There is no better time like the present to get into YouTube. Whether you want to market a brand, try to make money online, or just create video content for fun, the biggest video hosting site is the place to do it.
YouTube is so big that it saw more web traffic in 2020 than Amazon, Twitter, and Facebook, according to data from Ahrefs. The great thing about it is that anyone who owns a smartphone can get into creating and uploading content.
Having such a low barrier to entry, the site sees hundreds of thousands of uploads every day. You don't have to upload a certain type of video, but some specific types perform better than others. In this article, we're going to discuss four popular types of videos you can make to grow a YouTube channel.
1. Reviews
Creating review videos can bring a number of benefits in addition to purely growing your channel. You can end up connecting with brands and getting free products that can be pretty valuable.
You can also earn commissions from recommending products, which adds up fast if you have a big audience. It's possible to build a following by reviewing pretty much anything.
Many gaming influencers will tackle new consoles every time those get released and the different companies will send them a free unit. For example, take a look at the PlayStation 5 review from Marques Brownlee.
Sony sent him a console to review and he's racked up 5.7 million views since November 2020. Most importantly for them, his honest review was positive and he recommended the console to casual, every day gamers. In the description of his video, he also promotes merchandise plus his video production equipment in an Amazon store. His channel has about 13.6 million subscribers.
In case you don't have the money for reviewing more expensive products, that's okay. You can still grow a channel to a million+ subscribers by reviewing things like food. Just take a look at TheReportofTheWeek channel on YouTube. That was started in 2011 by the "Reviewbrah" as he's been called and has since accumulated 2.29 million subscribers.
His real name is John Jurasek and he originally started reviewing energy drinks but diversified into a lot of different fast-food items later on. This channel and its success have given Jurasek a platform to drive traffic to his podcast, Patreon, Teespring store, and his Amazon shop. A good rule of thumb is that if it's anything available to buy, you can review it.
2. Explainer Videos
Creating videos that do a good job of explaining something can get popular fast. Similar to review videos, there are a few different types of explainer videos you can create. Ones that examine popular culture tend to do well. For example, take a look at the channel "Looper."
They only started up in 2015 but have since accumulated 5.37 million subscribers and an even more impressive 3.3 billion views. They have videos explaining things like the entire timeline of Stranger Things, among many other pop culture analysis videos.
Another type of explainer channel that gets a lot of subscribers is one that breaks down difficult concepts. A great example of one of those is the US Auto Industry channel. Most of their videos are all really old – some dating back to the 1930's.
Old or not, their videos like "Spinning Levers – How A Transmission Works" have garnered millions of views. These types of YouTube videos are perfect to make if you have some kind of specialty that people might find interesting.
3. How-To Videos
A lot of people go to YouTube trying to find a solution to a problem they have. You can build up a lot of subscribers by showing people how to successfully accomplish a project. Someone who does a great job of that is Steve Ramsey, a guy who runs a YouTube channel called "Steve Ramsey – Woodworking for Mere Mortals."
He puts a little humor behind showing you how to handle tough woodworking projects without getting a headache. Since joining in 2008, he has accumulated over 200 million views and about 1.63 million subscribers. Most of these videos keep things interesting and entertaining. That brings us to the last type you can make to grow a channel: entertainment.
4. Entertainment Videos
At the heart of YouTube are the entertainment channels. Millions of people sign on to the site to relax (or go down a rabbit hole) every day. If you decide on a type of entertainment-based content and you can consistently churn it out, you will be able to build an audience. There are enough people on YouTube to create a successful channel around most types of subject matter.
Look at channels like Dude Perfect or Simone Giertz to get a few ideas for the type of content that gets a lot of views. If you want to maximize your reach, try to make it family-friendly, too. Dude Perfect is a great example of that with their consistently clean content.
A few entertainment YouTubers have gotten in hot water over the last few years because of saying various inappropriate things. Keep your nose clean and your channel will stay green (with monetization!).