Easy Ways To Get More Subscriber On YouTube Channel
Earlier this year I started a Youtube channels where I interview big name creators and influencers. It’s professionally shot and, for a new channel, the videos get a lot of views. My last interview, with Bella Thorne, got over 20,000 views and was picked up by news outlets like Daily Mailand E! News.
people to subscribe to your channel because you can’t begin to monetize your videos until you have 1000 subscribers. So how do you get them?
Write an article in a major business publication and beg the readers to follow you?
No, there’s got to be a better way.
No, there’s got to be a better way.
from ten years ago on your channel that were shot with a flip phone? Get rid of old videos that don’t align with your current brand. Do you have dozens of playlists, so that it’s confusing for the viewer? Is your header properly sized for YouTube? Does it look professional? Ask yourself this, “Would you subscribe to your channel?”
Create A Great Trailer: I’m lucky to have an amazing editor that made a professional looking trailer and intro for my videos. I highly suggest using a good editor, if possible. It’s not as expensive as you think. Check out fiver for some great freelancers. You can also use them for graphic design to help you create a cool logo or header for your site. Make sure you have a clear message. What is your channel about? You need to communicate that clearly in a 30 second trailer.
You can learn to edit them yourself, or pay someone to do it, but take it seriously because they’re important. It’s like a book cover for your video.
Post Amazing Content: Sounds obvious, right? I think a lot of us fall into this trap, “I need to post a million videos a week or my subscribers will jump ship and never watch me again!” Trust me, no one is thinking about your videos as much as you are. Post quality, rather than quantity.
Be Consistent: Why would you subscribe to a channel that hasn’t posted in two months? You wouldn’t. You don’t need to post every day, but if you’re going to post once a week, then do it every week. The Merrell T told me, “When we started posting videos we had a goal that we’d post a new video every Tuesday. And we’ve never missed one, no matter what else was going on in our lives.”
Have A Contest: Is this cheating? I don’t think so. I’m in the middle of a contest right now. There’s a great site, that runs the contest for you. You select the way people can enter, like: Subscribing to your channel, following you on Instagram, leaving a comment, etc. They give you a landing page that you can share on your social media, your blog or your channel to help promote it. I did my contest with goal of getting more subscribers. Make sure you have a clear goal for your contest.
Promote Your Channels In Online Communities: I just watched a great You Tube Video where Gary Vaynerchuk was talking about how you could make $70,000 a year talking about Smurfs. He was being funny, but also serious. There’s an audience for just about every topic, and if you can tap into them, you’ll grow your audience. Be engaged in relevant conversations on Reddit, Twitter chats, Facebook Groups, and LinkedIn groups and you’ll grow your subscribers.
Collaborate With Other YouTubers: Every big YouTuber does this, and so should you. By working with other creators you get exposed to their audience. Search for other channels in your space and reach out to them. Make sure you pick channels that have a similar sized following. If you have 500 subscribers, don’t reach out to someone with 500,000.
Create Great Playlists: Do you have a series of videos that go together? Group them together in a playlist. It’ll encourage people to binge watch them and they’ll be more likely to subscribe to your channel because they’ll want to see your next video.
Create Searchable Titles: Most people pick their titles last and don’t put much thought into them. I used to do the same thing when I was writing an article. I’d write the article, and then just pick the first title that popped in my head. That was a big mistake. Come up with a great title first and more people will find your videos and subscribe to your channel.
Set A Goal: I shot a funny video, with YouTuber , where she showed me how to become a YouTuber. I wasn’t sure what to say at the end of my video and she told me, “You always have to ask the viewer to like the video and to subscribe to your channel. Set a goal, like you want to get to 300 subscribers, and ask your viewers to help you reach it. Make sure it’s attainable, and if the viewer likes you, they’ll do it to help you out.” Every big YouTuber asks their viewers to subscribe and so should you.
It’s time to grow your channel’s subscribers through some strategic work. Here are 12 tips to grow your YouTube subscribers, fast!
Clean Up Your YouTube Channel
Before we get into the good stuff, it is important to do some housekeeping. While you may think everything your business does is flawless, you are not Beyoncé, so your audience might not think so... I know, I know, it’s hard to swallow, but it’s important to step away from your self and into the shoes of an outsider from time to time.
Taking a hard look at your YouTube channel and revaluating what is on there will likely lead to the realization that a chunk of old content should be deleted – whether it is outdated, poorly produced, or just a flop of a video that should have never made it up there in the first place. If you have something of this nature tied to your brand, it’s going to immediately turn that lead off, and cause them to lose trust in your brand. Delete it and never look back!
This brings me to my next tip
Only Create and Post Highly Watchable Content
Yes, I know this tip might seem obvious, but YouTube is full of clutter, so it’s easy to feel like you can get away with posting sub-par content. Well, you can’t! The only way to really stand out from the pack and grow your subscriber base it to create the best of the best content in your space.
The key to accomplishing this is planning during pre-production. Here are a few ways you can do this better then your competition:
Do Your Research
Watch your competitors’ videos, as well as videos in industries outside of yours, and jot down notes of the most intriguing parts. Rather then copying what your competition is doing, find a more creative way to do it better. For example, if I was in the gum business (or any other business for that matter) I’d probably take a tip or two from my all time favorite YouTube commercial, The Story of Sarah and Juan. Check it out, and just try and tell me this didn’t make you cry.
It is pretty obvious what is so wonderful about this commercial: the ability it has to elicit powerful emotions. How could your company do this?
Script ahead
You might think you can wing it on screen. Well, you can – but you shouldn’t. You need to plan out your script, do a table read, re-write it, table read, and re-write it again. This process improves your script to make it take on the story you’re trying to convey in the most powerful way. Businesses often underutilize the power of scripting, but mastering this art can take your videos to an entirely new level.
If you’re new to video scripting
Purchase the right equipment for an in-house studio
What is the “right” equipment? And can you afford it? This answer to the latter question is yes! Shockingly enough, the camera isn’t your most important piece of equipment. Why? Well, nowadays the camera on your iPhone is close in quality to a much more expensive alternative.
If you are shooting in-house, the most important equipment to have is a simple background, studio lights, and a tripod. Yes, there are a few other things you might need depending on the video, like props and audio equipment, but nailing down some of the basics and creating a solid in-office studio will lead to better video creation.
Make the first 10 seconds of your video the most memorable
Did you know that a whopping 20% of viewers drop off within the first 10 seconds of your video? This is why you need to make the most of the most first few seconds.
To make an awesome first impression, don’t start your video with a bland introduction, but rather with the most climactic part of your video. If you start with a bang viewers aren’t going to want to leave.
Execute Top-Notch Channel Trailers
Youtube&continue has this beautiful feature for marketers looking to grow their subscription base, called channel trailers. These are just as they sound, short trailers that automatically play when a visitor arrives on your YouTube channel page.
This is the perfect opportunity to build your subscription base, if, and only if, you create insanely compelling content.
These trailers need to be short (30-60 seconds), compelling, and most importantly they need to give your visitors a reason to stay. Do they need to be hilarious, beautiful, and emotionally charged? It will definitely help! What I really can’t stress enough is the need for an..... that gives the viewer a reason to subscribe.
Check out this awesome example from. Not only is the trailer the perfect length, it provokes motivational emotions, comedy, and ends with a very creative call-to-action.
Create Custom Human Thumbnails
Let’s face it, the reason we’re warned not to judge a book by its cover is because we do it all the time. Your video thumbnail is essentially the cover of your video, so you need it to be absolutely beyond engaging. In fact, I’d argue that the video thumbnail is the most critical item determining whether or not a visitor is going to play or not play your video.
The greatest way to ensure people play your videos by using an image of a smiling human making direct eye-contact as the thumbnail for your video. Why? People relate to other people. Another hot tip to take your thumbnail to the next level – throw a smile on it!
Promote your Channel to Relevant Online Communities
Whether it be a Twitter chat, LinkedIn group, Reddit, or another popular online community in your industry, you should be actively engaging in these worlds and spreading your video content when relevant.
Let’s say you work for an accounting firm and are participating in a conversation where people seem to be struggling with their taxes. This is the perfect time to share your helpful video to introduce your services that some of these tax payers may even take you up on.
Incentivize People to Subscribe to Your Channel
All the parents out there understand the power of bribery. “If you eat your vegetables, I’ll let you watch the iPad for 10 minutes before bed.” These are words that I’ve heard my sister say to her boys time and time again.
The funny this is, bribery is not something that we grow out of. In fact, it works exceedingly well on adults because it’s human nature to love free things. So, yes, you should bribe people to subscribe to your YouTube channel. I know it might sound ridiculous, but it actually works!
Here are two ways to incentivize people to subscribe:
Run a cross-channel contest: This is one of the oldest marketing bribery tricks in the book, but it works wonders if done well. For instance, let’s say you run a bowling alley in town. Create a contest where you promote your business on Facebook and Instagram, where the guidelines of winning a free night of food and bowling include liking your Instagram post, commenting, and subscribing to your YouTube channel. Inform contestants that the YouTube channel’s link is in your Instagram bio (#linkinbio) so they can easily navigate there and subscribe to your videos. And voila! Your YouTube subscription base has grown overnight.
Encourage viewers to subscribe for additional benefits in your videos: Another easy way to grow subscribers is by working the viewers that have already landed on one of your YouTube videos. Clearly they are already interested in your brand on some level, so why not use this opportunity to get them to subscribe? Do a subscriber-only giveaway: Announce in the video that if they subscribe they’ll be sent a free e-book or be given a free month-long trial of your software. Of course you’ll need to deliver on those promises, but this is a great way to get more subscribers in the door.
Optimize Your YouTube Channel for Search
Last, but definitely not least, make sure your YouTube videos are optimized to rank in search engine results and in the results that show up when people search within YouTube itself.
(This article is being revised)
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