Baylze
Overwatch YouTuber
Hey guys, so I've seen and read through a whole lot of guides about how to get big on YouTube, how to manipulate the SEO system to funnel traffic your way, and things like that, but not one guide I've read on popular article outlets have been from the perspective of someone actually in the industry. So I wanted to make my own little guide here, that will highlight (from my perspective) the tools I believe you need to start out and develop as a YouTube Gamer!
The first thing, of course, that you need to consider is your channel's branding. This means thinking deeply about the online alias that you're going to be known as on YouTube. Items that are part of your branding include:
Typically, your channel art and icon should somewhat match for the sake of brand continuity - matching graphics are far more appealing to an audience, and more importantly for a potential subscriber. Graphics that have synergy look more professional, so will generally be better accepted by your audience.
A personal icon/watermark is optional - of course, all major brands (McDonalds, Apple, Google) have logos that are universally known. If you believe you have the skill to create a memorable graphic to fit in the corner of your videos, then an audience can also remember your channel via your watermark.
Graphics are the second most important thing for a channel on YouTube (the first being videos!!). They are what makes your channel personal, and ever since YouTube introduced 'Channel Art', all channels look pretty much identical; except for the graphics you choose to have on your banner and icon.
Let's just get this out of the way - MS Paint is a no no! - There are programs that aren't necessarily as professional as commercial software such as Photoshop, but still programs that are effective for making good channel art, icons, and thumbnails. Software such as 'Pixlr' and 'Paint.net' are free variations of Photoshop, and are a great place to start for YouTubers. MS Paint just doesn't offer enough tools to create effective, engaging graphics.
Your thumbnails are the first thing a potential viewer sees, even before the video begins. Everyone should know that thumbnails that include bright colours, big text and engaging images are much more successful than those that are just a screenshot of the video.
You should never neglect your thumbnails; as they are an important part of a viewer's psychology - some viewers may even base whether they're going to click on the video or not specifically on the thumbnail, because people are far more likely to click on thumbnails that look professional and engaging.
Assuming that you want to do commentary and not just gameplay, the quality of your microphone should seem like a no-brainer. However, some people don't realize that commentary is likely to take up 50% of the audio on your video. You may only have the in-game audio and your voice on a video, so you need to consider the following in regards to your choice of broadcasting microphone;
- Your Channel's Name
- Your Intro/Outro (if you decide to make them!)
- Your personal graphic/watermark
- Your Channel Art & Profile Icon
Typically, your channel art and icon should somewhat match for the sake of brand continuity - matching graphics are far more appealing to an audience, and more importantly for a potential subscriber. Graphics that have synergy look more professional, so will generally be better accepted by your audience.
A personal icon/watermark is optional - of course, all major brands (McDonalds, Apple, Google) have logos that are universally known. If you believe you have the skill to create a memorable graphic to fit in the corner of your videos, then an audience can also remember your channel via your watermark.
Let's just get this out of the way - MS Paint is a no no! - There are programs that aren't necessarily as professional as commercial software such as Photoshop, but still programs that are effective for making good channel art, icons, and thumbnails. Software such as 'Pixlr' and 'Paint.net' are free variations of Photoshop, and are a great place to start for YouTubers. MS Paint just doesn't offer enough tools to create effective, engaging graphics.
Your thumbnails are the first thing a potential viewer sees, even before the video begins. Everyone should know that thumbnails that include bright colours, big text and engaging images are much more successful than those that are just a screenshot of the video.
You should never neglect your thumbnails; as they are an important part of a viewer's psychology - some viewers may even base whether they're going to click on the video or not specifically on the thumbnail, because people are far more likely to click on thumbnails that look professional and engaging.
- Can you hear any distracting background noise when recording your commentary?
- Is your voice clear and audible, regardless of any accent limitations?
- Do your plosive consonants pop? (P's and T's making a bad noise on recording)
Blue Snowball Microphone (AMAZON)
- Open Broadcasting Software (OBS)
- Shadowplay
- Bandicam
- Facebook (Groups & Pages)
- Twitter (An account dedicated to your channel)
- Reddit (Find gaming sub-reddits to advertise on!)
- Tumblr
- Online Forums (such as YTTalk!)
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Above all, if you keep at it, and continue to exposure your channel to your friends and on social media, you will grow (whether slow or fast). Content will eventually get seen, but you have to find your niche, produce quality content and convince people that you're worthy of their view. Make yourself different, have professional looking branding and make sure your online YouTube alias is memorable. You can do it!
Baylze
Above all, if you keep at it, and continue to exposure your channel to your friends and on social media, you will grow (whether slow or fast). Content will eventually get seen, but you have to find your niche, produce quality content and convince people that you're worthy of their view. Make yourself different, have professional looking branding and make sure your online YouTube alias is memorable. You can do it!
Baylze
