We are retelling the column of the American Melih Gungor, where he shares his own experience of working with the YouTube platform.

I started to focus on three main components that I almost always forgot to even consider. You will find many people talking about what works on YouTube, but most of the time they never point out the truth. Every channel is different, and not every tip applies to all channels.

For example, longer videos can help someone, but they can negatively affect others. Understand what is most important to your channel and focus on those aspects for your full success.

What works?

Upload the video you would like to watch

If your audience isn't watching your videos, then something is wrong. You need to upload videos that you yourself would like to watch in your free time. If you can do this, your videos are bound to be successful.

Try to see your channel from the viewers' point of view. My channel is about technology and hands-on videos. I was constantly uploading videos, some of them were semi-viral, while others almost always worked terribly. I was going to upload as often as possible until one day I decided to sit down and watch my videos, which I posted a few months ago. I reviewed them, and there was a breakdown. How can I download such awful videos? No wonder why they haven't received any views. I didn't like them at all, so the viewers didn't watch them either. Even worse, I didn't understand what I was doing wrong for almost 5 years.

2020 was just around the corner. I have delivered on bold promises and improved the channel. I made an oath that I would not upload videos to the channel if I did not watch them fully and carefully. Video quality has improved significantly in 2020. While far from the professional quality one could hope for, it has greatly improved the prospects for the channel and my work.

The brand of your channel

I had absolutely no idea what channel name my channel would have until 2019. I changed them often, but ended up settling on MTG Productions as I decided to change the look of the channel and provide high quality video.

MTG is my initials, which I think are striking. It took me almost 5 years to decide on the name. Finding a brand name is not easy, and it will take time and patience to choose the option that you like.

Finding a suitable name for channel branding was not the only challenge.

Whenever someone asked me what my channel was called, I was always afraid to say it. Then it struck me. This is my channel. My job. If I am unable to announce my brand and name, how can I support my own work?

I was interested in promoting my channel and presenting my name more than ever. I am showing confidence in the channel and the title and this has increased the overall analytics. Viewers begin to notice confidence even through the video and then start watching the channel more. I started sharing my videos on social media and adding the hashtag #TeamMTG to really show that I care about my channel above all else.

TeamMTG continues to grow and my audience even knows some of the phrases used in videos. As the channel continues to grow, I also continue to find new ways to brand content, such as switching to a more cinematic look for my videos, that have proven to be more successful.

Logos, phrases, thumbnails, and anything else included in your videos and on your channel should clearly represent you and your brand.

Interact with others

At the time of this writing, my channel has around 4,000 subscribers, but it is still considered a small channel. As a result, I have a little more time to respond to viewers in the comment section.

Believe it or not, people love it when they get a response to a comment, be it a question or a “Amazing Video” comment.

Previously, I never paid attention to the opinions of the audience, did not thank them for their compliments, and did not answer their questions when I really should. Working this way can influence the viewer and show them that the content creator doesn't care what they say. There is one important thing you need to understand when working on your channel. Your audience plays a significant role, and they make up the bulk of what your channel is made of. If they follow, watch your videos, and leave comments, you also need to take care of them and respond to their feedback.

Now I talk about this, as a rule, to small content creators. If you have a huge audience and several thousand comments every day, then, of course, it is difficult to answer all the questions and comments. But when there are a couple of dozen of them, then this must be done without fail.