Today I want to share my observations and tips on how to grow a YouTube channel. Every blogger or YouTube channel owner has a number of burnout stages. The first one occurs after publishing 10-20 videos, when people like the content and you have a passion for creating creative work, but you don’t see the expected results. And the second critical moment is when the channel enters the middle weight category and for some reason stops growing actively, and then you run out of ideas and are generally tired of filming the same niche.
Stages of YouTube channel development before the first creator burnout:
1) Denial
You’ve posted a few videos, but you’re not seeing any significant audience growth. Everything seems to be done correctly and your content is great, but why are there no views? At this stage, many people deny problems with the quality of content or the choice of topics. It seems that the reason is not in you, but in external factors.
2) Anger
After a few videos with no results, frustration and anger set in. Why do others get thousands of views and you don’t? You start thinking about injustice and YouTube algorithms that don’t seem to work in your favor. This is the stage when you just want to scream out of powerlessness.
3) Bargaining
There comes a time when you start looking for different ways to fix the situation: change the topic, format, frequency of publications. You try different strategies to see what works. It’s a period of experimentation and hope for rapid improvement.
4) Depression
Feelings of burnout and fatigue are commonly associated with this stage. Doubts arise about your abilities and the right choice of path. It is important not to give up and keep moving forward. This stage can be the most difficult, but also the most important for your development. Usually, half of the bloggers will get to this stage around 10-20 published videos and quit working on the channel.
5) Acceptance
Accepting problems and working to solve them. You start analyzing your audience, content quality, video topics, and find ways to improve. This is the moment when you realize that only systematic work and continuous improvement will bring results. This is also where the so-called “nasmotrennost” (I couldn’t find a Ukrainian-language analogue) and understanding of the target audience’s needs come in. And voila, the organic traffic is gone and the algorithms give recommendations.
Tips from the captain on content quality and topic analysis
The technical side: Pay attention to video and audio quality. Invest in a good camera and microphone. Professional lighting also plays an important role in creating attractive content. Your video should look professional, as the quality of the image and sound is the first thing the viewer notices.
Topic analysis: Use tools like Google Trends, VidIq, and TubeBuddy to analyze the popularity of topics. Remember that it’s important to find a balance between popular topics and those in which you are an expert. Research what your audience is interested in and tailor your content to their needs.
Optimization: Don’t forget about SEO for videos. Descriptions, tags, titles – all of these matter to YouTube’s search algorithms. Proper optimization will help your videos become more visible and find their audience.
Tips from the captain to prevent burnout
Planning: Create a clear content plan for several weeks ahead. This will help to avoid the stress of having to come up with new ideas quickly. Planning gives you control over the process and reduces stress.
Will like competitor’s channels: Watch the tops in the niche and related niches. Look for channels that quickly took off, analyze their content and analytics (I wrote about the tools above). Even there, Mr. Beast launched a mega service. In general, 30% of the time you spend on the channel is watching videos and niche analytics.
Support: Connect with other content creators, share experiences and get support. It will help you feel less isolated.
