How to Get More Subscribers on YouTube

Anyone who has ever experienced the joy of watching an old childhood video, or watching a clip of one of their own children, knows the power of video. While looking at a photograph of your baby (or pet) can brighten your day, watching a video of them can result in a much more visceral experience.  While a picture says a thousand words, a video—with sound, movement, and feeling—has the ability to connect with people on a deeper level, and cause emotional reactions that can’t be matched by most photos.

With 2016 repeatedly crowned the year of video, if you still aren’t including video in your content strategy, now is the time to do so. With over 1 billion people around the world visiting the site each month, YouTube is a solid place to focus your video strategy. Whether you’re an agency, a brand, or a YouTube personality, knowing the fundamentals can help you better position your channel for success. We’ve put together the following tips to help you get more YouTube subscribers, see more engagement, and build your channel, one view at a time.

Why?

Before getting into the nitty-gritty of how to leverage YouTube for your marketing success, it’s important to delve into why this is a place your business needs to be. With social media video such a big focus in 2016 and beyond, the benefits of using YouTube to carry out your video strategy are countless. For example, YouTube is the second largest search engine, following Google. Furthermore, by having content on YouTube, you are positioning your organization to be found more easily through Google itself. Google groups images, text, books, local searches, and video all together in the results, meaning that your YouTube videos will appear just as if they were a text-only site. Some other key stats to think about include:

• Syndacast predicts that by 2017, 74 percent of all internet traffic will be video
• 52 percent of marketers name video as the type of content with the top ROI
• Shoppers who view video are 1.81 times more likely to purchase than non-viewers
• YouTube reaches more American adults aged 18 to34 than any cable network
• YouTube is available in 61 languages and is being used in 75 countries
• YouTube videos are easily shareable, with 323 days worth of YouTube video viewed on Facebook every minute

With this information in mind, the following tips will elevate your YouTube presence from unnoteworthy to Oscar-worthy.

Get free YouTube subscribers: 13 essential tactics

1. Post quality and useful content

This might seem like a no-brainer, but you’d be amazed at all of the videos out there that are of either terrible quality, or lack any truly valuable content. If you want to post a dark and fuzzy video of your midnight fast-food run, do so on your personal channel (and maybe think about hiding those videos from the general public).

For your brand’s page, create unique content or take a look at trending or popular themes and topics, and put your organization’s spin on those. If your product or service has experts behind it, use those experts to provide answers to common questions (through a Q&A video) or to demonstrate how your brand solves popular problems. Think about what your target audience member is searching for, and what their main pain points are, and create video content that addresses these needs.

2. Pick your title and description wisely

As some of the first impressions of your brand’s YouTube presence, your video titles and descriptions should reflect the high quality your organization is known for (or strives to be known for).

With YouTube’s maximum title length set at 100 characters, you want to keep your title as clear and concise as possible. Your video name is what will attract your audience and act as the deciding factor in whether they’re going to click on your content or not—no pressure. Vidrack author Ryan Parent provides some helpful guidance on the matter, sharing that “the best advice I can give for writing video titles is to be descriptive and accurate.” This isn’t the place to try and surprise your viewers, nor is it the place to exercise the phrase “you won’t believe what happens next!” Nobody likes to feel tricked into watching something that they didn’t sign up for, so ensure your title and description are as straightforward as possible.  

Specifically speaking about your YouTube video description, Parent shares thefollowing tips for helping you attract more subscribers through your descriptions:

• Don’t leave it blank—Many people make the mistake of leaving this area blank, missing out on a big video optimization opportunity.
• Use tags—Tags act as keywords for your videos, so if you neglect adding these you’re missing out on huge discovery opportunities.
• Don’t copy and paste—Instead, write unique, descriptive and keyword rich content in the description that YouTube can recognize.
• Add URLs—Send traffic to your website and other social channels by including URLs in the description .

3. Include a clear call-to-action

The built-in features of YouTube allow for you to easily incorporate a CTA in your videos. If someone has taken the initiative to actually click on and watch your video content, you’re halfway towards getting them to complete any desired next step. Usually, interacting with content such as a video indicates interest—even if it’s small at the moment—so make sure you prompt your audience and let them know what they can do to get more information and continue the relationship. If your objective is to grow your subscriber list, something like “subscribe now!” should be your CTA, but savvy marketers use YouTube for everything from driving traffic to collecting leads. 

There are a few different methods of including a CTA on your YouTube videos. TheAnimoto blog explains three of the most prominent ways you can do this:

• A vocal call-to-action: If appropriate, have the person speaking in the video tell the audience what action to take next step
• A text call-to-action: Use titles or captions to share information and suggestions for your customers’ next steps
• Call-to-action buttons: To add a level of interactivity to your videos, you can add a CTA button or overlay to your content. Ann Smarty of Internet Marketing Ninjas provides clear directions on how to do exactly this.

4. Create an engaging YouTube trailer

As a way to attract viewers to your channel—and ultimately gain new YouTube subscribers—a YouTube trailer offers potential audience members a look at what your content is about. The YouTube Creator Blog offers the following tips for how to make the best channel trailer possible:

• Include a clear CTA encouraging viewers to subscribe.
• Entertain the viewer to show what your channel is about rather than tell.
• Indicate the type of videos your viewers can expect, and when they can expect them .
• Think about the video’s context, as it will be seen on the channel (possibly after a viewer has already seen at least one of your videos).
• While there’s no perfect length, shorter is generally better.

5. Put some effort into the look of your channel

As one of your key marketing platforms, you will want to put as much effort into your YouTube channel as you do your other online profiles. As a company asset, you will want to ensure that you are incorporating your brand style and brand voice wherever possible. The look of your channel should be both professional and aesthetically pleasing, as it is your audience’s main visual impression of your organization. Think about what you want viewers to feel and do when they’re on your channel, and how the overall look of your channel can help you meet these objectives.

YouTube’s Creator Academy offers the following tips for branding your channel as a means of getting more subscribers:

• Focus on the content: “Your brand should correspond to the type of content you produce.”
• Spend time on your channel icon: “Your channel icon visually represents your channel everywhere across Google and YouTube, so make sure it looks good large and small.” YouTube recommends using an 800 x 800 pixel JPG, GIF, BMP, or PNG file.
• Pay attention to channel art: “Channel art is the banner across the top of your channel. It provides a great opportunity to really show off your channel’s personality! Channel art appears on all platforms where viewers can see your channel (TV, mobile, tablets, etc.) Upload an image that is at least 2560 x 1440 [pixels].”

For more information from YouTube on how to make your channel perform the best it possibly can, check out Creator Academy’s page on the topic.

6. Personalize video thumbnails

As an additional way of polishing the look of your channel, it’s smart to personalize your video thumbnails. Make use of branded fonts, colors, and images that reflect what your content will speak to, and remember that a thumbnail’s worth a thousand words. As YouTube’s Creator Academy states, “Custom thumbnails are a great way to package your video series with a consistent look and feel. They can also help viewers pick your video out from a sea of other thumbnails.”  

For a thorough guide to creating great video thumbnails, this resource from YouTube’s Creator Academy is extremely valuable.

7. Use annotations

If you want a surefire way to make your videos more engaging and interactive, using annotations is the way to do this. Annotations allow you to “layer text, links, and hotspots over your video,” helping you “enrich the video experience by adding information, interactivity, and engagement.” The possibilities for annotation use are limited only by your creativity, but some common uses include:

• Letting viewers skip ahead (keeping them watching in the process)
• Suggesting other videos for the viewer to watch
• Linking to your website
• Linking to a subscribe button for your channel
• Adding a CTA (sign up, learn more, etc.)

As YouTube explains, “By encouraging viewers to watch more, you can help boost your channel’s watch time which aids your placement in Search and Suggested Video.” Through earning more views and audience members, you are sure to get more YouTube subscribers overall.

8. Post consistently

How many times have you been excited to check out an organization’s YouTube page, only to find that they haven’t uploaded a video since 2011? This is all-too-often the case, and leaves the viewer disappointed and questioning the authority of the brand. One of the best ways to get more YouTube subscribers is to simply be a reliable source of information for them, through providing frequent and consistent content. Make realistic goals (for example, one to two new videos per week), and ensure you stick to these. Our own Hootsuite video team recommends that businesses  establish foundational content, such as regular tutorials for your products and/or services. Your audience will come to depend and count on you for at least one type of recurring content—content they will find themselves looking forward to.

By positioning your brand as one that your audience and customers can trust, you’re guaranteed to build a dedicated following. As basketball and YouTube professional Dre Martin explains, you don’t have to be the best or most revolutionary, “but you can be the most persistent. You can be the most dependable when it comes to sharing fresh new content. You can set a schedule that you stick to, earning you more trust than the creators who post only when they feel like it or get around to it.”

9. Keep it short

With the average YouTube video clocking in at 4.4 minutes, it makes sense that the shorter the video, the more likely you are to keep your audience’s attention. With the general attention span for a YouTube video peaking at around the three minute mark, this is also something to keep in mind. However, as with most content marketing strategies, it’s important to adjust this principle when necessary.

As Andrew Stark of Stark Insider TV states, “Shorter is typically better. But depending on your subject matter—an interview, speech, or investigative expose—you will need to go longer to properly convey the story.”

10. Collaborate with other YouTube users

As with other social media networks, there are countless communities within YouTube dedicated to whatever is relevant to your brand or organization. Find other YouTubers within your industry, and invite them to collaborate on a video or series of videos. This is mutually beneficial, as cross promotion gives both of your brands visibility in new markets and gives you the opportunity to gain new YouTube subscribers.

To help you get started with some collaboration efforts, Vlog Nation offers the following ideas for YouTube partnerships:

• Guest appearances in each others’ videos
• Making one YouTube video and dividing it
• Uploading your videos to each others’ channels
• Collaborating with Google Hangouts on-air
• Exchanging shout-outs
• Collaborating through social media

11. Cross-promotion

Besides cross-promoting on other YouTube users’ channels through collaboration, you can get more subscribers through promoting your content on different channels and platforms.  Help direct traffic to your YouTube channel through consistently including links from your email newsletters, website, and other social media accounts.

Another way to cross-promote is within YouTube itself, where if you are managing more than one YouTube channel you can “turn your channel into a single destination for viewers to access all of the other channels you own or love.”

12. Interact with your audience

This may seem like a given for anyone who knows the value of social media engagement, but it’s crucial to interact with your audience. This doesn’t mean simply answering questions they ask you directly, but encouraging them to ask such questions and giving them quality content that warrants comments.

Commonly referred to as the “YouTube community,” it’s important to recognize that YouTube isn’t somewhere you can just dump your content and forget about it. Find out what active audience members within your specific community and industry are interested in, and speak to this. You know how great it feels when somebody comments something positive or (respectfully) thought-provoking on your social media posts? Do the same for others on YouTube, and notice the ways in which you get back as much as you give.

Asking engaging questions on other users’ videos is another way to spark conversation, and drive audience members and the user themselves, to your channel. If you are able to establish yourself as an active member of the community, you will naturally create a situation where you gain subscribers. Some key ways to engage with other users and get more YouTube subscribers are:

• Take a few minutes each day to view other YouTubers channels and content, and pose appropriate questions or comments
• Encourage your audience members to ask questions
• Ask audience members to contribute ideas for your future content
• Run a YouTube contest where you ask for video replies

For a more detailed guide to engaging on YouTube, the accompanying Creator Academy page is a solid resource.

13. Reward your subscribers

One key way of not only engaging with your subscribers, but getting more YouTube subscribers, is through rewarding them. Everyone loves the chance to win free things, prizes, and valuable assets, so offer them things and give them a reason to subscribe or stay subscribed. Your viewers probably don’t care as much as you do yourself about reaching a milestone such as 500 subscribers, so give them an incentive to help you get there. Show your gratitude for your subscribers, and make them feel appreciated.

Do something such as host a contest, a giveaway, or offer a shout-out to subscribers in exchange for them being loyal fans, or sharing your channel and videos. You can get more YouTube subscribers by giving something back, and truly showing—rather than just telling—your audience how dedicated you are to them.

As you can see, there are countless ways to get new YouTube subscribers. By focusing on what your audience wants, rather than simply what you or your brand wants, you have the opportunity to build a dedicated community. Concentrate on creating unique and valuable content that is relevant to your audience’s needs and interests, and you will undoubtedly see your YouTube following grow

10 Tips On Getting Your First 1000 YouTube Subscribers

There is nothing more satisfying than hitting a milestone with your videos.  One important one is your first 1,000 subscribers. This is important because YouTubeoffers live streaming once you have achieved this milestone and you have an account in good standing (Since the publishing of this post there has been a change:YouTube now offers live streaming for free for verified non-profit entities.  Instead of needing 1,000 subscribers you now need 100 subscribers.)

Getting more subscribers can seem like a difficult task, but I'll share 10 tips to help you get your first 1,000 subscribers.

1. Post Useful Content Consistently

This is one of the most difficult things to do as a content creator.  If you take a look around YouTube you might think that every video under the sun has been created and that is most likely true, but you can put your own spin on a popular topic.  For example, there are many “unboxing” tech videos...what if you created a “reboxing” and talk about the various components of tech while you put it back in the box?  The key here is creativity and that will certainly boost subscriptions.

2. Name Your Videos Strategically

One of the most difficult things is to name your video. You have the name in your head, but it may be something complex or too long.  My rule is to keep it basic and use the YouTube autocomplete to name the video.  There is nothing wrong with your video having the same name or something close to a popular video, as long as it's relevant.

3. Spruce Up Your Channel Design

Most visitors first impression of you is from your channel and your design. This is where visitors interact and get to know what you are about.  Create a engaging header and show off your brand.  On my channel, we were intentional about our design making it fit into our overall branding strategy. The key takeaway is to design with purpose.

4. Show Your Lighter Side

Lighten up and laugh at yourself.  Bloopers make you more human and show something different than an ordinary talking head video. Also, switch up the video and catch your viewers off guard so they don't know what to expect.

5. Shoot In Various Locations

I believe that shooting in various locations can lead to more interest. I understand that may not be possible or you may have a set, but try to change a background or even use a green screen. Like the cliché says, “variety is the spice of life” so mix it up with your backgrounds and locations.

ALSO ►  500 Million People are Watching Facebook Videos Every Day

6. Create A Custom Thumbnail

I have seen my subscriptions and views increase by adding this step.  I use impact font that is seen on many internet photos to grab attention and I format the photo using Adobe Photoshop.

I usually title the photo thumbnail differently than the video because when people are scrolling through other videos to view, they can easily tell what my video is about.

7. Use Annotations

Annotations are those annoying things that pop up during videos, but they can be a content creator's dream.  I add annotations to every video and make it easy by creating a link for them to subscribe.  This is extra work, but once you see your subscription rate increase you will continue to add them to every video.

8. Ask For Subscribers

This is very basic. At the end of every video ask viewers to “like” and subscribe to your channel.  You should also tell them why they should subscribe, for example if you are a DIY Home Improvement channel I would say, “subscribe for my DIY projects, tricks and insider tips delivered to you weekly.” Remember, be careful what you ask for, because you might get it.

9. Be Yourself 

You are the best you—you can be. Being on camera was difficult for me at first because I compared myself to others who are natural on camera talent then I realized, “I just have to be me.”   Let your personality shine in your videos and I guarantee someone will connect with you.

10. Create An Engaging Channel Trailer 

With the new channel design, YouTube gives content creators a great opportunity to create a trailer to share what your content is about. Have you ever attended a movie without viewing a trailer? Not me, because you want to see what it is about.  Keep your trailer under 90 seconds and show scenes from your other videos and provide a strong call to action of why a viewer should become a subscriber.

Keep people coming back by putting some effort into your videos. Did you notice I didn't mention any technical details about lighting, audio and composition?  This is because I assume you should know that already.  The more comfortable you are on camera the more subscribers you can get. It may take a while, but you can do it.

What other methods do you use to get subscribers on YouTube? Leave in the comments below.

How to Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube

Upload videos at least once a week. One of the most important steps in getting more subscribers is to provide as much content as you can. The more videos you have, the more popular your channel will become as posting lots of videos makes people want to come back. More videos means more search result, which will lead to more subscribers. Do keep in mind though that posting too many videos every week will clog up your channel and make it hard for viewers to find what they are looking for. Group videos into playlists so that people can find the type of videos they are more interested in. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 22 Make a schedule and stick to it. Try to upload your videos at regular times throughout the week. Let your subscribers know when your next video will be available, and they will be more likely to return to your channel when the video is released. People are more likely to subscribe to someone who is regularly producing content as opposed to someone who uploads every once in a while. Consider live streaming your videos to be able to interact with your audience while they watch you. Live streaming videos are often placed higher in YouTube search results, especially while they are being streamed. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 33 Properly tag your videos. Make sure that all of your tags match the content of your videos. If someone searches for something and your video pops up because it is improperly tagged, they will leave after a few seconds and most likely never return. Good tags will make sure that your videos are showing up in relevant searches. Use multi-word tags as well as single words. People often search for phrases. Limit yourself to a maximum of 15 hashtags per video. If you use more than that YouTube will ignore all of your hashtags and may not show your video in search results. Use relevant hashtags that people are searching for. Apps and sites like hashtags4follows.com can help you find these hashtags. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 44 Take some time to write a good title. A well-titled video will stand out much more in a search result list than a poorly-titled one. For example, say you are making a video about baking cookies. A poorly-titled video might say “Bake good cookies”. A better title would be “Bake delicious, chewy cookies in less than 15 minutes”. The second title is more descriptive, and contains more keywords for search engines to catch. Popular YouTube accounts often use what is called "Clickbait". It is essentially a video title that will make the viewer want to know more. For example "what happens next will shock you" or "you wont believe what this person can do". This is a good trick to get more subscribers but may make many people angry if the video does not live up to the hype. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 55 Write meaningful descriptions. Only the first few lines of your description will be visible when the video comes up in a search, so make sure that the beginning of the description does a good job of explaining the video and what the viewer is about to see. Make sure to include a good number of keywords in your description, but don’t overload it and make it difficult to read. Ask people to subscribe to you within the description and offer a link to your channel. Part 2 Planning Your Videos Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 61 Write a script. While it is very possible to make successful videos off-the-cuff, creating a script will help you deliver consistent programming. The script will keep you from veering off the theme of your video, as well as help focus your content for your audience. In the situation of a vlog, you might want to make an outline of what you want to say and go ahead and ramble. Some of the best vloggers do this and then cut out the footage where they say "um." Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 72 Film what you know. The most successful videos are ones where the creator is doing what he or she likes. Don’t try to follow the crowd and produce videos mimicking popular trends. You will be far more successful if you make what you want to make, and focus on polishing and building that. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 83 Start with a hook. The introduction is one of the most important parts of a video. It should grab the audience’s attention, lay out the themes and direction of the video, and keep the viewer wanting more. You can do this with personal introductions, graphics, clips of what’s to come, and more. Keep your introduction powerful but short. Viewers are not likely to sit through more than 10-15 seconds of introduction. This includes titles, graphics, and lead-ins. Hook them quick and then dive in to the main content of your video. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 94 Pace your content. It is essential that your video’s pacing keeps the viewer from becoming bored. Don’t linger on uninteresting subjects, and keep the action moving forward. Don’t try to cram too much information into one segment. If you are producing informative videos, consider breaking up the content into multiple parts. This will keep the audience from becoming overloaded with information. On the flip-side, make sure that you have enough content to justify the length of the video. If the viewer becomes disinterested, even for a second, they will most likely leave to find another video. For longer videos, add small section breaks where the pace slows down a little. This will give the audience a moment to reflect on what they’ve seen so far before you move on with your content. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 105 End with a call to action. At the end of your video, don’t just say goodbye and turn the camera off. Ask your viewers to subscribe to your channel, link your videos in Facebook, or ask them to leave comments below the video. All of these will lead to more subscriptions, and more interaction with your subscribers. Use Annotations to add a subscription button inside your video. Make sure that it doesn’t block any of the action, and save it for the ending segment.[1] Part 3 Producing Your Clips Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 111 Edit your videos. Even basic editing can help separate your video from the thousands of similar videos on YouTube. Edit out any lulls, mistakes, or bad content. Take some time to learn how to use a video editing program. There are several free open source video editing programs available, and many digital camcorders come packaged with video editing software. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 122 Develop transitions. If you are making a series of videos based on the same general concept (how-tos, reviews, etc.), come up with common transitions and effects that you can apply to all of your videos. This will give your content a unified feel, making it appear much more professional to the viewer. Transitions have a large impact on your video branding. Your brand is a very important aspect of YouTube channel success, so be sure to cultivate it as much as possible. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 133 Practice your camera work. Experiment with different kinds of shots. Get to know your camera inside and out. Smooth camera work will do wonders for your subscriber retention. Avoid moving the camera around a lot, unless that is the specific feel you are going for. For example, if you are talking into the camera, and then want to zoom in on an example on the table, don’t film the camera moving. Instead cut from one shot to the other so that the audience doesn’t experience any jarring camera movements. Get a friend or family member to help. Having a dedicated camera operator can free you up to be more personable in front of the camera. Having a “crew” also adds an air of professionalism to your production, as opposed to just using your webcam to make a movie. Use a tripod or stand where ever possible to ensure a steady shot. If you must be moving around then use a jib or a camera with optical stabilization. Part 4 Building Your Channel Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 141 Keep your content consistent. Make sure that the content you upload to your channel remains consistent with the theme of your channel. For example, if you start by releasing several movie reviews, don’t move on to uploading recipe videos later. You will lose subscribers if they find that your content doesn’t match their expectations. Create multiple channels for different subjects and themes. This will allow you to link between your channels but keep your different content separate so as not to confuse viewers. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 152 Interact with your subscribers. Replying to good comments and giving shout-outs to subscribers in your clips will really help strengthen the community of your channel. Make sure to moderate your channel as well, removing any nasty messages that may upset other subscribers. This will keep your channel friendly and popular. Image titled Get Tons of Subscribers on YouTube Step 163 Subscribe to other channels. Find channels that share your interests, and subscribe to them. Leave thoughtful and well-written comments, and you will soon find subscribers from that channel coming to your channel as well. YouTube is a community, and interacting with it will help you grow much more than simply uploading your videos. Upload video responses to other videos when they fit, but avoid spamming other channels with your videos. You are likely to be ignored and blocked, which will hurt your chances of gaining subscribers. Treat other channels with respect, and you will start to see yours grow. Make sure you use the name of the channel or person you are responding to in the video title so it can easily be found. Leave positive comments on other people's videos. Just make sure they are relevant and not spammy. 4 Advertise your channel. Use other social networking outlets such as Facebook and Twitter to advertise your channel. Let your friends and followers know when you’ve uploaded a new video. Include a quick blurb about it when you post. If you have a blog, include a direct link to your YouTube channel so that your readers can easily find your video content. Simply use the following code to create a YouTube subscription widget: