I want to be honest and upfront in my essay about everything that led me to this point, including both my good and terrible choices. I also hope you may use this information to improve your situation.
I think that this information might assist you in expanding your channel regardless of the area or niche you may be in.
This article isn’t designed to boast. Instead, it’s intended to shed light on how I swiftly expanded my YouTube channel.
Although I’m hoping this post will be helpful to you in some way, don’t assume that what worked for me will also work for you. So modify my strategies to fit your demands.
Blogs and any other social media platforms are also compatible with all of these tactics and ideas.
Let me introduce myself and the motivation behind why I created a YouTube channel.
How It All Began
People create YouTube channels for a variety of reasons. It could be for financial gain, social status, charitable endeavours, or even just for fun. In any case, I created my channel to make a point.
I have two teenagers, and they are your normal teenagers, as you can see. I intended to set them the task of coming up with a company concept. You know, instead of watching Netflix, playing video games, or chatting with their friends nonstop.
As you might anticipate, there weren’t many ideas being discussed. So I reasoned that perhaps people could launch YouTube channels and produce content about activities they find enjoyable. My daughter could launch a hair-styling channel, and my son could launch a gaming channel.
They appeared to believe it was a good idea. My son planned to make some films after downloading a screen recorder. My daughter wanted to capture some elaborate hair braids, so I assisted her in setting up a tripod and camera.
And they didn’t get much further than that. Videos were never posted online.
At that point, I decided to launch my own YouTube account. I wanted to demonstrate that if you put effort into anything, you can make it successful.
I made the decision that until I had evidence that the channel was successful, I would not inform anyone—not even my wife—that I had created it. If I can acquire 1000 subscribers on YouTube, I’ll inform them, I reasoned.
In my opinion, selecting a theme for your channel is the most crucial choice. You should choose something that is neither too broad nor too narrow. You should target a particular group of people.
It was obvious what my channel would be about. I’ve been coding since I was 12 years old, and I love the subject. Consequently, discussing web development made logical.
I have been following channels like The Net Ninja, Academind, and Brad Traversy for a long time. I therefore started with a VS Code tutorial.
Later on, we’ll talk more about my channel and videos. Let’s focus on motivation and expectations for launching a channel for the time being.
Expectations & Motivation
When beginning a blog, YouTube channel, or other social media account, it’s important to know why you’re doing it and what you hope to gain from it.
To my children, I wanted to make a point. Are you attempting to gain notoriety? Do you desire financial success? Do you want to lend a hand to others in any way?
Make sure you are passionate about the subject matter you choose for your channel. You’ll be setting yourself up for failure if you don’t. It won’t take long for you to grow weary and give up.
Getting Going
Choosing a channel name was the first thing I did. Sincerely, I have no idea how or why I ended up on codeSTACKr.
I visited namecheap.com in search of domains. Combinations of “code,” “full,” “developer,” “stack,” etc. were what I was looking for. Codestack was already taken, so I added a “r” to the end.
The video was then captured as the next action. I made the decision that I would not initially invest any money on this channel. If I was successful, I would put any profits back into the channel.
I didn’t require a camera because I would be sharing my screen. All I need is a screen recorder. For that, I utilised and still use OBS.
Start with the webcam on your laptop or phone if you plan to launch a channel that needs a camera. Many smartphones offer excellent cameras.
The first place I’d suggest investing money if you’re going to spend any is in audio. The most crucial component of any video is the audio. In my opinion, it will make or ruin your channel.
When I view a video and the audio isn’t good, I’ll probably switch to another one.
In my first few videos, all I had was a headset mike. such as a gaming headset or even earphones from your phone.
I had to edit the video after I had everything captured. For this, there are several possibilities. iMovie is a fantastic choice if you own a Mac. I use Davinci Resolve because my machine is a Windows one. It is incredibly robust and free. Additionally, Mac and Linux users can use it.
It’s time to publish the video now. Some people get stuck here.
I understand how anxious it is to upload your first video and how anxious you are for it to be flawless. But don’t become fixated on it. Whatever time you spend on it, it will never be flawless. Simply upload it!
I accomplished exactly that, however it wasn’t flawless. I had a glaring spelling error in my video, and people are still commenting on it now. ?
The First Video’s Results
Research was conducted before my video was posted. I sought out venues where I could advertise the video. On every other social media, I had no followers. As a result, I began searching Reddit and discovered a subreddit where I could submit the URL to my film.
I am aware that Reddit discourages self-promotion. So take great care there. I made sure I wasn’t violating any rules and located a subreddit that permitted this kind of posting.
I looked at SEO as well for the video. I ensured that the video’s title, description, and tags were appropriate. That is a topic worthy of a whole article.
It was finally time to post. I hesitantly depressed the button. After that, repeatedly hit refresh for several minutes to check if there were any views. No views at all. I therefore shared the video’s link on the subreddit. It works! I began to receive a few views.
We departed for vacation the day after I published the video. While we were away, I made the most of every opportunity to covertly check my YouTube metrics. Try not to get distracted by the statistics, even though it’s difficult. And in a moment, we’ll elaborate on that.
I received 111 views and 8 subscriptions on the first day. 14 subscribers and 231 views the following day. Then, there were only 23 views and 2 subscribers. Most of them were taken from the Reddit post. I received 88 upvotes for my first Reddit post. For Reddit, that’s really impressive.
You’ll discover that this graph represents the majority of videos. Initial views will increase, then they will level off. You eventually wish for the YouTube algorithm to discover it. Soon, we’ll discuss about that.
So how did I go from receiving a small number of daily views to receiving thousands? We’ll get to that next.
Consistency
I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but posting regularly is the single biggest factor in channel growth.
Create a strategy that works for you. Stick to it if you can post once per week, once every two weeks, or once every month! If you are not consistent, you won’t attract subscribers.
I work a day job that is full-time. I therefore decided that I could find the time to update once a week after we returned from our holiday. I stayed true to that. I consistently posted, at least once a week. My average views increased with each new post.
This graph shows that I posted three videos in June of 2019. You can also make out the time I was away. Each post increased the number of views and subscribers for both the newly released video and the older videos.
You’ll discover that some videos are seen more frequently than others. You’ll have successful videos and unsuccessful ones. Utilize these observations to determine what your audience wants to see. Make another video on the same or a related subject if the first one is successful.
After a few videos and two months, I was able to reach my 300-subscriber goal thanks to consistency.
Disclosing My Secret?
I then sat my family down to share the wonderful news with them. Imagine a 39-year-old father and husband sitting down with his wife and two teenagers to inform them that he has 300 subscribers to his YouTube channel. ?
After the laughter subsided, I told them about my plans to keep expanding the channel and see where it might go.
Prevent burnout
It’s crucial to realise that maintaining consistency takes time—a it’s marathon, not a sprint. I made the decision to release a quick video every day in January 2020. I wanted to make quick films that broke down specific JavaScript concepts.
These films lasted for roughly 90 seconds. Short videos might seem to be simpler to produce. And they ought to be, in theory.
But I often go overboard. I took care to fill these films with a tonne of information. They were really entertaining and included animations. They each required three hours to make on average.
That was a poor choice. Please understand that I am proud of the videos I produced. They have garnered me a lot of praise and grateful fans who adore them and want more.
But adhering to the programme was really difficult. I did succeed in releasing a video each day, but I won’t attempt that again.
What did I take away from my error? Even though I posted a video every day, neither the number of views nor subscribers significantly increased. I actually lost some followers as a result of their dislike of me constantly adding fresh movies to their home page.
You’ll be eager to get started when you first launch your channel and want to work constantly. Be extremely cautious, take it slow, and don’t commit to more than you can handle or what your audience can handle.
Get Involved in Your Community
I responded to every remark on every video in order to interact with my audience. The desire of your audience is to feel heard.
I’ve used this as one of my success factors. By interacting with my audience, I’ve been able to modify my content approach to incorporate subjects that they find interesting.
Even if you believe you know what your audience wants, you actually don’t know unless you ask them.
The development of your brand depends on market and community research. You must be aware of the major actors and make every effort to engage in conversation with them.
Now, if you are just getting started, you wouldn’t want to continually ping a busy channel with requests. You want to interact with the neighbourhood and add value.
FreeCodeCamp.org was one of the first real engagements I had. For them to put on their YouTube channel, I was able to make a two-hour Sass tutorial. Their channel had over 1 MILLION subscribers at the time.
You can see in this graph the increase in followers I saw after publishing my film on the freeCodeCamp.org YouTube channel.
At this point, I had about 500 subscribers. Then I received nearly 300 in a single day! I was astounded and shocked. Eventually, it did, of course, level off again. But take note that the average rises with each spike. You advance to the next level with each.
Getting to know people in my community has also been helpful to me. You might assume that competing YouTubers who upload videos on the same subject are a threat. But that is not at all accurate.
With many people in my community who publish on the same topics as I do, I was able to collaborate and exchange insights. Even though we might post on the same subject, each of us has a unique teaching style and point of view. It is therefore not a big deal.
The bottom line is that you must network and get to know people who are in your industry.
The Mysterious Algorithm
An enigma is the YouTube algorithm. Try not to comprehend it. Just remember that you will know when it finds you!
Take note of the graph’s prominent peak around December 2019. A video of mine was then promoted to tens of thousands of views by the powerful algorithm.
At the time, I received an average of 1,000 views every day. Then, out of nowhere, I started receiving 12,000 views in a single day. I moved on to the next level after that. I didn’t change anything. Every week, I would consistently post one video.
The following graph shows the trajectory change that occurred around December 2019.
The algorithm has since discovered several of my videos. I was able to get 70,000 subscribers and nearly 2 million views in a year by being consistent, paying attention to my viewers, and engaging with my community. Craziness!
Avoid Fixating on the Numbers
I had originally aimed for 300 subscribers. That was the figure I used to gauge my performance and the efficacy of my techniques at the time.
That was another error. Make every effort not to think about the figures. Your success is not determined by how many subscribers or followers you have. Your success is determined on the calibre and importance of your material. They will come if you have good, worthwhile material.
Additionally, avoid comparing yourself to others. Each path is unique. Keep your attention on your situation, be dependable, and produce high-quality articles.
Lows & Highs
You can observe peaks and valleys on some of the graphs by looking back at them. That is entirely typical. Don’t panic if your opinions begin to change. It’s part of YouTube’s regular rotation. As long as you continue to be consistent, they will pick back up.
Monetization
To be monetized on YouTube, you need 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 view hours. That’s 240,000 watchable minutes!
In September 2019, three months after I began, I reached 1,000 subscribers. But it wasn’t until November 2019 that I reached 4,000 watch hours. That marks five months since I launched my channel.
November brought in $197 for me. I could not believe that my YouTube video promotion were bringing in money! I generated $545 in December. I then made $830 in January, immediately following the algorithm’s discovery of one of my movies.
After that, the revenue decreases but has just started to climb after levelling out. After monetizing for 8 months, I had earned slightly over $5,000.
Even while that isn’t enough for me to leave my day job, I am nonetheless astounded at how quickly I was able to generate a side income.
You can see a breakdown of the weekly ad revenue in this graph. The revenue is dependent in part on the other two statistics.
CPM stands for “Cost per Mille,” or simply the cost an advertiser incurs for every 1,000 video views. Here, my CPM is $10.20 on average. Therefore, for every 1,000 monetized views of my videos, marketers paid $10.20.
RPM stands for “Revenue per Mille,” or simply the money you make for every 1,000 video views.
I’m fine with YouTube taking a cut because they’re facilitating these views. They control the platform, look after it, direct people to my channel, and perform the bulk of the work. They also consistently add to and enhance the numerous excellent tools they offer content creators. I therefore earned $3.03 for every 1,000 views of my monetized video.
Currently, not every view counts. Take note of the word “monetized” perspectives. Consequently, the advertisement was viewed. It won’t be counted as a monetized view if the viewer skips the ad or uses an ad-blocker.
Other Income Sources
In addition to the money from the ads, I also received about $8,000 from sponsors last year. It takes time to get anything like this. You must establish your brand and gain recognition in the neighbourhood.
By reaching out and requesting sponsors, I have not gotten a single one. Every single one of my sponsors has contacted me first. So, it’s a marathon once more. Don’t count for things to happen right away. Keep your eyes on the prize, and success will follow.
You should diversify your income in any business. Never make YouTube advertising your primary source of income. What if YouTube unintentionally deletes your account or ceases monetizing for some other reason? Diversification is a must!
In addition to sponsorships and YouTube ad revenue, I wanted to develop my own digital goods.
This is an illustration of another error I committed. Making my own items was not a mistake, but rather the delay in doing so. In fact, I haven’t even released any products as of yet.
In 2020, I intended to release three premium courses. Over half of the year has passed, and I have still not released 1.
I lost concentration on my own initiatives as I became engrossed in other side endeavours. Even while these other side ventures helped me gain subscribers and money, they shouldn’t have been my major priority.
Your own items should be your primary source of income. You are in charge of that. Everything else might vanish one day. Be attentive!
Guides to Success
Focus is the most important success advice I could give you. It is quite simple to become sidetracked by all the things you “could” do to expand your reach.
Aim to produce high-quality videos. Be as organised as you can. Make a list of the material you wish to produce. Add new ideas to the list whenever you have them.
But pay attention to one thing at a time. After creating the material for that video, switch to the next subject.
I previously mentioned that I had no presence on any other social media sites when I first established my YouTube channel.
Use your existing following to your advantage to attract viewers to your channel if you already have one elsewhere. Don’t try to expand numerous platforms at once if you don’t already have a following elsewhere. Maintain your attention on the platform that is working for you.
About six months after I established my YouTube habit, I created accounts on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. On these platforms, I have gradually improved—some more than others. (I’m not sure how Facebook operates.)
They have had a negligible effect on my YouTube growth after several months on both sites. Twitter and Instagram, in my opinion, have been the most successful platforms for my niche. Especially for networking, use Twitter. But none of these have had a substantial effect on my channel.
You can discover that your audience is more receptive on particular platforms depending on your niche. Once your channel starts to gain some popularity, use these to grow your brand.
Check out this movie I made here if you want to review the ideas in this essay visually.
Conclusion
Finally, I just want to emphasise that anyone is capable of anything. You can succeed if you (1) have the right motivation, (2) have reasonable expectations, and (3) don’t overwork yourself.