How to Start Your YouTube Channel: Best Tips for Creators

How to Create a YouTube Channel?

Before you move on to professional customization of your channel and other practical tips you need to understand the basics. First of all, how to create a YouTube channel? It can be done simply and quickly.

1. Log into YouTube.
2. Click your profile picture, then tap “Settings.”
3. Click “Add or manage your channel.”
4. Click “Create a channel” and check all the details.
5. Fill out your channel name and add visuals.

We will focus on the last point in more detail in the next chapter.

Starting a Successful YouTube Channel: Checklist

Step 1: Creating a Channel

Probably the easiest step on the checklist. Here we’ll talk about the best channel name, the importance of choosing your niche and the right visuals for your channel.

1. Create a Catchy Nickname and Profile Description

What’s important to do first when you start a YouTube channel? Of course, think of a name for your channel and a description.This item is among the top important YouTube settings that you should pay attention to first. In fact, there’s no universal recipe for how to do this. One thing is for sure: your nickname should be easy to remember and not too long. Also previously it was advised to make a rhyming channel name, but we are increasingly seeing examples of how creators choose a different solution and it does not interfere with the fact that their name is remembered. The important thing to keep in mind is that your channel name could one day become an entire brand. It will definitely help you come up with something memorable and original.

But what about the channel description? The “recipe” is simple: the description should briefly and succinctly reflect the essence of your channel. Describe in a couple of sentences what you shoot and add other social media to this text. Don’t write a whole poem about what you plan to shoot and how often. Keep it short and simple.

2. Create a Unique Profile Picture and Visuals

How to create a YouTube channel without catchy visuals? It seems like it’s impossible on YouTube. Even if you have a cool nickname and a clear description, if your visuals are plain and boring, no one will want to click on your video. First, learn how to make a YouTube thumbnail. You can do this either through courses or by taking inspiration from other creators and “repeating” their covers. Just don’t make exact copies.

If we talk about the profile picture of the channel, it’s a bit different. There should be either a brightly colored logo, or your high-quality photo with a close-up face. Why? Because people immediately see who they’re subscribing to. Trust us, it’s really important.

3. Define Your Niche

Another crucial step when you’re starting a YouTube channel. You can’t move in the right direction of your creativity if you don’t understand what that direction was originally. That’s why it’s so important to choose a niche initially. We understand, it’s not easy to decide. At this point, it is important to analyze all niches and the leading competitors in each of them. Top tip: you shouldn’t be deterred by the fact that there are already many creators with millions of subscribers in your niche. None of them will replicate your unique approach to content. So go for it!

4. Analyse Competitors

Has the niche been chosen? Great, it’s time to break ground. In the last point, we’ve already dropped a line about competitor analysis. Why is it so important? First of all, you immediately understand what formats you should/shouldn’t shoot. Secondly, you get inspiration from other people’s content (and from that you can create your own unique video). Third, you’ll immediately see what you don’t like in other people’s content and can convert that into your future benefits. If you really work qualitatively at this point, you are guaranteed success and dozens of advertisers.

Step 2: Content Creation

When all the preparatory steps are done, it’s time to create content. How to write a content plan, what technique to use and why is editing important? We’ll discuss all of this below.

1. Create Your First Content Plan 

Sure, it sounds easy, but don’t be fooled right away. When you start a YouTube channel, it seems simple to write a couple video titles in the content plan. In reality, it’s much deeper and more complicated than that. A content plan is not just titles, it’s a whole strategy. It specifies the frequency of videos, types of content, and even ideas for each video. So, after analyzing the niche and competitors, you should pay attention to what type of content your competitors release and how often they do it.

For example, you’ve chosen the ASMR niche. Most creators in this niche release Shorts more often than long-form videos. So you should initially heed this advice as well. Only later, when you find your approach to content, you can experiment with video frequency and formats.

2. Consider Your First Video: Tone of Voice, Script, Length 

When the strategy is ready, it’s time to start shooting your first video. Where do we start? With clear planning, of course. Think about everything from the length of the video, to the Tone of Voice you’ll use to address subscribers throughout the video. Most importantly, make sure you make a video script. Don’t neglect this step, as it’s with a script that you’ll be able to make the video easier and clearer. When all these aspects are thought out, you have a better chance of your content being the one that gets noticed.

3. Choose a Suitable Laptop, Camera and Microphone

A good video idea and a well thought out script is of course a great start, but without a quality video sequence there can be difficulties with promotion. It’s clear why: YouTube is a video platform, so viewers pay attention to the quality of the video. Therefore, you should think about good laptops for working on YouTube, a professional microphone and a camera that will provide the best video resolution. Of course, you don’t have to buy expensive equipment in the beginning. You can shoot videos on an iPhone and still gain an audience. That said, you should still strive to improve the quality of your content. If you have the opportunity to buy professional equipment in the beginning, then by all means do so.

4. Think About Editing

Some will say that, in order to start a YouTube channel, video editing is not that important. We disagree. Through editing, the creator can convey their vision of the content and make the video even more enjoyable to watch. Agreed: if a video is well edited, it is dynamic and understandable for users. Plus, zoomers are used to “fast” content, so without quality editing, promotion on YouTube will be difficult. Again, you don’t have to buy expensive video editing programs when you’re starting out. Try free programs first (for example, CapCut, IMovie, DaVinci Resolve).

5. How Often Should You Post Videos?

One of the most common questions we get asked by aspiring creators. So how many videos should you publish per week/month? There’s really no universal answer. Again, it all depends on the niche and your abilities. Of course, you don’t need to publish videos every day. For example, if you publish a video once a week, you’ll definitely keep your channel active and YouTube will promote you as an aspiring creator in the Recommendations feed.

Step 3: Uploading Your Video

Have all the previous steps been worked through and done? Great, it’s time to publish your first video and start a YouTube channel. How to do it so that your video gets maximum views right away? Now we are going to share with you all of the best ways to do it.

1. Think of a Video Name and Description

You think you’ve worked through the visual part of the video and success is already in your pocket? Unfortunately, not that fast. In fact, even the highest quality video can get few views because the creator does not pay proper attention to the title and description of the video. The title should be short, reflect the essence of the video and be a bit clickbait. But the main thing here is not to overdo it, so as not to cause the opposite effect. Add keywords on your topic, a couple of emotionally colored words and voila, the perfect video title is ready.

What about the video description? In it, you should add links to your social networks and any information related to the topic of the video (sources of information, references, etc.). This way you will not only emphasize your serious approach to the video, but also avoid possible copyright issues.

2. SEO: Add Timestamps, Annotations and Hashtags

An important step when publishing a video is to utilize SEO strategies for YouTubers. The most basic of such optimization is to add keywords to the title, hashtags to the description, annotation to the video, and add timestamps to your YouTube videos. You can, of course, get lazy and skip these steps. But then you risk getting shadow-banned and your video will just get lost in the vastness of the rest of the content on YouTube. If you do decide to devote some of your time to SEO, you can guarantee that your video will be among the first when viewers try to find your niche content in the search bar.

3. React to Comments

When you start a YouTube channel, you should be prepared to interact with your audience quite often. Yes, we mean responding to comments.To get closer to your subscribers, you have to interact with them. Make it a habit to reply to comments under all your videos at least once a week. This way, you’ll not only show your loyalty to your audience, but you’ll also get a second opinion on your content. In addition to negativity, you can often find constructive criticism in the comments. Consider it and make your content even better.

4. Motivate to Interact with Your Videos

Another underappreciated move among creators. It seems like the phrase “subscribe to my channel and put a like under the video” was left somewhere in 2015. It’s absolute nonsense. We might surprise you, but subscribers really need to be reminded of these steps. Often when watching a video, people just forget about likes and subscriptions, even though internally they might be thinking about it. Try mentioning these steps at least once per video and you’ll see your channel’s metrics get even better.

Step 4: Promotion

When the question of how to create a YouTube channel is almost solved, it’s time to think about promotion. How to do it with a minimum investment of money? Is it even possible to find free ways to promote? We will tell you more right now.

1. Share Videos in Other Social Media

What can be easier than cross platform promotion? Probably nothing. Obviously, this method has a major plus: it’s free. And quite simple to execute, by the way. Be active on social media and share links to your new videos on Instagram, X, Facebook, and other platforms. This way, you’ll get an initially loyal audience that will be interested in both you and your content.

2. Collaborate with Other Creators

What can bring a quick “influx” of new subscribers? A collaborative video between two creators, of course. If you find YouTubers from your niche with a similar approach to creativity, consider yourself a lottery winner. Together, you’ll not only share valuable expertise, but also your audiences. Absolutely beneficial creative collaboration on both sides.

3. Check Comments on Past Videos

You think when you start a YouTube channel your job is just to post videos? It’s definitely not. When the video is already on your channel, you need to work with it too. You’d be surprised, but often old videos can reappear in Recommendations if people watch them more often. That’s why you need to work on the comments under old videos regularly. That’s how you engage people in both discussion and repeat viewing of your content.

4. Check YouTube Analytics Regularly

Video posting seems to be sorted out. Is that it? No, that’s just the beginning. All successful creators have a little secret: they check the stats often. Get in the habit of logging into YouTube Analytics at least once a month and see what’s happening with your content: how your audience is changing, up to what minute they watch your videos, how often they like them. This will help you better understand the “success” of your content and modernize it if necessary.

Step 5: Monetization

How can I make money and what are the ways to withdraw income from YouTube? The question you’re sure to ask yourself when you publish your first video. Now we’re going to tell you about basic monetization methods that will suit both novice creators and professionals.

1. Connect Your Channel to AdSense+MCN

The most basic advice you’ll be given in the guides is to connect to YPP. Obviously, this is the surest way to go. So, when you create a YouTube channel you immediately start collaborating with YouTube to the max. Nevertheless, there are a couple of issues with AdSense and withdrawal of income. Not all countries can withdraw YouTube income quickly and easily. Moreover, many creators find it very difficult at first to understand the intricacies of monetization. In this case we highly recommend joining Mediacube CSP, where every creator will get qualified help not only in the issue of withdrawal of funds, but also in the development of the channel as a whole.

2. Try Affiliate Programs

Among the classic video integrations, there’s the kind of advertising collaboration that requires the least amount of effort. And that’s affiliate programs. We recommend creators to accept such offers, because such cooperation requires them only to leave a link in the video description. So, you will get money for everyone who visits the sites and even bonuses for those who make a purchase after following your link.

3. Find New Advertisers by Yourself

A very common problem that aspiring creators face is the lack of a large number of advertisers who are interested in cooperation. Why not take the initiative and search for sponsorships for YouTubers yourself? We understand that no one advises to do so, because usually advertisers contact creators. In fact, there are so many creators now that making a name for yourself in the advertising world is not just possible, but necessary. Who knows, maybe your proactivity will bring you interesting collaborations and open new doors in your career.

FAQ

In this part of the article we have collected FAQ on working on Youtube. Here we will tell you about editing, copyright, and whether you need expensive equipment for filming or not.

1. What Apps are the Best for YouTube Creators? 

Of course, we have a separate article with a big List of Useful YouTube Apps, but here we will share a small list of must-have apps for YouTubers. We recommend testing them all.

Analytics: TubeBuddy, VidIQ

Editing: Sony Vegas Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro, CapCut

Thumbnails: Canva, Photoshop 

AI: VEED, Kapwing, CapCut

Also you can use AI for writing your scripts. That’s why you should just try each app to find your to-go pack.

2. Do I Need Expensive Equipment to Start a YouTube Channel?

Of course not! Trust us, even big channels don’t always have the most expensive camera, professional microphone and powerful lighting. Moreover, many of them started their YouTube channel by filming on an iPhone. And look where they are now. You can do the same.

3. Is it Necessary to Have a Content Schedule?

For aspiring creators, having a content plan is paramount. The clearer your plan is, the more accurate you’ll be in following it. For example, if your plan spells out 4 videos a month to be released every Tuesday, then you’ve already built a plan to achieve that goal. And if there’s no content plan, it’s much easier and more tempting to jump off such goals in times of difficulty.

4. How Can I Get More Subscribers When I’m Just Starting Out?

We understand: gaining your first 1000 subscribers is always very difficult. But don’t despair, there’s a cool solution. Your first subscribers can be your friends from different social networks. There’s no shame in sharing your new hobby on social media and asking people to subscribe. We are sure that many will support you and follow your creativity.

Final Words

As you can see, to start a YouTube channel you should put in a considerable effort. First, of course, to deal with the issue of competent filling of information about the channel. After that you will do a fascinating series of work with the creation of a content plan, the creation of the first video, participation in your first collaborations and commercials. And, in the end, the first payments from YouTube monetization. Already heard about the difficulties of withdrawing funds from monetization? We have one solution for you. Sign Up for MC Pay and make available payouts in any size at a convenient time not just a dream, but a reality.

By Veronica Kovalenko

Veronica Kovalenko

Writer at Mediacube. Journalist with 5+ years of experience in fintech, fashion journalism, marketing, and SEO optimization. She has been working at Mediacube for a year and keeps up to date with updates in the world of YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok and covers them in the Blog. Her articles count includes more than 400+ expert SEO articles on the topic of business development through marketing.