It took me years to start a YouTube channel. I was wrongly informed that you need good equipment, a good setup, fancy software to start a channel.
This is far from true.
In reality, to become a YouTuber you do not need any of this at all.
What do you need to become a YouTuber? To become a YouTuber you need to do these
- Recording Device
- Editing Software
- Lighting
- Internet
- YouTube Strategy and Plan
I know this sounds crazy but you can check my channel to see how many subscribers I have for the kind of videos I produce. ( I have no fancy equipment, use my smartphone to film and edit).
What do you need to become a YouTuber?
This post first appeared on indianmomvlogs.com
From my experience, I think what is most important is a strategy for Youtube. Not a strategy in general, but a strategy for Youtube.
Youtube has a lot of content and in order for your content to be found in all this, you need to do something different.
It all starts with your why?
Why do You want to start a YouTube channel?
Ask yourself this question again and again. If it is just for money, then you might not be working youtube as it should.
The focus we place on determines the actions we take.
When we are focused on making money, we fail to
- plan
- strategize
- take action
- be motivated
You must and should be passionate about creating your channel, sharing your knowledge and building an audience.
When I started youtube, it was all about the money. The money never came because when you run after money, you begin wrong.
You look for video ideas that are hot, which top YouTubers are using. We copy and we lose out.
To start a successful youtube channel you must be original, share valuable content and connect with your audience.
You are not only looking for hot and trending ideas, but you are also looking for ideas that provide value. This brings in a care factor that people get attracted to.
There are many YouTubers who have such beautiful personalities. They attract customers with their personality, their vibe.
Over the years I have learned that I can be attractive in my own way. Mine is sharing helpful content and being as down to earth as I can.
Since I have kept my videos natural and transparent, I convert my traffic much better. Though my latest don’t have very many views, I make sales.
Once people like and trust you, they will buy products you recommend, buy your courses and merchandise.
Equipment For a YouTuber
You do not need too much equipment for recording high-quality YouTube videos. Let me share with you what you do need as a bare minimum.
#1 Recording Device
You do need a recording device. You can use the inbuilt camera on your laptop, or use your smartphone.
Some YouTubers invest in a webcam. Nowadays you can get really good ones for less.
I use my smartphone to record my Youtube videos and have shared how I do that in this article – How to start Vlogging with Phone
While a good quality recording device helps a lot with user experience, branding, making your videos look classy and professional… don’t let that let you delay the filming process.
After all, there is no best time or the right time for this.
For me, the best time was when I decided to just do it… that changed my life.
#2 Editing Software
There are many fancy editing software with steep learning curves. You just need to Google video editing software and you will be presented with a list of software.
I do not use any fancy editing software. There is a learning curve and I would rather invest the time in ideating and growing my Youtube channel.
I use two free video editors which I have downloaded on my smartphone. One editor allows me to place a video in a video. The other one does not.
Both apps allow me to add text overlay, insert pictures, insert sounds.
The first one places a watermark throughout the video. The second one places a watermark at the end ( which I edit out).
Learn my tricks by watching the video I will be sharing on this page.
#3 Lighting
This is actually crucial for making good videos, but I made videos with no lighting equipment and still received a ton of views.
If you have the budget you can invest in some soft lights. Else film your videos in natural light. Make sure the light falls on your face.
There are many DIY light setups online which you can try.
I film myself in front of the window in natural light at times. I also film my videos in the room with the tube light switched on.
My smartphone works well in low light and I have not spent a dime on any fancy lights.
#4 Internet
A good wifi connection is required to upload videos (especially applicable if you live in 3rd world countries). I have had sooo much trouble uploading videos because of network issues.
I think if you keep the video length short it should be okay. We will talk about ideal video lengths soon.
How to become a YouTuber on your phone
I have an article dedicated to this topic – vlogging with your phone. It is how I film and edit my videos. You need editing software, software to create thumbnails and the internet to upload videos.
I have the following installed on my phone
- Filmora App
- Canva App
- Youtube Studio App
Once I upload videos to Youtube there are a couple of boosts I give to my videos. I use the Youtube studio app to check on my subscriber growth, edit the video titles, descriptions, tags. I also like to track what sources my visitors came from, what are the search terms used.
It is time to take a look at some potential questions you might have.
How much does it cost to be a YouTuber?
Truly for me, it was zero. I used my smartphone and the mike on the smartphone. I used free editing apps and used natural lighting.
If you shudder at the thought of this minimalistic ideas, you can always upgrade to a good camera, some lighting, and some good editors.
The major cost, in my opinion, is your time.
You will be learning the system, learning YouTube SEO, understanding what works and what doesn’t.
This requires a lot of time spent on research.
This will pay off in the end but it can be a huge learning curve for some.
Work Schedule?
Work schedule involves
- Researching ideas to film
- jotting down a script for the videos
- Filming the videos
- Editing the videos
- Creating eye-catchy thumbnails
- Uploading the videos – optimizing the video
This can take a LOT of time initially. There are YouTubers who spend cli=ose to 8 hours or more just on these tasks.
There are others who have focused on creating raw natural videos, without too much editing. They are able to churn out videos in a couple of hours.
Other Youtubers outsource the tasks of video editing, thumbnail creation, and even SEO.
What if you want to Outsource?
Once you have a fair understanding of the process of video creation, optimization, and marketing, you can identify the tasks you feel you would like to outsource.
There are many virtual assistants available for hire on Upwork, Fiverr and other such platforms.
Check for reviews, ratings, and references before you hire someone.
Here is the exact method a YouTuber uses to outsource.
She uses Trello to create a dashboard of tasks to be done.
Each column or list has cards added to it. These are the actual tasks to be performed.
For example in the ToDo column, the cards might be videos that need to be filmed.
The next list could be the list we are presently working on.
Once the VA completes the work, she moves it over to the Review list.
This is an easy way to keep track of things to be done. You can add team members and assign tasks to members.
This is one way to collaborate effectively.
Content Schedule
Having a content schedule all thought of is what makes the difference between a great channel and a mediocre one.
Once content ideas are brainstormed and scheduled, the process of video creation runs pretty smoothly.
I always have a running list of ideas I want to work on. I keep it in my bullet journal. This is one place I will definitely look at and can carry with me when I run errands.
You never know when an Idea might pop up so always keep a notepad and pen handy.
YouTube SEO
SEO or search engine optimization is key to making it big on youtube. If you focus time and effort on SEO, research and competitor analysis, you will be able to generate income from YouTube.
- Decide on Video topics
- Look at your competitors and find the best tags and keywords for your videos.
- Use the keyword in your video filename, the title of the video, sprinkle a few LSI keywords in the description of the video
- Upload the video, add in up to 500 characters of well-optimized description, add hashtags and tags
- Add links to related videos in the video description
This is how you perform on page SEO for your videos and interlink so that the link juice flows between videos.
How to give your YouTube videos a boost?
This is my Secret sauce to providing that initial boost for my video.
- I watch my entire video so that I get a full watch time
- I like my own video
- I comment on the video asking a question or adding some additional information related to the video
- Share the video on social media channels
- Pin the video using relevant hashtags
- Sometimes I create a video SEO pin using the free tool as taught in this Pinterest course.
- Embed video on a relevant blog post – If my blog posts was an old one, I boost it using the technique for creating a viral pin in the Pinterest course. It works really well and seems to boost all my pins
Is it Reliable?
Nope. This system is not reliable. We are all at the mercy of Google which owns Youtube. They can take down your channel anytime they want.
They can demonetize channels.
Youtube algorithm changes every day, this means you can lose all your rankings overnight.
Yet, I love the power of YouTube. Especially a great way to boost your blog posts, drive sales for your merchandise and info products.
Save this post for Later to your Youtube Board on Pinterest
