How I went from 1K to 26K in two months (Gaming)

ProjectJamesify

Loving YTtalk
Joined
Jul 28, 2015
Messages
269
Reaction score
112
Age
124
Channel Type
Gamer
Hi there guys,

I know there's a bunch of these stories out already. But here's mine, perhaps I can help a few of you guys with it. This is meant mostly for Gaming YouTubers. Keep in mind, I don't know the ins and outs of YouTube. I am not a professional nor an expert. This is simply my experience and the one purpose of this post is to help others. :)

My name is James and I have been making Gaming videos for the pasts year and a half now. I have spent about 80% of that time doing completely the wrong things. However, in the past two months I have gained about 500+ subscribers daily on average, which for a guy starting with 1K is insane.

So here's what helped me turn things around and skyrocket my channel.

One more thing to keep in mind: you cannot control everything. Sometimes channels explode and people cannot find an answer for why that happened. But I think I've got a good idea of what's going on right now.

The past
It took me 6 months and 11 days to reach my first 100 subscribers. Feel free to head over to my channel and watch some of my older videos. The audio quality, the video quality, the subject of the video, the commentary, the intro and outro - literally everything about it was just downright BAD. I just played whatever I felt like and didn't really think about it. Despite this, I managed to slowly crawl my way up to 1K, which took well over a year and nearly 200 videos.

The turning point
I always reached out to people for tips on how to be a better YouTuber. Every single time it came down to small, micromanaging things such as branding, an intro, whatever. Sure those are important quality factors that should be done correctly, but nothing helped me actually create an audience.

That's when I spoke to a good friend of mine, who unfortunately is no longer a content creator himself. But at the time, he gave me the most valuable tip I have ever been given.

"It is all about the games you play" he said.

I told him I was on the right track! Playing games like GTA V and Garry's Mod with friends. Boy, was I wrong. It's not about the quality of the game. It's about trending. Things that are trending are incredibly important for us YouTubers. This applies not only to gaming, but to any form of content and genre!

So, if you're a gamer looking to grow on this magical platform: play the right games. Sit down and research for hours. What new games are coming out? What games are popular? Which games are expected to become popular? What new updates are being made to popular games? What are people looking for (on YouTube)?

For me it happened with an indie game called Totally Accurate Battle Simulator. They released a new update and I tried to be one of the first to cover it on my channel. I had a subject for the video, I showed that in title and thumbnail and I covered it clearly in the video. Back that up with standard quality points, such as audio/video/branding and you've got the complete package.

For example: a video with the title "tabs gaemplay episod #1" with a random screenshot will never get any real traffic. Why would it? Right underneath your video it says "THE DARK PEASANT VS 1000 PEASANTS". Yes, clickbait you may think. But the truth is, if it's in the video, emphasize it! Make clear what's fun about your video so people are attracted to your channel. Have you ever seen a store go: "meh we sell TVs but they're nothing special"? Nooooooooo of course not. They probably sell "The best television for the money!" because that is what draws people's attention.

TL;DR: (1) Trending games with an (2) interesting subject and a (3) clear message.

This requires creativity. And that is what YouTube is all about, creating entertainment.

Thank you for reading this and have fun making your channel a little bit better every day! There's so much more to YouTube, so perhaps I will be back with more. Of course I am still learning lots every day! Let me know any questions I will try to answer them ASAP. Thanks.

-James
ProjectJamesify on YouTube
 

MC'01

Active Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2017
Messages
48
Reaction score
10
Location
Poland
Channel Type
Youtuber
Thank you for that post so much! Now I know why has nobody watched my videos - no one was interested in them then.
 

J0eyy

I've Got It
Joined
Feb 5, 2017
Messages
148
Reaction score
48
Age
20
Channel Type
Gamer
Thanks so much for the post! I try to put trending stuff out, like Sword with Sauce but idk, there are many things I may have done wrong.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ProjectJamesify

OzzyMikeNaz

I've Got It
Joined
Feb 12, 2017
Messages
127
Reaction score
30
Location
Australia
Channel Type
Gamer
Great advice. Thank you for posting, it's always good when those who have found success, pass on knowledge. You sir are a good bloke.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ProjectJamesify

Doom Video Vault

I Love YTtalk
Joined
Feb 20, 2013
Messages
1,587
Reaction score
323
Age
41
Location
North Babylon, NY
Channel Type
Youtuber, Director, Gamer, Commentator
I'm one who's against this sort of grain because I don't follow the trends. Mainly because I don't want to be like every other Let's Player out there, I'm a niche channel mostly focused on Doom and Doom mods and I'm terrible with commentary.
 

CrowYo

Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2017
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Age
28
Location
Canada
Channel Type
Youtuber
Tfw you cant follow the new games cause your pc is utter s**t. Oh well!
Grats on such an insane growth though man!
 

LewisPlays

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2017
Messages
52
Reaction score
12
Channel Type
Youtuber, Gamer
Thank you for the post! I have taken a few things from this to hopefully help me!
 

BulletGaming

Member
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
6
Reaction score
3
Age
29
Location
United Kingdom
Channel Type
Gamer
Hi James,

Fantastic story and I wish you wealth's of luck for the future! One question: How do you do your research? Googling? Gaming sites? I'm also gaming orientated with my channel but I think this applies no matter what. An idea of the typical sources to use to try find what is trending or going to trend is great for using alongside your advice