plug in

that shows your search volume,

the competition for that search term,

and the overall score for any search term,

right When you put it into YouTube,

which can be super helpful

in helping decide what to make content about

to build your initial audience.

Next question,

how do I tell better stories?

All right, follow this four step process

to tell better stories,

intro, problem, solution, outro.

And this is actually a process

that Nas Daily uses obsessively

to grow to 30 million followers across social media.

The intro is the hook,

and then comes the problem, solution, and outro,

which could sound like this.

- Did you know that the United Arab Emirates

is one of the driest countries in the world?

- Hmm.

- [Nas] How do they drink?

(Jon snickers)

That's a problem!

- Yeah.

- But you never thought about this problem,

ever in your life,

but now you are interested in the solution to that problem.

Then you walk them through the solution,

one, two, three, four, five,

and then there's always an outro.

There's always a call to action, which is,

yeah, this is really not about the Emirates,

or the drinking, or the water, or whatever,

this is about water conservation all around the world,

and including you.

So you gotta make it a little bit personal.

- And in that outro,

it's key that you bring it back to the viewer.

So if you tell a story about water conservation

and the Emirates, for example,

then you should think about how

to conserve water in your own life,

so the viewer ties it back to their day-to-day.

Next question,

how could I improve my iPhone's camera quality

without buying the newest iPhone?

All right, go to settings, camera,

and increase the resolution to 4k,

because the default is usually much lower than that.

And then when filming,

try to use the back of the phone camera,

which is much better than the front.

And a bonus tip if you're posting on Instagram,

hit the three lines button, go to settings,

account, data usage, and turn on high quality uploads,

which is most usually toggled off.

That's all the questions for this edition

of Creator Office Hours by TubeBuddy.

Make sure to come and below your questions,

I'll go through them all

and answer the best ones in next month's edition.

See you guys then.