Starting on YouTube? Here's My Best Advice

Summary

In this insightful video, Omar shares essential YouTube growth strategies, emphasizing the importance of posting at least one video per week for audience building. He clarifies the role of hashtags for organization versus tags for discoverability. Omar also discusses optimal upload times, leveraging video podcasting for trust-building, and the significance of click-through rate and average viewer duration in analytics. He suggests focusing on the first 30 seconds to hook viewers and creating 'content marathons' for long-form engagement, highlighting the underserved potential of YouTube Shorts and lengthy videos.

Takeaways

• 🎥 **Consistency is Key**: Posting at least one video a week is crucial for growing a subscriber base on YouTube.
• 📹 **Use of Hashtags**: Hashtags on YouTube are more for organization rather than discoverability, helping to consolidate similar content.
• 🔍 **SEO with Tags**: Utilize tags effectively to help YouTube match your video with relevant keywords and phrases for better discoverability.
• 📅 **Posting Frequency and Timing**: Aim for a regular posting schedule and use insights to find the best times to post for maximum views.
• 📈 **Viewer Insights**: Uploading consistently provides valuable feedback from YouTube's backend analytics, aiding in understanding your audience better.
• 📊 **Important Metrics**: Focus on click-through rate and average viewer duration as the primary metrics for YouTube success.
• 🎨 **Optimize Thumbnails and Titles**: The psychology behind convincing viewers to click on your video is more about your titles and thumbnails than the video content itself.
• 📚 **Engage with Content**: Ensure the first 30 seconds of your video are compelling to increase the average view duration and keep viewers hooked.
• 📚 **Long-Form Content**: Long videos and video podcasts offer an opportunity to build trust with the audience and leverage YouTube's SEO capabilities.
• 🔗 **Create Binge-Worthy Content**: Structure your content to encourage viewers to watch multiple videos in a sequence, similar to binge-watching a series.
• 📘 **Content Marathons**: Consider creating long, comprehensive videos or series that cover a topic extensively, making them valuable and engaging for viewers.

Q & A

What is the minimum recommended frequency for posting videos on YouTube to grow an audience?

To grow an audience on YouTube, it is recommended to post at least one video a week. This consistent posting helps with discoverability and provides valuable feedback from the platform.

What is the primary purpose of using hashtags on YouTube according to the transcript?

Hashtags on YouTube are primarily intended for organization rather than discoverability. They help consolidate content under specific topics, making it easier for viewers to find all related videos.

How should video tags be utilized for better discoverability on YouTube?

Video tags should be used to help YouTube associate the video with certain keywords and phrases. Using different versions of the video title as tags can increase the chances of the video being discovered through various search terms.

What is the significance of posting videos consistently on YouTube?

Consistent posting on YouTube is crucial for channel growth as it improves discoverability and provides more feedback from the platform. It also allows creators to understand their audience's viewing patterns and peak hours.

What is the recommended approach to determine the best time to upload videos on YouTube?

Creators should first focus on uploading consistently to gather insights about their audience's peak viewing times. Once they have this data, they can strategically upload videos an hour before these peak hours to maximize views.

How does video podcasting serve as an opportunity for entrepreneurs on YouTube?

Video podcasting allows entrepreneurs to create long-form content that can be repurposed into audio, Shorts, or reels. This helps in building trust with the audience and makes efficient use of their time.

What are the two most important metrics to focus on for YouTube video performance?

The two key metrics to focus on are click-through rate and average viewer duration. These metrics indicate how well the video is attracting and retaining viewers.

How can creators improve their click-through rate on YouTube?

To improve click-through rate, creators should focus on optimizing their video titles and thumbnails. Effective titles and thumbnails can entice viewers to click and watch the video.

What is the importance of the first 30 seconds of a YouTube video in terms of viewer retention?

The first 30 seconds of a video are critical in retaining viewers, as it can determine whether they stay for the entire video. Engaging content in this initial segment can significantly increase the average viewer duration.

What are the two underserved video lengths on YouTube that offer opportunities for creators?

The two underserved video lengths on YouTube are YouTube Shorts and very long videos. Both formats have high demand and can help creators stand out and build a deeper connection with their audience.

What strategy can creators use to effectively produce long videos without excessive effort?

Creators can use the 'content marathon' strategy, where they plan a series of videos on a specific topic and upload them as a single long video. This approach allows for comprehensive coverage of a subject while saving time and effort.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Consistent Posting and Hashtag Best Practices

The speaker emphasizes the importance of posting at least one video per week on YouTube to grow an audience. They discuss the distinction between hashtags and tags, explaining that hashtags are for organization while tags are crucial for discoverability. The speaker provides an example of how to use tags effectively by using variations of the video title to attract viewers. They also touch on the significance of posting frequency and consistency for channel growth and feedback from YouTube's backend.

05:00

🕒 Optimal Posting Times and Video Podcasting Trends

The conversation delves into the best times to post on YouTube, suggesting that creators should post at least once a week and identify their audience's peak hours for maximum views. The speaker recommends uploading an hour before peak times, using the example of Think Media. They also introduce video podcasting as a significant trend and opportunity for entrepreneurs, highlighting its benefits for content distribution and trust-building with the audience, and the potential for leveraging YouTube's SEO capabilities.

10:00

📈 Key YouTube Analytics and Content Strategy

The speaker identifies the two most important metrics for YouTube success: click-through rate and average viewer duration. They explain that click-through rate is influenced by video titles and thumbnails, advising creators to optimize these elements to increase clicks. The speaker also stresses the importance of the first 30 seconds of a video to retain viewer interest and improve average viewer duration. They conclude with insights on video length, suggesting that underserved lengths like YouTube Shorts and very long videos offer significant opportunities for creators, and introduce the concept of 'content marathons' for creating impactful long-form content.

Keywords

💡Subscriber base

A 'subscriber base' refers to the total number of subscribers or followers a YouTube channel has. It is a key metric for measuring the size of an audience and the potential reach of a channel. In the video's context, building a subscriber base is crucial for growing a YouTube channel and establishing a consistent audience that engages with the content.

💡Posting frequency

Posting frequency is the rate at which new content is uploaded to a YouTube channel. The video emphasizes the importance of posting at least one video a week as a minimum to grow a channel. Consistent posting helps in increasing discoverability and maintaining audience engagement.

💡Hashtags

In the context of YouTube, 'hashtags' are used for organizing content rather than for discoverability. They help consolidate videos under a specific topic, making it easier for viewers to find all related content. The video script mentions that while hashtags are not directly linked to video discoverability, they play a role in content organization.

💡Tags

Tags on YouTube are keywords or phrases that help categorize and describe the content of a video. They assist in making the video discoverable to users searching for related topics. The script provides an example of using tags like 'best camera for beginners on YouTube' to increase the chances of a video being found through search.

💡Discoverability

Discoverability refers to the ease with which new viewers can find and access a YouTube channel or video. The video discusses strategies such as consistent posting and the use of tags to improve a channel's discoverability, which is essential for growing an audience.

💡Video podcasting

Video podcasting is a content format that combines the long-form nature of podcasts with the visual elements of video. The script highlights it as a current trend and opportunity on YouTube, allowing creators to produce content that can be repurposed into audio, Shorts, or reels, thus maximizing the use of a single piece of content.

💡Click-through rate (CTR)

Click-through rate is a metric that measures the effectiveness of a video's title and thumbnail in enticing viewers to click and watch the video. The video emphasizes that a high CTR is influenced by the psychology behind a viewer's decision to click, and it is a critical factor in YouTube's algorithm for promoting content.

💡Average viewer duration

Average viewer duration is the average length of time that viewers watch a video. It is an important metric because it indicates viewer engagement and can affect how YouTube's algorithm promotes a video. The video suggests focusing on the first 30 seconds to increase this metric, as it can trigger YouTube to show the video to more viewers.

💡Content marathon

A content marathon is a strategy where a creator produces a series of videos on a single topic, which can then be compiled into a long video. This approach is highlighted in the video as a way to create long-form content without the need for excessive production time, and it can be particularly effective for educational or tutorial-style channels.

💡Bingeable content

Bingeable content refers to videos that are designed in a way that encourages viewers to watch multiple episodes or videos in a row. The script discusses the importance of creating content that keeps viewers engaged throughout the entire video and provides them with a reason to continue watching, similar to the experience of binging a TV series on platforms like Netflix.

💡SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

SEO in the context of YouTube refers to optimizing video titles, descriptions, and tags to improve the video's ranking in search results. The video mentions that YouTube is the second largest search engine, emphasizing the importance of SEO for increasing a video's visibility and reach.

Highlights

A minimum of one video per week is recommended for growing a YouTube channel and building an audience.

Hashtags on YouTube are more for organization rather than discoverability, unlike tagging which helps in video discoverability.

Using tags effectively involves creating different versions of the video title to increase the chances of discovery.

Posting frequency is crucial for channel growth; consistency in uploads provides valuable feedback from YouTube.

The best time to upload videos is an hour before the peak audience hours, which can be determined through consistent uploading.

Video podcasting is a significant opportunity for entrepreneurs, allowing for content repurposing and trust-building with the audience.

Long-form videos can expedite the 'seven-hour rule' of content consumption, which builds audience trust.

YouTube SEO is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs, as it is the second largest search engine and supports video content.

The two most important metrics for YouTube success are click-through rate and average viewer duration.

Titles and thumbnails significantly impact click-through rates, and should be optimized for viewer psychology.

The first 30 seconds of a video are crucial for retaining viewer attention and improving average viewer duration.

Creating 'content marathons' or long video series can increase viewer engagement and serve as a masterclass on a topic.

Long videos have a higher chance of retaining viewership as they set an expectation of in-depth content.

YouTube Shorts are underserved and present an opportunity for creators to capitalize on the demand.

The psychology of long video consumption is akin to reading a book, where viewers commit to the content.

Encouraging binge-watching by providing clear next steps or series continuations can increase watch time.

The optimal video lengths on YouTube are the underserved formats: very short (YouTube Shorts) and very long videos.

Transcripts

- If anyone is trying to grow

on YouTube and build subscriber base, build an audience,

I believe, if you're not posting one video a week minimum,

you're not even trying.

You gotta just press record.

I'm about to get on this call with a very big brand

that teaches social media best practices.

We have a 15 minute call kinda locked in.

So, I thought, why don't we just turn on the camera,

because the questions that they're asking

is probably gonna be questions you're asking.

So, let's jump onto this call right now.

- Hey, Omar, how are you?

- I'm really good.

Thanks for doing this.

- Yeah, thanks for being here.

This is so helpful for us.

We're like, "We have to ask the pros.

We have to ask you guys."

So, thank you so much for doing this.

Question number one that we have for you

is what are the best practices for hashtags on YouTube?

- Yeah, I think, a lot of times, people may confuse hashtags

with tagging, but I will address hashtags first.

So, hashtags are not really intended for discoverability

but more for organization.

So, for instance, if you had a video podcast,

when somebody clicks on that hashtag,

it's like all your podcast is consolidated, right?

That would be the reason you would wanna use hashtags

on YouTube is for consolidation or organization.

But when it comes to tags,

you're helping YouTube put your video

in front of certain keywords and key phrases.

A real life example when it comes to like Think Media

is, when I make a video called, like, "Best camera

for YouTube in 2023," the tags I'm gonna use

is "best camera for beginners on YouTube,"

"best cameras for YouTube,"

"best YouTube camera for beginners 2020."

Like, it's almost like different versions of the title

is what you would use for the tags.

And really, you're thinking

about, "What are the other ways people are gonna be finding

or discovering this video with their keywords and phrases?"

- Wow, that's really good.

Another question for you is, is there a time or day

that is best to post on YouTube?

And a follow-up question to that I'll have, too,

is how many times per week, if so?

- If anyone is trying to grow

on YouTube and build subscriber base, build an audience,

I believe if you're not posting one video a week minimum,

you're not even trying.

And I don't mean to be harsh,

but figure out a way to upload one video a week

if you're trying to grow on YouTube,

if that's what your main goal is.

Because just seldomly showing up once in a while,

it's not gonna help the discoverability of your channel,

but it's also not gonna give you the feedback you get

from uploading consistently, because the more you upload,

the more feedback YouTube gives you in the backend.

Now, when people ask the question

like, "What's the best time to upload,"

they're usually asking the question,

"How can I get the most views when I drop my video?"

And if nobody knows who you are, then it doesn't matter.

You identify as the creator when you wanna promise

to yourself how often you're gonna show up.

The more you upload, the more insight you get,

so then you do get access

to when majority of your subscribers or your audience is on.

And so, when you do have that data,

I would say you can upload videos an hour

before the peak hours.

For instance, Think Media, a lot of people are peaking

at around 6:00 AM Pacific Standard Time,

so we release our videos at 5:00 AM Pacific standard time,

but we have that information

only because we upload consistently.

- So, would that count for YouTube Shorts too?

- It's really more about the creator

than it is the audience.

So, identify how many shorts are you gonna upload a week,

and just stick to it for you.

And then, yeah, when you have that information,

by all means, when you see that peak time,

just do it a little bit before that to catch that wave.

- Sounds good.

Question number three:

What are the latest trends or features on YouTube

that entrepreneurs should be aware of?

- Yes.

Probably the biggest current opportunity and trend,

and I would even say missed opportunity,

is video podcasting.

When you say entrepreneurs, you know what comes to mind,

is "I don't have a lot of time,"

"I can't be making videos every day,"

"I need to be consistent online."

Like, when you create video podcasts,

it's a very long-form video that could then be redistributed

as an audio, as Shorts, or reels.

And then, you can even create

even shorter five-to-seven minute clips

from a video podcast.

If you're an entrepreneur,

you should know about the seven-hour rule.

It'll take seven hours for somebody to consume your content

for them to trust you.

And one way to speed that seven hours

is to have long videos.

If you wanna build trust with your audience,

uploading longer-form videos is a huge opportunity.

- I just wanna just add one thing

when you were saying that, Omar.

It clicked for me in terms of SEO,

'cause that's what you don't have right now

on Spotify or Apple or anything else like that.

Like, it's not searchable, but YouTube is there,

and if it's moving towards audio in some way, too,

plus the power of SEO;

and YouTube is, like, what, the second biggest search engine

or whatever that is.

That's that fascinates me.

- Yeah.

And that's why I like YouTube.

On YouTube, the creator decides to watch.

Winning that click is really key.

But yeah, no, 100%; huge opportunity, SEO.

- Next question:

What are the most important analytics or metrics

that we should be paying attention to on YouTube?

- Yes.

There's only two.

So, if you're overwhelmed, it's a good day.

The only two metrics you need to worry about on YouTube

is click-through rate, and average viewer duration.

Click-through rate is the percentage of people

who click on your video who see it on their feed.

So, if 10 people see it, but seven people click,

that's a 70% click-through rate.

What influences a click?

It is not the video you make.

This is why people have it backwards.

They're like, "I'm gonna make the best video in the world,"

But they don't think about the psychology

behind somebody actually clicking on that video.

So, you put all this energy on a video,

and you're like, "Man, it's getting no views."

Well, because the title and the thumbnail

wasn't convincing enough to wanna even get the click.

So, this is encouraging.

If you have videos on your YouTube channel

that you feel are really good,

you can go back and change your titles and thumbnails.

Now, I'll say click-through rate is solely affected

by titles and thumbnails.

And right now, I think a lot of people are doing too much.

So, that's a good thing too.

You can reel it back.

Your titles should almost be very headline or article.

Like, those are the type of titles working.

So, if you think about how newspapers write headlines,

that's kind of the type of video titles you want,

'cause that's gonna make people stop,

click, and then watch your video.

Something I like doing is just doing the research.

So, if I have a video topic; most people start

with a video idea or a topic in mind;

go do some research, go on YouTube,

put that topic in the search bar,

and see how people are positioning this title.

And then, when it comes to thumbnails,

a lot of people are busy with the thumbnails as well.

So, there's what I call is the rule of three;

don't put more than three elements in your thumbnail.

A lot of people repeat the title of their video

in the thumbnail.

What you want to do is, number one,

don't use more than four words; max out at four words.

It should amplify or reiterate the feeling

you get from reading that title or watching this video.

So, here's an example

is "How to experience a better first trimester

as a pregnant woman," right?

I'm not gonna put that title in the thumbnail.

I'm gonna put "No headaches, no nausea."

I'm gonna tell a story, more or less, with that thumbnail.

So, then there's average viewer duration.

So, YouTube is measuring how long

people stay on your videos.

So, when I say average view duration,

if you have a 10 minute video

but most people are just watching 59 seconds of it,

that's a really low average view duration.

So, the question that people should be asking

is, "What do I need to do to increase

my average view duration?"

The easy first-step answer to that

is focus on the first 30 seconds of your video.

Because if you can get 70% average view iterations

to stay past the 30 second mark,

chances are they're gonna stay throughout

the rest of the video.

And then, that triggers YouTube

to say, "Oh, man, people are clicking on this video,

and they're watching the first 30 seconds of this video.

We're gonna put this video in front of more people."

I mean, as a creator, we have to obsess

over that first 30 to 60 seconds,

because you are earning the attention

of the person to stay along the whole thing,

stay along the entire video as much as possible.

Never allude to the fact that your video is ending.

So, if you are sharing three tips,

I'm not gonna end my video saying, "And the final tip..."

"And the last tip..."

I'm gonna say, "And the next tip..."

And then, a lot of the times,

you could make one of your tips another video.

So, it's almost like, you know this video is three tips,

but you're gonna go ham on two of 'em,

and then your third tip is clicking this next video

where I break down X, Y, Z.

That's how people binge you.

But so many people that are on YouTube,

they're not making themselves bingeable

'cause you're not giving people next steps.

You know, like when you're on Netflix

and you finish a series or an episode,

and it's like, "Next episode starting.

Next episode starting."

It's like, because they're trying to win your watch time,

and that's why we binge episodes, you know?

They're doing it for you, essentially.

And you could do that for your viewer.

Just to recap: click-through rate, average view duration;

those are the only two things that we should care

about as creators on YouTube.

- That's so good to know.

We had one more question for you.

Is there a certain length or duration that performs best?

- Yes.

I love this question, because the best length on YouTube

are the two most underserved lengths on YouTube.

And it's honestly, YouTube shorts,

there's not enough supply for the demand.

And then, secondly, is very long videos.

This is a huge opportunity;

I know I mentioned it with the video podcast.

But even if you had 30-minute-long talking head

or trainings or seminars, huge opportunity.

When people click on a very long video, they're clicking

with the expectation they're gonna stick around.

If you can talk a really long time on a topic or subject,

man, that is beautiful, because you're gonna win.

People are gonna fall in love with you,

'cause they're spending time with you.

Here's a cool way to actually create long videos

without having to create long videos;

it's create what we call content marathons.

So, if you're planning your videos, plan a series of videos.

Plan on, "I'm gonna make 10 videos on how to use Canva."

"I'm gonna make 10 videos on how to use social media

for entrepreneurs."

Make it a masterclass and upload that one video on YouTube.

Now you have this 1 hour and 30 minute video

on how to use social media for your business.

You might have the best video that is that long

around that topic, because you've concisely thought through

each and every segment.

- You know, the psychology of that, Omar,

it reminds me, when you said someone

who sees it's a 90 minute video,

they're like, "Okay, I'm gonna watch the video."

It reminds me of the difference

between someone who's scrolling on Twitter

versus reading a book.

Like, I sit down and read a book,

I'm not gonna stop after a page;

I'm here for 15 minutes or 30 minutes or whatever it is.

And so, I never thought of that

until you said it, but I was like, "I can totally see."

And the book, the person who's reading the book,

they wanna know the author.

- Love the idea of a content marathon.

I think that's so brilliant.

- Omar, thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

You blew my mind.

I was hanging onto every word.

So, thank you for your kindness for sharing;

so appreciate it.

Take care. Have a beautiful day.

- All right.

- [Whitney] Bye, Omar. - Bye.

That's what you call YouTube game, dawg.

If you got value, click the Like button,

and if you wanna check another video,

click or tap the screen.

We out.