How to Get More YouTube Subscribers

Content marketing continues to grow as one of the best ways to increase traffic and sales. An increasing number of brands are relying on original content to catch their audience’s attention, rather than running traditional ad campaigns.

Video content is one of the most popular forms of content marketing. In fact, YouTube is currently the second-largest search engine with six billion hours of video viewed every month and 300 hours of video uploaded every minute.

Given how much time users spend watching YouTube videos, it can be a great platform for connecting with your audience.

But to make the most of the site, you’ll need to build a strong subscriber base. Building an audience can be challenging, but with the right strategy and tactics, it’s possible to establish yourself on the platform.

Keep reading for six tips you can use to get more YouTube subscribers and increase your video views.

1. Create searchable titles

Most people find things to watch with YouTube’s search bar, and you need to keep that in mind as you name your videos. Your titles should include the keywords they’d logically search when looking for the information in your video. Bringing viewers to your YouTube videos follows the same general idea as optimizing your website.

You’ll need to select keywords and include them in your titles and descriptions to show up when users search for videos on your topic.

So, how do you know which words and phrases to include in your title? One way to begin is by typing the words you are considering using into the YouTube search bar. Check out the auto-suggested searches, which are based on what YouTube users have searched in the past.

As you build your channel or target more specific keywords, your videos may start to show up in Google search results, too.

But keep in mind that only 50 characters of your title will show up in results pages – so you need to put the important keywords first.

Since you only have a certain number of characters to work with, you have to make them count. Be as concise as you can, while letting users know exactly what they can expect from watching your video.

2. Write a script

Have you ever watched a video that was supposed to be informational, but it was clear that they’d attempted to “wing it?” Sometimes this approach works, but usually it’s painful to watch – and sometimes even a little cringe-worthy.

Videos are most useful when they’re organized with a script to keep you on track. The more logical flow of your video, the more helpful it will be to viewers – and the more of them will turn into subscribers. Include as much detail as possible in your script, and think about your target audience as you create it.

Include all the information you think they’ll want on any given topic, and address common questions you get from your customers or clients.

3. Post consistently

I enjoy watching Grey’s Anatomy every Thursday at 8:00 p.m. – and one of the main reasons why is that I know I can count on an hour of Meredith Grey every week. If the show stopped following this regular schedule, and I didn’t know when to expect it, I would most likely lose interest and move on.

That’s why consistency is key.

When you post videos on a regular schedule, people will know that you’re a dependable source of new information – and they’ll be more likely to subscribe to your channel. People will start to expect your content, and subscribing helps them know that they’re never missing out.

And when you create this sense of expectation, you’ll have a solid audience to create new videos for. Keeping a consistent schedule is a great way to not only gain more subscribers, but keep them as well.

4. Deliver what users are looking for right from the start

When people view your content, they’re typically expecting something in particular. You have a very small window of time to prove to them that they made the right choice by selecting your video over the others in search results.

Capturing your viewers’ attention right away makes all the difference. In fact, indie band Walk off The Earth found that the first eight seconds of your video are the most important – and this lesson helped them gain 127 million views in four months on YouTube.

Think of it this way: If your viewer only watches the first eight seconds, which information is vital for them to have heard?

That’s what should come first. People don’t want to waste their time, so it’s your job to deliver beneficial content from the get-go. Consider shortening your introduction and getting right to the point.

For example, if you’re making a video tutorial that tells viewers how to accomplish a specific task, don’t waste time explaining why that task matters, or who will be demonstrating it.

Get right to the tutorial, and help your viewers accomplish what they want as quickly as possible. Then, if they’re satisfied with the information you provided, they’ll be much more likely to subscribe for future videos.

5. Keep it short

Are there lengthy YouTube videos out there? Yes. Are they high converting videos?

Probably not. The videos with the most viewers are typically less than five minutes in length. So if you can cover your topic in a shorter amount of time without losing impact, do it.

Think with the “time is money” mindset and give your subscribers the most value in the least amount of time.

Attention spans are short, so keep your videos simple, informative, and entertaining. After all, the point of building your subscriber base is to get people to come back to your channel – so you don’t need to give out every last piece of information you have in one video

6. Ask your viewers to subscribe

It may sound obvious, but you should always ask your viewers to subscribe at the end of each video. Viewers want to be told what to do next. When the video they’re watching is coming to an end, include a call-to-action to subscribe.

Asking viewers to subscribe is similar to asking site visitors to subscribe to your email list.

The most effective way to do this is to simply be straightforward and say it in the video. Tell your viewers to click subscribe to get the latest videos you post, and include a button that makes it easy for them to do so. These button overlays are easy to add in YouTube’s Video Manager, and they can be simple, like the ones at the end of videos on the channel “Bhavna’s Kitchen.”

You can include a simple button like this at the end of each video, and introduce it with a brief call to action like, “If you enjoyed this video, subscribe to our channel for new tutorials every Wednesday!” The easier you make it for viewers to subscribe, the more likely they’ll be to keep coming back and watching your videos in the future.

This is an easy way to both communicate with viewers and grow your YouTube channel.

Have you successfully built a subscriber base on YouTube?

Increasing your number of YouTube subscribers is challenging, but can help you achieve your digital marketing goals. Do you have any helpful tips of your own about increasing YouTube subscribers? If so, share them in the comments section below!