How to Create
a YouTube Channel.
1.3 billion
Total YouTube Users
Businesses often overlook YouTube as a social media outlet. Marketing 101 covers FaceBook, Twitter and other social media channels but YouTube accounts for a huge amount of online traffic and an untapped marketing channel. Here we will show you how to create a YouTube channel for your business.
How many people us YouTube?
Here’s a few statistics that should grab your attention…
- The total number of people who use YouTube is over 1.3 billion
- Video content accounts for over 74% of all online traffic
- YouTube gets over 30 million visitors per day
- 9% of U.S small businesses use Youtube
- Google’s annual revenue generated from YouTube is over $4 trillion
Surprised? Didn’t think so.
If you really want to elevate your businesses SEO, setting up a YouTube channel is a great way to get exposure. We will go through step-by-step instructions on how to create a YouTube channel, share simple YouTube channel video ideas, and discuss features of YouTube video editor to help get your business started on YouTube.
How to Create a YouTube Channel: Step-by-step
- Sign into Youtube (requires a Gmail account)
- Click on your profile icon top right and in the drop down menu click “My Channel”
- A small window will pop up with “Use YouTube As.” It will have your name as default but choose “Use a business or other name.” This way you start a branding channel for your business.
- Click “Create Channel.”
5. This will create basic YouTube Channel with your name, profile icon, and upload space. Click on “Customize Channel” and add a banner at the top and icon photo.
YouTube Channel Art
The banner should represent your business because it will be the first impression for viewers. YouTube Channel recommends uploading a photo for the banner at 2560 X 1440 pixels with maximum file size of 4MB.
6. Finally, click on “About” and add description of your YouTube channel. In the description, you need to include what viewers should expect from your channel, what sort of videos you are going to create, social media links, and an email for people to reach out to you.
Tip: Make sure in the description to add main keywords to help viewers find you.
You are now ready to upload videos onto your YouTube channel.
YouTube Channel Video Ideas
The biggest reason businesses do not setup a YouTube channel is because of the time commitment to creating and editing quality videos. The best way to start is with simple instructional or FAQ videos about your business. Other easy but effective video ideas for your YouTube Channel include:
- Introducing your business
- video tutorials on your products
- Comparing your services or products to others
- Announcements on new products or services
- Testimonials from customers
- Introducing team members
These videos will be the starting point for your YouTube channel in order to be noticed by potential clients and inform viewers about your products and services.
Tip: Do not forget SEO (search engine optimization) for your videos. When uploading you will need to fill out a title, description, and tags. Make sure to fill out the information with relevant keywords and a captivating description. It is essential to get your video found online.
Youtube Channel Video Editor
Now that you have your video, it is time to edit. Fortunately, YouTube channel has a simple and free video editor perfect for businesses that do not want to spend a lot of time or money on their videos.
Video Editor Main Features Include:
- Being able to trim videos
- Ability to combine videos
- Create multiple versions of the same video
- Add some color effects
- Add transitions
- Add graphics at the beginning and end of videos
Tip: After you finish your video, share it on your website, write a blog on it, and add to your other social media platforms.
Making a YouTube channel and videos may be more complicated than Twitter and Instagram but with so many people looking at videos it can really boost your business. At SunCity Advising, we are often asked about how to make a YouTube channel. This article should answer questions of how create a YouTube channel but if you need SEO research to boost your videos then reach out to us. We can assist your business in utilizing all social media platforms to the fullest.
Advanced YouTube Resources
VidIQ’s YouTube SEO Scorecard and Checklist Service
VidIQ is a service that helps you optimize your YouTube videos in terms of generating views, and appealing to YouTube’s SEO preferences, in order to reach the largest audience possible. It’s simple! While your video is uploading on YouTube, take some time to make sure all your SEO boxes are checked. VidIQ’s scorecard and checklist work in real time, so you will know when each task has been completed. Here is the checklist with descriptions of each attribute.
The VidIQ Checklist
- At least 1 card
- These keep viewers watching your content.
- At least 1 end screen
- Promote your other videos when the current video ends with clickable link.
- Closed captions (manual)
- YouTube likes subtitles. They help YouTube index your content through keywords.
- Monetization enabled
- This is vital if a YouTube income stream is important to you.
- Added to a playlist
- People watch for longer periods of time in playlists, and they are pushed to more of your content.
- Shared on Facebook and Twitter
- Social media sharing increases your potential audience.
- Replied to a recent comment
- Timely engagement is important.
Additional VidIQ YouTube Suggestions:
- Keep title between 20 and 60 characters so it will not be cut off in browsing mode.
- Tags categorize your content. Include at least 200 characters worth of tags.
- Include at least 300 characters in your description.
- Make your video public—simple.
- Pin your comments or your viewer’s comments to place them at the top of the video. This increases engagement.
- Heart comments for increased engagement and to build viewer loyalty.
VidIQ frequently offers free 30-day trials of their YouTube SEO service. After that, it is a mere $50 per month—if you are looking to generate an income through monetization, this service is a wise investment.
Jinsey Cox, Content Marketing Specialist
Jinsey Cox is a Content Marketing Specialist at SunCity Advising. With a background in copywriting and art, Jinsey creates unique content for clients that drives engagement and leads. SunCity Advising specializes in developing high performing websites, including services in SEO, paid media advertising, social media, email marketing and other digital marketing solutions.
