YouTube, the video streaming giant, is an income source for millions. But, it’s not easy to start earning on YouTube. You need to cross some milestones to build a stable earning on YouTube. The primary milestone for a growing YouTube channel should be followers.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to reach 5,000 subscribers on YouTube. So, if you’re just getting started with YouTube, this is the definitive guide for you.
Things You Need to Do to Reach 5,000 Followers on YouTube
Before we begin teaching, keep in mind that you won’t be able to achieve your goals if you’re not consistent. Consistently putting out content, even if you feel like you’re not getting results is crucial.
1. Don’t be Afraid to Be Yourself
Do you know why YouTubers like Mr. Beast, IShowSpeed, and PewDePie are world-famous? Because they showed what they’re passionate about and they don’t try to hide the real version of themselves.
If you’re serious about making YouTube a viable career option, then your page should be an expression of yourself. If your audience can relate to you on a human level, they’re more likely to engage with your content.
2. Be Consistent in Posting
As I highlighted above, to be successful on YouTube, you need to be consistent in posting.
To be able to reach 5,000 followers or any other amount of followers, you need to invest your time and money. Make a content schedule and stick to it. If you’re passionate about the things you make content about, it would become easy to be consistent.
3. Talk About Real Questions/Topics/Concerns
Another thing to consider is the kind of content you’re making on YouTube. Is it something that people want to see?
Research and analyze topics/keywords that you want to talk about in your videos. Moreover, you can research keywords for particular content in your videos and take advantage of YouTube optimization.Â
There are several keyword tools that you can use to do keyword research for YouTube.
4. Use Catchy (Possibly Clickbait) Thumbnail to Grab Viewers’ Attention
Thumbnails play a vital role in helping you grow on YouTube. You can make the best video in your niche but it won’t matter if your thumbnail is not engaging. Your thumbnail is the first engagement a viewer will have with your content. If you’re unable to grab attention with just the thumbnail, you won’t find success.
Here are some expert pointers that you can include in your thumbnails:
- Include your image in the thumbnail
- A logo or a brand image
- Title of the video/some enticing content
- Try to invoke emotion (sadness, excitement, shock, happiness)
But the best way to improve your thumbnails is by analyzing what your competitors are doing. If what they’re doing is working, then you may want to take inspiration from that.
5. Collaborate with Influencers
Even if you’re a small channel, you should try to partner with influencers. If that partnership costs you money, most of the time it’s worth the investment. Collaborating with the ideal influencer can put your YouTube channel on a straight path to success.
But for this strategy to work, the influencer has to compliment your channel perfectly. The collaboration needs to benefit both of you and should be relevant to your audience.
Here are some things you can keep in mind while trying to find the right influencer:
- You and the influencer should share the same audience
- You and the influencer should have similar values
- Both of you should be able to provide something of value to each other
Search on YouTube to find influencers you can partner with. Get in touch with them and use a simple but compelling pitch. Make sure to highlight the value you bring to the table (be it monetary or not).
6. Create Playlists
Creating playlists on YouTube is a good way to boost engagement on your channel. Playlists help you keep viewers on your channel for a longer time. This way a person would watch more content on your channel instead of watching just one video.
If they like your content, they’ll be far more likely to subscribe to your channel.
You’ll have to experiment with playlists to find the right mix. The ideal playlist can take your channel to new heights.
7. Build a Complete Profile
Most YouTubers end up making this mistake while trying to grow their channel. Your YouTube channel should clearly outline what you do, what you’ve done till now, and what the channel is about. When someone lands on your channel, they should know about some basic things, such as:
- Who are you
- What content do you make
- What drives you to make the content
You should tell the world about your channel and what’s it about. Make sure that you create a descriptive profile for your channel and complete it with as much information as possible.
8. Add Subtitles & Captions
According to YouTube’s data, 50-80% of all people use subtitles when watching your videos. It’s super easy to add subtitles to YouTube videos. If you want to have catchy videos, you’ll need to add some captions.
Your audience is most likely to watch an entire video when you have subtitles in the video. Thinking about your audience is a great way to ensure that your audience watches the entire video.
Here’s how you add subtitles to your YouTube video:
- Go to your YouTube account
- Choose the video you want to add subtitles to
- Click on “Add Language > Select Your Language”
9. Use YouTube Shorts
YouTube shorts are a “hack” to get more subscribers on your YouTube channel. You won’t be able to earn a lot with YouTube shorts, but it’s a great option to get more subscribers.
The best way to use YouTube shorts is to use them strategically. Use them to divert traffic to your main video.
Whatever content you make, your aim should be to send the videos on the same topic and send the shorts traffic to your long-form videos.
YouTube shorts can act as an intro to your channel, but people love them because people have low attention span.
Wrapping up
Reaching the first 5,000 subscribers on your YouTube channel is hard work, but with consistency and planning, you can make it. It’s time to start working on YouTube videos and grow your channel to the next level.