Update on my YouTube channel - 6 months in
Hello lovely WA family
I hope you are having a wonderful Monday (or starting Tuesday) wherever you are.
This is just a quick update about my YouTube journey this year. I started a channel a few years ago and got a few views from friends, but nothing major, so in May this year, I decided to have a more concerted effort with the channel, posting more regularly and trying out different styles and lengths of video.
Now, I have not done quite as much as I would have liked, and the numbers are not going to blow anyone's socks off (good job too, because it's turned very cold here), but I am quietly pleased with how they are progressing because they are going up each time.
So here are some figures and results so far for this year, but really, as you'll see, most of the activity has been in the last 6 months when I started focusing more on creating content.
- Views: 10, 876
- Watch time: 20.3 hours
- Subscribers: +21
- Shorts: 30 published mostly under 1 minute - ranging from 10 seconds to 1 minute
- Longer: 14 videos ranging from 1 minute to about 3 minutes; there are 2 longer ones, which are my guided meditation videos (one is 14 mins and the other is 27 mins)
I have not paid for any advertising or promotions. This is just organic.
Now, as I said, these numbers may be small, but they are going up as I post more videos and post more consistently.
All of these videos so far have been just text and images, with no voice-overs or avatars at all. I have not appeared in any of the videos yet on this channel.
The second graph shows the traffic breakdown, and you can see that I am getting the most traffic visits from the shorts feed, but in the last month or two, I have been getting an increasing number of visits from YouTube search. I think this is a good thing because it means that my videos are showing up in search more - maybe because I am building a bit of trust.
Things I've learned
Here are a few things I've learned in this journey so far:
- If you don't post, you won't get any views - this seems a simple one, but sometimes we need it stated clearly. When I post shorts and videos, people see them, interact and subscribe. It may not be millions, but it is growing. And these are not my 'friends' either, but regular people who appear to like what I do.
- You can still have a 'faceless' channel and get people engaged.
- Gaining trust from YT takes time
- It's a numbers game - the more you post, the more you can grow.
- Reels and shorts bring the people in, but longer videos will help with retaining their interest.
- You can say the same thing in many different ways, so you can promote one website post with a handful of reels and a longer video, which is what I've tended to do.
Now, many of these things are not rocket science and, in fact, they are mostly common sense, but it's still nice to see that things are working the way they should and heading in the right direction.
What's the next step?
This is clearly only the start of a longer-term journey, but I'm pleased with my progress so far. I'm not cracking out the champagne yet, and maybe a small bottle of Innocent smoothie will have to suffice for now! LOL
Having overcome some issues to do with being on-camera, I do intend to make some more videos of myself in the coming weeks and to try to include shorts and reels to hopefully grow the number of subscribers. I'm hoping this will have a positive effect on the numbers and also the traffic to my website, which is still being ignored by Google, but is making some progress with other search engines.
So overall, I am pleased with my progress so far. It's a work in progress, but I hope this helps some of you who are thinking about whether to start a YT channel or not.. as one well-known company once said, "Just do it!"
If you've been following me at all, you'll know I don't like to do things by halves, so yesterday I also set up a branded YT channel for my other 2 sites as well. I'm currently working on repurposing my Business Mindset Matters posts on my bootcamp site and YT channel too - just in case I run out of things to do!! LOL.
All the best, everyone.
We can do it! Smoothies at the ready!
Gail
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Recent Comments
59
My dear Gail,
watching your stats (which I am learning to analyze with a more analytic eye), two questions come to my mind:
1. when you post a reel, do you connect that reel to another long video? this could bring more visitors to the long videos reinforcing the power of reels!
2. The second voice in your stats is "youtube search" which could be improved with better seo. Are you asking gpt to help you with that?
Good morning Gail,
Thank you that you are documenting your YouTube journey, once again, this is a great thing to do.
I very much like the, "Things I have learned section!" People tend to think that everything should be instant, but it takes time to build trust, to build a website, to build a YouTube channel, etc, we need to be patient and take solid action.
On one of my channels, I just recently had a couple of breakout videos, which really gives the channel a boost. If I hadn't of carried on posting, nothing would have happened, as you rightly mention.
It's great that you're making progress with YouTube, Gail.
Have a great day.
Roy
Thanks, Roy. I appreciate your support. Great news on your own YT channel too - a few wins can also boost your confidene and help you keep going. I've had a few videos that took off much more than I expected and I enjoy the little boost that gives.
All the best. Gail
Ciao Roy, have you analyzed those 2 videos which had a boost to understand why they were successful compared to the others?
It's a pleasure, Gail!
These wins definitely help to give us a boost, which definitely help us to move forward.
Have a great day.
Roy
Good morning Romy,
I have, Romy, I believe it was because they were very relevant for the season, if that makes sense. So in other words, it's something that people wanted to know about and was relevant to many people.
The difficult thing is, how do I follow up, on those successful videos.
Thank you for commenting and have a great day.
Roy
Have you tried to use the "trends" section in Youtube, powered by AI which gives you topics people is interested in?
I've not seen that, Romy but it sounds useful. Some of my best performing videos were also seasonal ones like things about the equinox and full moons. I'll check out the trends area. Thanks for sharing.
Good morning Romy,
I must admit, I haven't, but I'm actually looking right now, as this looks like it could be quite good for brainstorming and finding topics, etc!
I appreciate the heads-up, Romy, thank you.
Have a great day.
Roy
Hi Karen. No problem. I know how much these kind of posts help me, and continue to do so. Have you started a YT channel yet? Gail
No,I haven't started a YouTube channel yet but my daughter already have 2 channel.But you know, that's a really interesting idea! 🤔 I've been thinking about ways to share more fun facts and maybe even some creative content. What do you think? Would you watch a channel if I started one?
I think I would watch things that were interesting to me and as I'm not sure what your own niche is, it would be hard to say. However there will be people out there who will watch your channel I'm sure of that. Great that your daughter is making strides in this area. She'll be ahead of the curve. And you'll never know if you don't try.
You're absolutely right! It's all about finding that audience who connects with what you're putting out there. And it's so true that you never know if you don't try. I'm really excited for my daughter; she's got such a natural knack for this stuff. It's great to see her so passionate about learning and getting ahead. Thanks for the encouragement!
Indeed - one question... where do you think your daughter gets her talent from? Could it be you?!
That’s such a motivating update, Gail. It’s refreshing to see real growth built on consistency rather than quick tricks. Your transparency about numbers and lessons makes it so relatable. I love your reminder that if you don’t post, you won’t get any views. Simple but powerful truth.
You’re doing what most creators hesitate to do, building patiently and learning by doing. YouTube rewards that. As an old saying goes, “You can’t climb a tree from the top.” Keep creating, keep sharing, and those roots you’re growing will soon bear fruit.
Hi John, and thanks for your kind comments. I've not heard that expression before but I love it! It's the only way to go, up from the ground! I'm just following the training and in the steps of others that have done it. Will keep posting and see how it goes.
All the best, my friend.
Gail
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Congratulations Gail! For me, having a YouTube channel is a future endeavor I will eventually get into. I certainly spend a lot of time there as a consumer of information and entertainment.
With anything in life, well maybe most things, slow growth is better than no growth or downward loss. Rome wasn't built in a day, though it did crash fast. Keep it going and keep enjoying the success, no matter what the size.
I will, Rob. Thanks. And good luck with your own channel in the future too. I used to make corporate videos in my youth so it's something I really enjoy doing and now is so much easier - we used to have to have professional cameramen, lighting sound and editing suites - all costing a fortune. How times change!
I'm hoping it will be easier than I think by the time I get around to it. I have never done it before.
Take it from me, Rob - it is SO much easier. I recommend something like Canva to get you started, or even TikTok or YouTube studio - they are designed to be easy and if all the teenagers can do it, so can you. I have faith in your abilities. Good luck with it, when the time is right for you. And of course, there are plenty of us here to ask if you need to.
Thanks Gail for those recommendations. I'll look into YouTube Studio.
That's great if you just want to upload videos you've shot and add things like end screen and titles.
Canva is great for most easy editing tasks and you have lots of free to use images and videos there too.
I have also just Lumen 5 for making videos from a blog post or basic script too.
And then there's Premiere Pro if you really know what you're doing and want to add layer, picture-in-picture etc.
I'm sure you'll find something that you can use and learn on and move up when you get more confident.
All the best. Gail
WOW! Let's be simple here. What do you suggest for the complete beginner?
What kind of videos do you want to create? What would suit your niche?
For now, just showing images and text, not myself, while I talk and explain my niche.