Today, I'm gonna show you step by step how to start a YouTube channel in 2021. But first, there are a couple of things that you need.
You need a Gmail account. It's simple to set up if you don't already have one.
You also need a strategy. You want to know who you are, who your audience is, and how you're going to help them. And this is all going to start with proper research. Now, I'm assuming you've already done that, and you're ready to dive in and just set up the channel.
How To Start A YouTube Channel In 2021 The Right Way!
1. Create A YouTube Channel
Once you have your Gmail account, log into YouTube. Click on your profile picture in the upper right-hand corner, you'll see a drop-down menu and from that point, click on 'create channel'. This is where the journey begins!
2. Choose How To Create Your YouTube Channel
The next thing you need to do is click 'get started'. This is where you'll choose how you're going to create your channel and you've got two options. You can 'use your name' which is the information from your Gmail account. That's great if you're setting up a personal channel because it's going to use your name and the picture on your Google account. But if you're a brand, which I'm assuming most of you are, or you have a local business, you'll 'use a custom name'. This name represents your brand and you can also customize it in other ways. Select 'Use a custom name'.
3. Create A YouTube Channel Name
Okay, now we're going to create your YouTube channel name. This will be how people recognize your brand across YouTube. I always recommend that you use your company name or a name that represents your brand. Don't try to stuff keywords here. I also suggest that you use the same name that you have on other social media networks like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You want your brand to be consistent across all social media networks. Once you choose a brand name, click 'I understand', then click 'create '.
4. Create A YouTube Channel Profile Picture
Now that you've set up your account, let's go ahead and upload your profile photo. Your YouTube channel profile picture size should be 800 pixels by 800 pixels. And there are a number of free programs out there that you can use to make sure you have the right size. Canva and Stencil are two of my favorite apps to use for things like this and they are both free. Once you've chosen your photo, just click on 'upload picture' and it will walk you through the next steps.
Now let's create a custom banner for your new YouTube channel! Start by clicking on your profile photo in the upper right-hand corner of the screen and next click 'your channel', then 'customize channel'. For your channel artwork or your YouTube banner, you want something that's eye-catching, and can quickly let people know what to expect from your channel when they see it. You also want to make sure that it can be clearly seen on mobile, on desktop, and on laptops.
Canva or Stencil are great options for creating a custom youtube banner. For this example, I'll use Canva. You can simply go to the search bar and start typing YouTube, and you'll see an option for YouTube channel art. It tells you the dimensions, and you can start with a blank screen, or you can start with one of the templates they provide.
One of the things I like about this is that it does give you the exact dimensions so you don't have to mess around with that too much. Once you've designed your new banner, go back to YouTube, and click 'add'. Now once you've uploaded the artwork, you'll get a preview of how it will look on mobile, desktop, and television. Make sure that your most important info can be seen on mobile before you finalize it. Also, just remember that you can go back at any time and edit or update your YouTube channel art, I'd even recommend getting in the habit of updating your social media banners on a quarterly basis.
Okay, now that you've got your banner set up and it looks just like you want it to, let's continue customizing your new YouTube channel. To do that, you'll fill out some other information. You will add custom links to your YouTube banner, information to your 'about' section, and a few other things to customize the channel. So let's get started!
6. Add Custom Links To Youtube Channel Art
Start by hovering over your YouTube banner until you see a pencil icon in the upper right-hand corner of the banner, click on that. If you don't see the pencil icon, make sure that you have clicked on 'customize channel' underneath the banner first. Let's start by adding a few custom links to your new YouTube channel. I would recommend using links to your most popular social media channels like Instagram or Facebook.
You can also add a direct link for visitors to subscribe to your channel, visit your website, or even download your latest freebie! You can include up to five different custom links on your YouTube banner.
The first thing you want to do is give the custom link a title. Next, type in the correct destination URL and hit 'done'. When you go back to the channel page, you'll be able to see the updated links on the channel artwork.
7. Create Youtube About Section
The next thing you'll do is tell people what your channel is all about. So we're going to optimize your 'about' section. From the YouTube home page click on your profile photo, next click 'your channel', then click 'customize channel' now click on 'about'.
From there, you can edit or create your channel description. Use this area to tell people what type of content they can expect from your channel and you can also share your credentials and, or anything else that could build your authority. Tell visitors what types of videos you'll be creating, what they can expect to learn, or how they're going be entertained.
I would also suggest that you use a few keywords in the description as well. While you don't want to stuff keywords in your description, you do want to incorporate a few keywords, because it can help you get discovered in other places on YouTube. In short, use this section to give people a clear message of what they can expect from your YouTube channel.
Add an email address. This is great because as your channel grows, often people will want to connect with you for possible sponsorship or partnership opportunities, so you want to use an email address that you check regularly. I would always use a business email for this. Also, add your location/country.
8. Verify Youtube Channel
The next thing we're going do is to verify your YouTube channel. YouTube requires verification to unlock certain features and make sure that you are not a bot. Once you verify your channel you can upload videos over 15 minutes long, live stream, use custom thumbnails, monetize your channel, appeal copyright claims, and more. This is a crucial step in the process of setting up your YouTube channel correctly. To verify your YouTube channel:
YouTube channel keywords are words that give YouTube a better understanding of the type of content that you'll publish on your channel. Keywords will also improve your visibility on YouTube. To add channel keywords, start by going to YouTube Studio. Once you're in YouTube Studio, scroll down to 'settings'. Next click on 'channel'. Be wise when you choose these keywords, and you don't want to stuff a bunch of random keywords here. Once you get that done, just hit 'save'.
10. Add A Custom YouTube Subscribe Button
Now, the next thing we're going do is add a custom subscribe button. I like to do this on all of the channels that I set up because it's an easy way for people to subscribe to your channel while watching your videos.
To do this, click on 'settings', 'channel', and then 'branding'. You can add an image that's 150 pixels by 150 pixels in PNG format or GIF format. Again, you can go back to Canva or Stencil, create this image.
Once you've created an image, just click 'open' and you'll see a preview of the watermark and where it will appear when the video is playing. You can then choose to have it display only at the end of the video, the entire video, or you can add a custom start time. Five seconds is typically pretty good, especially once you get to the point where you're channel is being monetized. I wouldn't do it at the end of the video. I'm either gonna run it the entire video or choose a custom time.
After you've done that, just hit 'save' and you're all set.
Conclusion
There you have it, how to start a YouTube channel in 2021. This was a step by step tutorial, I hope this helped. If it did, let me know by commenting below, if you have any questions leave me a comment below. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more marketing tips for businesses and entrepreneurs.
