Common issues that keep you under 1,000 subscribers

Shweebe

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I actually came to understand these things recently from watching the various Youtube help guys. (Yourself included Tim) AND I took a step back and took a good look at my channel and realized I was making those same mistakes! So I've been working my butt off to: show people what the channel is about, why they should care, I'm now doing a different style of thumbnail and titles and it's working amazingly also I've been finding new ways to make my vids better each time I record. I have to say a massive THANK YOU to you and all the youtube helpers for all the info. I have a notebook that I've been jotting down all the helpful advice in and it's almost full ... I haven't even watched all the vids yet. ><

But again, thank you. =)
 

Uncivilized Elk

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-Somehow accidentally posted in wrong thread-
 
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VRONA

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I've been stuck under 1,000 subs ever since my channel started 4 years ago, and I'm still at 148, only around 1/10 of the way there, despite constant improvements to all those aspects you mentioned. What can I do to save my channel?
 
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Scotty Byrd

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thumbnails defiantly matter some of my videos do really well due to their thumbnails others do kinda bad Lol!!![DOUBLEPOST=1517063825,1517063718][/DOUBLEPOST]
I've been stuck under 1,000 subs ever since my channel started 4 years ago, and I'm still at 148, only around 1/10 of the way there, despite constant improvements to all those aspects you mentioned. What can I do to save my channel?
get a twitter to promote your youtube if you have to also be sure to leave comments on other peoples videos not spammy ones related to the video!!
 
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After reading this (and some other posts) I have definitely decided to invest some time in creating cohesive branding for my channel!
 

Cephus

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thumbnails defiantly matter some of my videos do really well due to their thumbnails others do kinda bad Lol!!![DOUBLEPOST=1517063825,1517063718][/DOUBLEPOST]

get a twitter to promote your youtube if you have to also be sure to leave comments on other peoples videos not spammy ones related to the video!!
Which is great, if the content you are making and trying to advertise isn't being targeted by YouTube, Facebook and Twitter for demonetization and censorship.
 
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babyteeth4

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Finally got to meet Tim last week at the Social Media Marketing World convention. He gave a great presentation and is a very approachable and nice guy!
 
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Quiell Santos

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Hey YTTalkers! I recently heard a small YouTube creator complaining about how YouTube needs to update their algorithm to favor small YouTubers and not just "the big guys." Other small creators chimed in and readily agreed, but I honestly have a different perspective on why small creators stay small and it has nothing to do with YouTube's algorithm.

I thought about this community today and thought I'd share my thoughts here in hopes of encouraging some of you. Hopefully this helps some of you break out from under the 1,000 subscriber barrier that seems so difficult to break sometimes.

First of all, let's talk about that good ol' YouTube algorithm. Is it really geared for the large creators?

For context, I'm a YouTube Certified Consultant and work with both my personal channels and client channels. I started my first channel in 2006 and grew my most recent personal channel from 0 to 10,000 subscribers in the first 12 months. It's now about 25 months old and has 54,000 subscribers and 2.8 million views. It's in a very narrow, small, specific niche, too, not something big and broad like gaming, vlogging, or beauty (ha! image me doing that!).

Most of the channels I work with as clients come to me with under 1,000 subscribers. After about a month or two of working through some common issues that keep creators stuck in that subscriber bracket, they start to exponentially grow. That proves to me that the problem is not algorithmic.

One client of mine came to me before he even started his channel. After 9 months, he's now making $30,000 per MONTH in Adsense revenue alone. I don't say that to point the finger at me -- I say that to say: You can do this! If this guy who didn't even have a YouTube channel can do it, so can you. The algorithm is not the problem.

I've worked with countless channels that have grown from 0 to hundreds of thousands of subscribers and a lot of money fairly quickly. In fact, I used to be co-workers with the guys behind the CinemaSins channel. They'll be the first to tell you that YouTube's algorithm doesn't squish the little guys on YouTube. They started with 0 views just like everyone else. You can do this!

So what are those common issues that cause creators to feel stuck at under 1,000 subscribers?

1. Poor branding.
This goes far beyond a simple forum post, but think much broader than logos, header images, and branded bumpers. Essentially it's answering the questions, "Who specifically is this content for?" and, "Why should that person care?" Why does your channel matter? What difference does it make in that person's life? What's their motivation for wanting to subscribe to your channel in the first place? How easily does your channel answer those subconscious questions for them? How well is that "branding" integrated into your content and channel?

2. Poor titles and thumbnails.
It doesn't matter how awesome your content is if the thumbnails and titles aren't engaging, enticing, and attract people to click. That doesn't mean you should be misleading and tease a story that really isn't in the video -- that will backfire every time -- but it means knowing what the true value of your video is for someone and then crafting a "billboard" for it (title and thumbnail) that accurately pitches its value.

3. Craft better videos.
And I don't mean just in terms of production value -- I mean in terms of actual content value. Most creators assume that their videos are awesome and that the only problem they have is exposure. The problem with that way of thinking is that it locks you into a mindset that doesn't change with YouTube and causes you to start blaming other things that you don't control. It's pretty self-defeating. If you've been creating videos for even 6 months, go back and look at some of your first videos. You thought they were awesome back then. Today you're probably embarrassed by them. And next year you'll look back on the videos you're creating right now and feel the same way. So use tools like "audience retention" in YouTube analytics to craft better videos. Drop the stuff that causes audience drop-off (like branded intros, for example) and learn to start the videos with better hooks, eliminate wasted time, stuff like that.

Hope that helps some of you get on the right track. Like I said, anyone can do this YouTube thing. I really believe that. The key is to work smart, not to just work hard.

I'd love to hear what tips and ideas you have for breaking past 1,000 subscribers! Let's all help each other out here.
Thank you for the help i just read your thread and i understand that we should strive more
 

videoeditgr

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Most of the channels I work with as clients come to me with under 1,000 subscribers. After about a month or two of working through some common issues that keep creators stuck in that subscriber bracket, they start to exponentially grow. That proves to me that the problem is not algorithmic.

One client of mine came to me before he even started his channel. After 9 months, he's now making $30,000 per MONTH in Adsense revenue alone. I don't say that to point the finger at me -- I say that to say: You can do this! If this guy who didn't even have a YouTube channel can do it, so can you. The algorithm is not the problem.

I've worked with countless channels that have grown from 0 to hundreds of thousands of subscribers and a lot of money fairly quickly. In fact, I used to be co-workers with the guys behind the CinemaSins channel.
little info and too much self promotion (back from Mar 2, 2015) IMHO
:/