[Gamer Dad's Thoughts] What I've Learned, 1 Month Into YouTube

Gamer Dad

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I posted this on Reddit and it was well received and people appreciated it, I thought Ytalk might as well (at least I hope you do!)

So I was writing to a friend on YouTube regarding some things that I have learned/helpful encouragements and I thought it would be a post that I would want to have read when I started…a…month or so ago making videos for YouTube.

  • Audio – I feel that audio will drive a user (viewer) away from a channel or video quicker than anything else. I know as a viewer of a copious amount of YouTube videos, I will click out of a video within 15-20 seconds (or less) if the audio quality is terrible. Even if it is showing in 480, if the voice and audio is clear and crisp, there is a higher likelihood that I will stay on a video than if the video is 1080p and the sound quality is less than stellar. In fact, according to the Nielsen Group the average user will click away from a website within 10-20 seconds if it is not engaging (cite) - I believe for YouTube, audio will capture or turn away an audience quicker than video.

    Don’t forget to lower the sound of your in-game videos as well before you get too far in; nothing worse than some really good commentary that is being drowned out by in-game sound. as a caveat to this, if there are cut scenes or particularly amazing areas where the in-game sound is incredible, highlight that

  • Preparation - Write down topics before recording! I find it brutally hard to do live-com's and even though I am not very good at them, I try and write down 3-4 topics that I could bring up and attempt to cover and talk about during the gameplay. For me, I am doing Live-Coms of fast paced, 5-11 minute FPS games, but for some of you that are doing 15-25 minute sessions of live gameplay, be prepared with what you want to talk about. This is important…people are going to watch for you and your personality more than anything else; stories, who you are, why you love this game, fondness about the game, etc...I don’t watch SeaNanners because I love Gary’s Mod, I watch him because he cracks me up and I appreciate who he is. Why are people watching you?

  • POV (Point of View) Along with Preparation, work your POV (point of view) into each video in some way - I am Gamer Dad and I try and always talk about something with my kids and having fun playing video games – Is your POV coming from childhood gaming memories? - try and conjure up some memories of childhood - getting the genesis for the first time, getting this game, Saturday morning (late night?) gaming sessions sneaking awake to play? Is your POV the Irish Gamer? Bring on some Ireland to us ‘Muricans! Who are you? Why is your POV unique to you? Embrace that!
Finally…I always say this and I always mean it! Have fun! You are doing this because you enjoy video (If you are a Gaming-YouTuber, that is)games of some genre and you have fun playing them – ensure that you are always having fun doing what you are doing; you can tell when someone enjoys game and when someone does not – make sure you are having a blast playing the game(s) that you are play!
 

OxterManHD

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Great post man, lots of helpful tips here! Something I would like to add is that if you have a bad mic or just can't seem to fix the audio quality try using audacity. It's a free program that you can use to get rid of most of the backround noise in your videos!
 

Gamer Dad

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Great post man, lots of helpful tips here! Something I would like to add is that if you have a bad mic or just can't seem to fix the audio quality try using audacity. It's a free program that you can use to get rid of most of the backround noise in your videos!
Absolutely! I have a decent mic (Blue Snowball) and I record in Audacity and remove noise, clicks, etc...great call man!
 

Crown

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Nice post. Looks like we started our channels at similar times and have similar growth rates in terms of subs and views. Although our content and target audience is very different, I concur with most of what you said. :)
 

Gamer Dad

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Nice post. Looks like we started our channels at similar times and have similar growth rates in terms of subs and views. Although our content and target audience is very different, I concur with most of what you said. :)
Thanks for the response and encouragement! Great job on creating great content Crown! Keep on working hard like you are brotha :)
 
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Crown

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Thanks for the response and encouragement! Great job on creating great content Crown! Keep on working hard like you are brotha :)
You too man, I think we're on the right track at least ;)
 

It's Cowfoot

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This inspired me to buy a new mic. Im really not happy about the sound on my videos.
So thanks! :)