10 Things I which I knew before starting a YouTube Channel

I started my youtube channel about a year ago and many persons have testified to how helpful my channel had been to them and their finances. I got monetized and had connected with some amazing people and opportunities I will never know existed if I had not started the YouTube channel. Yes, I still have a long way to go in this content creation journey but looking back, here are 10 things things nobody told me when I started YouTube.

1. Start a channel once you feel like even if you’re not ready: You’ll learn and improve as you go. I hesitated to start my channel, but once I did, each video taught me something new, enhancing my content creation skills.

Done is better than perfect: Completing and uploading your content is more important than endless tweaking. Releasing videos regularly, even if they weren’t perfect, helped me refine my skills over time.

2. It takes a lot of time (energy and money) to put out valuable content consistently and it’s best to focus on improvement and giving value rather than reward when you just start. The rewards don’t come immediately but they come definitely.

3. Some videos take off immediately while some take off 3–6 months after they got posted. So, don’t worry too much about video performances too early. Just focus on making the best video you can per time to give the best value to that 1–10 people who view it. If it appeals to 10 people, it may appeal to 10000 people some day. Focus on giving value and getting slightly better with every new video.

4. Strangers not Family and Friends, will build you: Your content will resonate with like-minded individuals across the globe. Example: My first viral video was shared in a niche forum, bringing in thousands of subscribers who were genuinely interested in my content.

5. Buy light before camera: Good lighting can make even smartphone footage look professional. When I started stopped using ring light, and got a 200w cob light, even my phone’s front camera put out a better quality. Now imaging how good my phone’s back camera is with better lighting. The visual appeal of my videos improved significantly in spite the fact that I am still using a Canon M50 with only the kit lens.

6. Audio is way more important than video. A crisp and clear voice can keep viewers engaged even with average video quality. For instance, viewers stayed 20% longer on my videos after I upgraded my microphone to Shure.

7. Consistency over production value: Regular uploads can help build a loyal audience more than sporadic high-quality videos. I noticed a subscriber boost when I switched to weekly uploads, regardless of production scale.

8. Be Consistent — monetization is sure: Sticking to a schedule ensures steady growth and revenue. After six months of consistent posting, my channel was monetized, proving consistency pays off.

9. Subscriber count < views < engagement: Engagement, such as comments and likes, is a better success metric than subscriber count. A video with high engagement led to more recommendations by YouTube, even though it had fewer views initially.

10. Good idea is more important than fancy editing: A unique concept will captivate audiences more than elaborate edits. My most popular video was a simple, one-take tutorial that answered a common question.

Bonus Tip:

Focus on endogenous factors in my control like giving my audience value rather than focusing on exogenous factors like the algorithm which may be favorable, neutral or unfavorable. This is not to say I don’t check my analytics 1 million times a day and beg you to please subscribe to my YouTube Channel if you haven’t and like this video right.