YouTube is technically the second largest search engine in the world. With over 1 billion people visiting YouTube you have the chance to put your content in front of a global audience ready to buy.

Maybe you have a YouTube channel, but it doesn’t seem to be growing. Or if we’re being honest, you might not be putting enough effort in to grow it.

Let’s change that.

In this article, I’ll be showing you 18 powerful ways to grow your YouTube channel so you can see your subscriber count go up.

1. Grow Your YouTube Channel with Giveaways

Hosting a giveaway is a quick way to gain subscribers for your YouTube Channel.

Your giveaway can vary based on what your channel’s niche is about. For example, if you’re a fitness YouTuber, you can host a fitness gear giveaway. But if you’re a business consultant, you can give away a service or ebook to your viewers.

Youtuber Renée from Gothamista uses giveaways to engage and grow her YouTube subscribers.

Regardless of what your giveaway prize is, it has to be something worthwhile for it to gain traction and bring subscribers your way. You’ll have to come up with a few creative ideas. Don’t worry you can use these 10 YouTube contest ideas for massive engagement no matter your niche or industry.

If you already have a contest or giveaway in mind you can use Wishpond to manage, monitor, and engage with your content.

Here’s an example of one of our easy to use and beautiful giveaway page landing designs you can use like Kadee Botanicals

2. Grow Your YouTube Channel With A Video Series

Create a video series on your YouTube channel to turn one time viewers into full-time subscribers.

In order to create a compelling video series, it has to be around a specific keyword or topic, so you can optimize your content for search on YouTube. Video series also help you to establish yourself as an influencer or thought leader in your niche all while growing your YouTube Channel.

If a video series seems like too much or something you’d want to consider, later on, you can organize the videos you already have in a typical playlist so that people can easily search for your content.

Whether you decide to do a YouTube video series or make a playlist of your videos, it’s important to keep in mind that you’ll need to use relevant keywords.

Having the right keywords gives your playlist more potential for ranking on Google and YouTube search. But we’ll talk about SEO later in this post.

Drew Scott is a lifestyle blogger, which means his video topics can vary based on what’s trending so he creates various playlist so that his viewers can choose the videos they’re interested in watching.

 

Need a new YouTube Banner? Try using Canva. They have tons of easy to use YouTube Banner templates and more. It’s great for beginners looking for a quick and easy solution for their graphic needs.

Pro Tip: Having the perfect YouTube banner for your YouTube channel and videos can help with your branding and aesthetics. Two of which helps to connect with your target audience thus growing your channel. It’s the little things that matter.

3. Grow Your Youtube Channel with a Cross Promotion

If you have a website, you wouldn’t just leave it on its own to bring in new readers; you’d promote it on all your social media channels and online platforms. The same rule applies when promoting your YouTube channel.

Here are 3 effortless ways to do cross-promotion on your social media platforms for your YouTube videos:

  1. Video teasers to build up anticipation
  2. Behind the scenes takes so your followers/subscribers can see the work and effort you put into making your videos.
  3. Alert your followers when you have a new video out

Doing cross-promotion can make your brand look more uniformed and professional. You never know how many subscribers you can get just by promoting your videos /channels on Facebook, Instagram, and even Pinterest.

Micheal Khare uses her YouTube channel to show behind the scenes and new video alerts so her followers can stay up to date with her YouTube Channel.

4. Grow Your Youtube Channel with Video Colabs

Co-hosting with a fellow YouTuber can help you to grow your YouTube channel because it helps to double the audience.

This is because you have two YouTube channels subscribers watching your video which means more viewers, subscribers, and reach.

The key to hosting collaboration videos is that you’re a co-host, or the guest has to fit your niche. You two should either have the same number of subscribers to support each other but preferable it helps if your co-host is coming with a bigger audience to boost your channel.

Nick Nimmin’s video on “How To Collab With Other YouTuber” breaks down the steps and pros and cons perfectly if your thinking of giving video collabs a try.

Feel free to do a video collaboration with multiple YouTubers in one video or for an entire video series. Lily Singh does a video series of video collabs with other popular YouTubers during the holiday season, which is a great idea to drive more subscribers and viewers for the holidays.

5. Grow Youtube Channel By Joining the YouTube Community

Promoting your YouTube videos isn’t the only thing you need to grow your channel. Actively being a part of the YouTube Community helps as well. It allows you to network, gets feedback, shares interest with people who have the same goals as you.

Choosing not to engage with your community is just like selling lemonade inside your house hoping someone will break in and buy the whole bottle. Go outside, engage, and comment on other Youtubers content. Go to events like Vid Con or Content Marketing World to meet other creators like yourself and find the perfect people to connect within your niche.

6. Grow Your Youtube Channel with Uploading Consistently

If there’s one thing that’s all successful YouTube channels have, it’s consistent video uploads.

When you upload regularly or follow your “Tube Ritual”, you increase your chances of gaining regular viewers.

You can also push notifications so when you upload your subscribers will be alerted when you have new content up.

Commit yourself to upload a new video once a week or once a month (depending on what works for you) and stick to it. If you’re inconsistent with your uploads you can actually lose subscribers and viewers during your video dry spells.

Still asking yourself the age-old question, “How often should you upload to YouTube?” I found Kate’s article from Filmora about how consistent posting gets views as a helpful guide to point you in the right direction.

7. Grow Your Youtube Channel by Uploading Your Videos on Facebook

Placing your YouTube videos on other video platforms like Facebook can help you to reach a wider audience that could be interested in your content. When 68% of marketers have published video content on Facebook, and out of those, 87% found it to be effective.

Though most marketers still say they prefer YouTube over Facebook (87% vs. 68%), when combined for video and marketing efforts the results speak for themselves.

When you have a collection of your videos on Facebook, it allows your viewers to access your content easily without the hassle of changing platforms. You can place a link to subscribe in your description/caption so you can grab some subscribers along the way.

The best practice to optimize your videos and SEO on Facebook don’t share videos to Facebook or Instagram to Facebook. Instead upload your YouTube videos with Facebook’s video uploader.

You can also try these 4 Simple Ways to Use Videos on Facebook to help boost your engagement.

8. Grow Your Youtube Channel By Embedding Videos On Your Blog

Apart from uploading videos and dropping a few links here and there, YouTube doesn’t provide you with a lot of options to give your viewers more information which is why having a website for your brand is so important.

Having a detailed blog to coincide with your YouTube channel can give people the option to learn from reading, watching, or both.

If you already have a blog up and running, then you should try to embed your YouTube videos on your blog and promote them to your audience. You can also add a YouTube widget to your website or blog.

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9. Grow Your Youtube Channel With Interesting Thumbnail Images

YouTube thumbnail image should never be clickbait, that’s the easiest and fast way to lose subscribers.

Your video thumbnail is the first impression viewers have of your video and your channel so it should be eye-catching.

When you’re creating your YouTube thumbnail, try to check these three questions off your list, so you know you’re on the right track:

  1. Does your YouTube thumbnail accurately portray what the video is about?
  2. Would your audience get excited about your video just from your YouTube thumbnails image?
  3. Will your thumbnail appeal to your target audience?

10. Grow Your Youtube Channel With SEO

SEO isn’t just for your website or blog articles, it’s a powerful tool when it comes to growing your videos ranking on YouTube.

Funny enough, this is one thing most new YouTubers forget to do which is why their videos hardly rank in search or outside of YouTube.

In order for you to get subscribers and grow your channel, you need to be seen. SEO is the best way for it.

5 Full-Proof YouTube SEO Tips to Grow Your Channel

  1. Create video titles centered around a specific keyword. When you start thinking about what type of keyword you want your video to be about it helps viewers to see and know what your video is about without a second thought.
  2. Use keywords in your video file name. Yes, it does make a difference. For example, if you upload your video with a change your video’s default name from “18877613.mp4.” to “howtomp4” Google will automatically focus on the keywords in your video’s name. Doing something as simple as this can bring a dramatic jump in your video’s ranking.
  3. Put backlinks and links in your video descriptions. Link building isn’t just for websites. It’s another great way to let Google know what your video is about in the description, so you rank for the keyword in Youtube and Google better.
  4. Keep your video titles to 50 characters or less. The longer the title, the less of the title viewers will see when they are searching for content on YouTube.
  5. Use long-tail keywords in your video titles. You can still use long, detailed video descriptions and titles so Google can find your video for relevant and highly-specific long-tail phrases. Just don’t go over overboard, so your titles cut off.

To learn more about how SEO can help you can try these 5 Advanced SEO Tips to Boost Your Organic Traffic.

11. Grow Your Youtube Channel Using an Intro Trailer

Before you go off making your first round of YouTube videos, do an intro video introducing yourself, your brand, and what your channel’s about.

Your intro video is almost like a mini trailer of what’s to come so when non-subscribers arrive on your YouTube channel’s homepage you can play it to convince them to stick around and even subscribe for more of your content.

Even if you’ve already started your YouTube videos and have a few videos out you can still do an intro video for your channel. It’s never too late to have one.

Doctor Mike’s intro video is the perfect example of what you can do to create your own if you aren’t looking to make something too fancy. It’s straight to the point, personal, and engaging.

12. Grow Youtube Channel With Trending Content

Maybe you already have a set of videos in mind to do for your channel, but if your videos aren’t centered around what people are looking for your content can get lost in a sea of videos no one wants to watch.

The truth hurts but for you to grow your channel you have to start with content that interests viewers, and that can mean making videos based on trending content.

This can be content trending online or in your niche, as long as it aligns with what your channel, you’ll be on track to attracting the right audience and subscribers.

Don’t make this a strict rule when it comes to content creation. My advice is to create trending videos as well as videos you’d like to see on the channel. Having that balance can bring in short and long term viewers which increases your chances of growing your channel and staying true to your YouTube channel’s brand.

13. Grow Youtube Channel With More Channel Engagement

Now that you have the content creation, SEO, and videos down, you need to start engaging with your subscribers and commenters.

Replying to your video comments is a good place to start, even the negative comments. It shows new and current viewers that you’re active and listening to your audience.
If you’re using YouTube for business, it’s a great place to turn viewers into potential leads for your products or services.

14. Grow Youtube Channel With Ads

Using Organic growth for your YouTube channel is great but adding a bit of paid promotion can speed things up a bit.

Creating a YouTube ad campaign helps to drive viewers and subscribers to your page. Create an ad within your budget, like only paying when someone watches your video ad or clicks on your link. Similar to Facebook ads but tailored for YouTube.

  1. TrueView Ads
    TrueView ads are the standard video ad type on YouTube. Advertisers only pay for TrueView ads when viewers watch or interact with their ad (for example, by clicking on a call-to-action), and videos can be easily customized to share a variety of content.
  2. Video Discovery Ads (Previously Named In-Display Ads)
    Video discovery YouTube ads show up on the YouTube homepage, search results pages, and as related videos on YouTube video watch pages.
  3. In-Stream Ads
    TrueView in-stream ads play before someone watches the video they’ve selected on YouTube. Viewers sometimes have the option to skip the ad after watching it for five seconds. You can also make them play anywhere in the Google Display Network (GDN) — or sites that purchased Google video ad space.

Before you start clicking and pushing ads it’s important that you create a YouTube campaign road, so you have an idea of the results you want, the goals you want to meet and the best way to get there.

I found Hubspot’s YouTube Ads for Beginners Guide on how to launch & optimize a YouTube Video advertising campaign, very helpful and detailed, so you don’t have to figure it out alone. From there you’ll start seeing the growth in your YouTube channel in no time.

15. Grow Youtube Channel With Email Newsletters

Yes, you can use email to grow your YouTube channel. Combined with your website’s email subscribers, you can get up to date subscribers and promote your videos with the help of emails.

You can send embedded videos or links to fresh content to create a channel to bring more traffic to your YouTube videos.

You can also put an email subscription link and mention it in your YouTube video description as well so you can grow your email listing both ways, on YouTube and your website.

If your thinking of using email marketing or trying it out for the first time here’s an article on how to effortlessly Use YouTube Subscribers in Email Marketing

16. Grow Your Youtube Channel with YouTube Analytics

Use YouTube analytics and reports is crucial to your channel’s success. Your analytics is tailored to your channel that you can use to see where there’s an opportunity to improve and see if your efforts are paying off.

Some people stay away from their Creator Studio (where your YouTube analytic are located) because it can feel overwhelming. But avoiding it won’t help you to understand it.

Watch time: This report shows how long are viewers watch your videos.

Audience retention: This report shows how consistently people are watching your videos if they’re interacting with your content and a hint of why they stopped watching.

Demographics: This report shows you the age range and countries of your viewers.

Playback locations: This report shows where precisely people are playing your videos.

Traffic sources: This report shows what devices viewers are using to discover your video content.

Devices: This report shows what percentage of my views come from desktop, mobile, or elsewhere.

Looking to go a little deeper into your YouTube metrics? Without falling too far down the rabbit hole, check out Hootsuite’s Simple Guide to Tracking the Right Metrics.

17. Grow Youtube Channel With YouTube Cards

What are YouTube Cards?

YouTube cards are interactive “panels” that slide in and out when your video is almost done playing; the aim is to encourage viewers with content that might be interested in. You can add up to 5 cards, which include images, text, or clickable links.
Here’s an example of YouTube Card by Buzzfeed’s Worth it

Use this guide to discover how to create and use YouTube cards in your business videos.

18. Grow Youtube Channel With Authentic Branding

Last but not least, one of the most important tips you’ll need for a successful YouTube channel is authentic branding.

It doesn’t matter how good the content is if the person delivering it isn’t “real” or “genuine” it can come off as fake and affect how viewers see you and your YouTube channel.

When YouTubers or brand representatives take the screen the best way to connect your viewers is to be authentic. Be who you are or what your brand stands for because it will attract the right people who want to subscribe to your channel.

Youtube free subscribers who like your content will always stick around for the long run because they genuinely love who you are.

Need help adding your personal touch to video’s Mashable’s guide on How to Build Your Personal Brand on YouTube can help you to do just that.