So yesterday our YouTube channel reached its first milestone — 10,000 subscribers. It was a long journey and would have never been possible without you guys. So thanks a lot.
Now I know 10k subs is not a big deal. However, since few folks have asked me how I get there? Â So here are few key things I have learned so far, and hopefully help you as well.
#1 Be Yourself
Do not copy other YouTubers.
People subscribe to your channel because they want to hear you. But if you are going to repeat what others have said, then why would they subscribe to you and not them.
Remember it’s all about context. Almost every information is out there, it’s just the matter of fact, how you present it to your audience. They want to hear it from your mouth and wants to know how you feel about it.
Some people say, you should be funny on your videos. But believe me, you should be who you are in real life. Just be yourself and like minded people will follow you.
#2 Be Consistent
People only subscribe to YouTube channel when they know, they will be seeing regular content. So be consistent with uploading videos.
So how frequently, should I upload? This really depends on your content. Most gaming channels upload daily, other genres like tech and comedy uploads twice a week and some upload only once a month. A good rule of thumb is to upload at least once a week.
This also helps you to gains the trust of YouTube, which may get your video rank higher. Though, no one really knows how YouTube algorithm works, so always stay away from shady practice.
#3 SEO Matters
Unlike text articles, search engines can’t really see what is inside your
video. So you have to help them to understand your video better.
Always add appropriate titles, description and tags to your videos. Titles are most importance followed by the description and then tags.
Use Google search suggestion (appears at the bottom of search page) as keywords for your description and tags. These are popular search queries and including them on your description will give extra visibility.
Though make sure, these keywords are relevant and write them in a sentence that make sense. Do not simply copy paste them.
#4 Take constructive criticism
A beginner often has to face a lot of hate on YouTube.  One negative comment hurts badly, then the good feeling you get from ten positive ones.
But still, don’t get disappointed. Take constructive seriously, while ignoring the hate speech that holds no logic to back it up.
#5 Improvise Improvise
High video and audio quality is must for YouTube now. Though most beginners don’t have access to expensive cameras, microphone or even
good video editing skills
Now if you wait for perfect time. Then it’s never going to come. So always
start with what you have. But make sure you improve something in every next video you produce.
As time will pass you will have better equipments and overall quality of your video will improve. So just hang in there and improvise.
#6 Avoid MCN
This is my opinion and may not work on every situation.
As you channel start getting traction, YouTube MCN will approach you with offers. Stay away from them. They usually promote bigger channels with millions of subscribers while your channel will be a side project.Â
I became partners with one of the MCN network and it was not a good experience. Overall I didn’t have much control on your channel.Â
#7 Cherish your early adopters
A popular ted video by Simon Sinek explains the importance of early adopters.
Early adopters are people who believe in you. These are people who regularly comment on your video. When you find then, cherish them, solve their problem, take feedbacks from them, overall keep them happy.
This 10 percent loyal audience will bring the rest 90 percent by spreading good words about you.
