Your FIRST Steps to Starting a YouTube Channel in 2019

As we get closer to a new year, you may have a goal to start a YouTube channel similar to this because you want to use more video content to help you grow your business. Stick around, because in this video, I'm going to walk you through the very first steps you've got to do to get your YouTube channel set up to help you start growing your business. Welcome back. My name is Trena. If you are new to this channel, make sure you click subscribe. Because every Monday and Wednesday I'm posting new videos to help creative entrepreneurs just like you figure out how to use YouTube to grow your business. Now, the first way to get started using YouTube to grow your business is to start your YouTube channel. But where in the heck do you even get started? I know YouTube can seem like a brand new platform and it's overwhelming, but let me walk you through these first couple steps so I know you're getting started on the right foot. So the very first thing that you've got to do that so many people miss here on YouTube is choosing a niche. You have got to pick one topic to talk about on your channel as you first get started. Now, I know you may have multiple passions and you like woodworking and you like planners, and you're a social media manager, nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills. But you have got to pick just one thing for your YouTube channel to help start it grow. Once it starts going and it gets bigger, you can definitely branch out into these different passions. But. But to see growth on a YouTube channel as you get started, you've really got to hone in on one particular niche that you want to be known for. Ideally, this niche is going to tie back into your business and how you ultimately make money with your business. So if you are a social media manager, you're going to want to create a lot of content here on YouTube about social media management or how to grow a business on social media, or how to start an Instagram, those types of topics. Unfortunately, if you try to put your hands in all these different pots, you're not really going to be remembered and people aren't going to have a reason to click and subscribe to your channel. Which leads me into the second step you've got to do to get started here on YouTube. You have got to determine your value proposition for your channel. Now, what does that mean? So you've got to figure out what your what and your why is for your channel. So here's how you want to think about it. What is the value people are going to get out of subscribing to your channel and why is it important to them? The what is kind of just surface level. And then the why gets down to the meat of it, like their emotion points. If you are a social media manager, maybe your value proposition is helping you grow your social media channels. And the why is you want to get deeper, right? So, so you have no more overwhelm on managing your accounts, or so you finally are making money in your business. So when you pull it all together, your value proposition may sound like helping you grow your social media channels so you can finally make the money you deserve in your business. You see, there's that surface level value, but then you dig a level deeper to really address that. Why? Why do they need the content that you're sharing now? This is usually the toughest part of getting started with your channel. And the value proposition can evolve over time. But just get started really thinking about that what and the why, because that's what's really going to make your channel stand out and get more people coming back to your channel. It is going to be so important for you to have consistent branding throughout your channel. So this means your channel banner, your video thumbnails, you're in video elements. So whether you have a bumper or that graphic intro, all of your text, that end screen at the end of your video, these have all got to link together so people can instantly remember and tie your branding together. Especially with your thumbnails. If people watch a video or two of yours, they start to recognize your thumbnails. You want to keep that consistent. So if you show up in search or suggested and they know they like your videos, but they haven't subscribed to you yet, your thumbnails are going to stand out. They're going to be able to easily recognize those and say, hey, that's Trina's thumbnail. So for me, I've got this bright pink all over this channel. So if you see this bright pink, you're probably going to say, oh, that's one of Trina's videos. And that's how I keep getting people to come back and watching my videos. So you really want to get that branding together to make sure it stays consistent when you get started on your channel. Moving on to the next step, and that is research your video ideas. You can't just throw up any video you want to. You've got to see what types of videos your audience is looking for and what types of videos that you could really stand out on YouTube. I like to use a tool called TubeBuddy and Vidiq to do some keyword research. I also like to just search on YouTube and see what videos are more popular on YouTube. What I'm looking for when I'm researching these videos is with my Google Chrome plugin for Vidiq, I'm looking in search for videos that have more views and that channel has subscribers because that's showing me that YouTube is recommending this content because the video is getting more views than that channel has subscribers. So somewhere it's getting traffic. And I know that that's potentially a good video or the thumbnail is good or the title is good. And so I keep this all on a trello board as I start researching. So I don't forget this because I'm a mom of two and let me tell you, my brain can sometimes be mush. And so as I start researching these, the secret strategy that really takes us to the next level is starting to think about these videos in playlists. So when you're thinking in playlists, you want to think about an overarching category or theme and these smaller videos that you can put into that playlist, which is what you're really looking for on YouTube is watch time not just on one video, but on multiple videos. So what I like to do is think of one big idea and instead of creating a giant 15 to 20 minute video, breaking that down into smaller videos so my viewer can get an instant win and that makes them happy to come back and watch another one. Right? So for example, I may have a playlist. How to get started on YouTube. Alright, so that's my playlist idea and then I'm going to break it down into little steps. So how to come up with video ideas, how to set up your YouTube channel, how to add a channel banner, how to create thumbnails. These are all smaller videos that I can put into this overarching playlist. That's why I want you to start to think about your videos as you're researching. Think about four to six videos that you could put into a playlist. Trust me, this is game changer. Not only is it going to help you come up with more ideas, but it's going to get more people watching your videos and it's going going to get YouTube suggesting more of your content. Once you have those video ideas decided, the next step is to start scripting. And yes, I suggest you script especially when you're getting started, because turning on the camera and seeing that red button flash at you can be overwhelming and you want to have a clear path on what you're going to say so you don't start babbling or getting off topic. You want to be very concise and to the point expected, especially when you're getting started. Not only is scripting going to help you stay on the right path, but it's also going to help you minimize the time it takes you to film because you've got all your ideas down and you know exactly what to say. And it's going to in return, help you save time on editing because you're not cutting out all these extra pieces where maybe you were thinking or you went on a sidetrack. Trust me, scripting is important when you're first getting started. All right, moving on to the next step you need to do when Getting started on YouTube is make a start schedule. Not only is this going to hold you accountable, but you're also going to be able to let your viewers when to come back for another video. You want people to start to think about your channel as like Game of Thrones or this Is Us, right? You know, on Tuesday nights at 8pm this is us is on and people are there watching that episode. You want people to know, hey, I post new videos every Monday and Wednesday at 11am that's my channel schedule. So. So people sit down for lunch and they're getting ready and they say, oh, Trina's got a new video. Let me go over there and watch. They start to incorporate that into their routine. And the more views I can get on my video when I first get it published, the more valuable it's going to look to YouTube, because YouTube says, hey, this video has only been published for two hours and it already has 100 views on it. Because I already have those people incorporating my video release into their routine. So set a schedule to hold you accountable and to get people watching your videos on a routine. So the next thing you want to do is just start filming. I know equipment can seem scary. Lighting, microphones, all of that stuff. But just start filming with what you have. You can get started with your phone, you can get started with your webcam. You can get started with whatever you want, but just get started. You aren't going to get better on video until you do it time after time after time again. So just start shooting videos. Those first ones aren't going to be good, trust me, mine are terrible. But you've just got to start doing it to get into a groove, to get used to it. So just start filming. Don't worry about equipment. The one thing That I would think about is lighting. That's really what's going to make or break the quality of your video. So whether it's in front of a window, I have a window over here. Or you grab some daylight balance light bulbs from a hardware store or Target or Walmart and just put them in lamps or that's really the number one thing you need to do when setting up your videos is really just make sure you have good lighting. Okay, so you've shot your videos. Let's get your actual channel on YouTube set up. So what you'll want to do is add that channel banner with your brand new value proposition and your schedule determined. You also want to add your about section. So you want to incorporate keywords that you want to be known for on YouTube in this about section and you want to write about it in a conversational tone. Just, just don't throw all these keywords into a paragraph, just talk about them. So for me, it's on this channel. I give you YouTube tips to help you grow your YouTube channel for your business, to grow your business, those types of keywords. You'll also want to customize the homepage of your YouTube channel so it looks legit. You don't want people to come to your channel and be like, I don't know about this person, they don't look legit. So I have an entire video that you can go to, to watch, to learn how to customize the setup of your channel. Alright, you've got your channel nice and pretty, you've got your videos ready to go and now it's time to upload and promote those videos. One of the biggest things that I see people doing wrong is not sharing their videos. They post it on YouTube and they think if I build it, they will come. When you're first getting started, you have got to pull people from all over the place to watch that video. So whether you have an email list, a Facebook page, Instagram, you've got to tell those people to go over and watch your videos. So the more people you can push over there, those are the easy views to get. Those are the views that are going to signal to YouTube that people are actually watching your videos. So they'll suggest it more. So share it on Pinterest, share it on Instagram. Wherever you are at, just share it and let people know, hey guys, go watch my new video. It's brand new. All right. This next step is the most important step for getting started on YouTube and it is to be consistent. You want YouTube to recognize your channel as a consistent channel, bringing new content, new viewers to your channel. And the only way you're going to build this authority is if you stay consistent. That's why I told you to set a schedule. I also suggest batch filming. So for me today I am filming about 10 videos so that they're done and if something comes up in the next week or two, I'm not going to have to worry about shooting another video to get up because they're all going to be done. And it helps me stay consistent on YouTube. Honestly, YouTube loves consistency and this is how you're going to get into the graces of the YouTube search gods. I want to know what questions about getting started on YouTube do you have? Let me know down in the comments below and I might just feature your question in my next video. Don't forget to subscribe for more tips and tricks every Tuesday. Don't forget to subscribe for new videos every Monday and Wednesday on how to use YouTube to grow your business. Thanks so much for watching. Bye.