– How to Start Your YouTube Channel and Upload Your First Video –
Congratulations!
You’ve created a superb video and now it’s time for the rest of the world to see it.
Here’s what to do:
Download your new show from Animoto (or wherever). Right click the file and choose Show in folder. Then, move it to its place within a relevant folder — somewhere easily remembered.
Then, watch this video to see the correct — and easy — way to create a channel for yourself, your company or your website.
Next
Once your YouTube channel opens, click the small up arrow, top right of your screen. It will ask for the MP4 file.
- Find it on the computer and click okay or just double click it – should start uploading.
- Look around the page while it’s uploading,
- Make sure it says “Public”, because you want everyone to see it.
- Check the Title – take off the words “Final” and MP4 and anything else you don’t want in the title.
- Add a good description, preceded by a short link to your website.
Add relevant tags (search words and phrases — separate by commas and copy and paste into box):
Check the possible thumbnail images at the bottom of the page. If none seem appropriate, go to the next step.
Click the question mark over the first thumbnail — it will say:
- “Choose the thumbnail that best represents your video. To be able to add custom thumbnails your account needs to be verified and in good standing. Learn more…”
Click the word “verified” and you will be warned that if you leave the page, changes might not be saved – don’t worry – they’re automatically saved.
- Click Yes, and a new window will pop up, saying that Google will send either a text message or call you on the phone in the next few minutes to give you a verification code.
- Pick one of these options, then stand by your phone, ready to copy the code.
Almost done
Once you’ve got it, type it into the box provided by YouTube.
- Click Submit. Then Continue.
- On the next page, you’ll be shown as eligible for several YouTube privileges, including custom thumbnails.
- Click Video Manager in the left hand column of that page.
- Then, click Edit on your uploaded video.
- Finally, click Custom Thumbnail to the right of your video’s temporary thumbnail.
- And find the thumbnail you’d rather have on your PC
NOTE — The image cannot be larger than 2 mb — you may need to shrink yours in MS Paint
- You’ll find that program under the Windows Accessories tab
- Open the image there and resize it to 500 pixels – then save it with a different name
- Then upload that.
At last.
You can click Publish, then refresh the page to see your thumbnail in place. Your video should now be live on YouTube.
- To see it as the world sees it, click the share icon, then the More button (three dots)
- It opens in a new window.
- If you want to share it, click the Share button below the video.
- The Embed code can also be found there if you want to put it on your website.
- Use the share link as the last line in an email, Facebook or Twitter post to generate a clickable video player.
Where to go from here
Now that you have your own channel, it’s up to you to keep it exciting, informative and relevant — hopefully all three (and if not, two out of three isn’t bad).
Here are 5 things to keep in mind as you move forward
One: Consistency is key
Set a goal for yourself regarding how often you want to post. Once or twice a week is probably a good standard to set, as it will keep subscribers’ interest levels up without making them feel intruded-upon.
Make your video format and “style” consistent from post to post. If you set the camera angle medium wide on your very first video, you should probably maintain that same angle for subsequent videos. I realize you might have the urge to take your show on the road and videotape a segment at, say, the local coffee shop. But resist that temptation.
Your audience likes consistency and they will be most comfortable with seeing you in the same relative position (sitting or standing) in more or less the same place from video to video.
Two: Optimize your video for best viewership
YouTube and Google rank videos (and anything, for that matter) according to the popularity of certain keywords.
You can increase your chances of being found by performing this little trick to see what key phrases are already being searched for on your topic:
- Type your topic into the YouTube search bar.
- Note the autosuggested keyword phrases that pop up.
- Copy and paste them into the Tags section of your video before you post.
- And if possible, put one or more in the headline of your video
And don’t neglect the description box. Add keywords there, too — as long as they make sense within the context of your description.
Remember: you want to give your potential viewers a reason to watch. Taking these steps will help make that happen
Three: Use the right camera.
There are almost as many kinds of ways and devices to record video these days as there are YouTube channels. Well, maybe not that many, but a lot.
You’ll want to use one that’s full HD quality — not some cheap $1.98 knockoff with a Made in China label. And you’ll want to have it steady at all times, This means either mounting it to a fixed object (like your PC monitor) or on a tripod.
Here’s a good, moderately-priced video camera we can recommend. And here’s a tripod that will support it.
Four. Lose the excess footage.
The real beauty of today’s YouTube recording experience is that jump cuts are perfectly acceptable — provided your camera stays in the same place.
Just keep recording and, when you flub a word or lose your place, just pause, count to three, and look into the camera again an pick it back up — hopefully where you left off.
Five. Edit with a moderately priced or free editing software
If you’re editing on a standard PC or laptop running Windows 7 or above, just download Windows Movie Maker. And, here’s a tutorial on how to use it.
Just import your raw clip, add a split frame just before your mistake or lapse (right click and choose Split), then add another split frame at the point at which you want to resume. Then go back and delete the clip in between those two points.
This should result in a clean and seamless cut. Who cares if your head is now in a different place? Apparently, nobody, judging by how many times it’s done in YouTube videos everywhere.