After working with thousands of YouTube creators, we’ve seen a few patterns in what creates success when growing a business around that audience. Today, D’Laina, Lennon, and myself discuss what our top 9 rules for success if you’re growing a business on YouTube. Here are our rules:
- Focus on serving people well. We’ve all had a bad experience with a company where we did not feel like we were treated or served well. It stinks. In order for your business or channel to do well, your customers, viewers, etc. need to feel like you actually care about them and are putting them first.
- Be driven by a compelling vision. The channels (and businesses) that I notice stall out over time are the ones that have nothing moving them forward. They keep doing the same things over and over again and don’t always know what drives them. They don’t have big, hairy audacious goals (yes, that’s a thing). Those that are driven by a vision are unlikely to quit or to preservere even when obstacles come up or you’re not getting the results you want.
- Embrace change as new opportunities. Especially in the online or video industry, change is constantly happening. YouTube is constantly being updated and over 300 experiments are being done each year. This keeps me interested in it, personally, and change can be great (especially if things are getting stale – change may be necessary to reinvent yourself). BUT you also want to be mindful not to change for the sake of change or say yes to distractions disguised as opportunities.
- Don’t make every video about you. Something we notice about a lot of businesses who try to get started on YouTube is that they try to cram everything about them, what they do, and their products/services in every one of their videos. You can’t give your viewer 5 different call-to-actions in one video. Your viewer is smart! If they want to know more about you, they’ll find their way to your website or contact you. So, don’t make every video a commercial. :)
- Keep your options open. Don’t have a product or service yet? Or even an idea? Don’t think you just don’t have anything to sell. There are ENDLESS options of monetizing online. We talk about how you can monetize your channel (outside of Adsense) plenty more on our podcast episodes and in our free guide, From Product to Profit.
- Don’t be afraid to sell. Not all selling has to be slimy. You have to sell yourself to get people to watch your videos, to get a date, or to become friends with someone. Selling is an invaluable strategy. It just means you are pointing someone to your product or service. It’s only slimy when you don’t believe in your products or services or are just selling to make a quick buck. When you are genuine, willing to serve, and put in the work to become more confident and practice, you can sell confidently and let people make the decision for themselves what’s right for them (without sliding into anyone’s DMs or following up with them for the 3rd time).
- Don’t be afraid to fail. Sometimes, when we’re afraid to sell ourselves, to start a channel, or try a new thing… we’re really afraid to fail. We’re afraid we won’t make enough money, won’t make enough leads, or… fill in the blank. But what’s the worst thing that can happen? No one buys on your launch? You don’t get as many views as you were hoping for? We all fail. It’s a part of any process. You are going to fail at some point. Just pick yourself up, learn from it, and keep going when you do. The sooner you can normalize the experience, the sooner you will be successful.
- Communicate with your audience. Let your audience be a part of what is happening in your life or your business. Ask them what they think about your ideas. Ask what they need. See if they’ll test out your products or services. What are their needs or problems? How can you solve them? That will make it SO valuable for them and for you to know what product your audience actually WANTS!
- Be the breakthrough. We have no control over how many people decide to subscribe to our channel, watch our videos, or buy our products or services. What DO you have control over? How can you improve? Don’t put ALL of the pressure into the things you have the least control over.
Do any of these rules resonate with you? Hit ‘reply’ and let us know!
Keep changing lives,
Tim
P.S. If you need more support to grow your channel or business, join us for our group coaching program for advanced creators, Video Labs. We start a session every month with one of our Certified YouTube Growth Strategists. We’d love to help you reach your YouTube and business goals!