How to Start a Successful YouTube Channel for Your Business

When we started the WPBeginner YouTube channel, we had no fancy gear—just a laptop, basic tools, and a lot of trial and error. Over a small period, we’ve successfully grown it into a channel with over 1 million subscribers and 54 million views. 🥳

Since then, we’ve built and managed several other successful YouTube channels across our brands. Along the way, we’ve learned what works when you’re trying to grow a business through video.

If you’re starting from scratch or trying to revive a dormant channel, we’ve been there. And we’ve made the mistakes you don’t have to.

This beginner-friendly guide will walk you through how to start a YouTube channel for your business, with the same steps, tools, and tips that helped us grow from zero to millions of views.

Why Start a YouTube Channel for Your Business?

YouTube is one of the largest video-sharing platforms in the world, with over 2 billion active users. It’s also the second most popular search engine after Google.

We’ve seen how YouTube can fuel serious business growth. It’s helped us reach new audiences, increase trust, and promote our products across multiple brands.

If you’re thinking about starting a channel, here are some of the biggest benefits we’ve experienced firsthand:

• 🎯 Increased brand recognition: A YouTube channel helps build awareness quickly. Consistently publishing helpful content helped us make our brand more recognizable and memorable.
• 💰Increased sales: Videos connect on a personal level. We’ve noticed that viewers who watch product demos or tutorials are far more likely to become paying customers.
• 📈Increased website traffic: YouTube has become a reliable source of traffic for our websites. Adding links to video descriptions is an easy way to guide viewers to your products and services.
• 🛒Promote products/services: We use YouTube to simplify complex features and highlight benefits. Embedding these videos in support documents also reduces support requests and keeps users happy.
• 🧲Build a loyal following: Video helps you form real connections. Over time, we’ve been able to grow communities of engaged viewers who trust our content and brand.
• 💸Add an extra source of revenue: YouTube monetization has opened new doors for us. Ads, affiliate links, and sponsorships all stack up to create an extra income stream.

Of course, success on YouTube doesn’t happen overnight. But from our own journey, we’ve learned that consistency and a clear content strategy make all the difference.

Now, let’s walk you through the steps to create your own YouTube channel:

1. Creating a YouTube Channel for Your Business

Before anything else, you’ll need to set up your YouTube channel—and it’s super easy to do.

Just head over to the YouTube website and sign in using your Google Account.

Once you’re signed in, click your profile icon at the top right corner and choose ‘Create a channel’ from the dropdown menu.

That will open a simple form where you can add your channel’s name, handle, and a profile picture.

But hold up—don’t rush through this part just yet. Choosing the right name and handle is more important than it seems.

Tips for Picking the Perfect Channel Name

Your channel name and handle help people find you on YouTube and even on Google. So it’s smart to include keywords—words that your audience might search for when looking for your type of videos.

Think about what kind of content you’ll be sharing. Will it be tutorials, entertainment, interviews, behind-the-scenes videos, or something else?

For example, if you’re launching a channel for your gardening business, having the word ‘gardening’ in your name and handle can give you a nice boost in search visibility.

You can also just stick with your business name if you already have one. That way, your brand feels more consistent across your website, social media, and YouTube channel.

That’s exactly what we did. Our channel is called WPBeginner – WordPress Tutorials, which makes it clear who we are and what we teach, while keeping our brand front and center.

Tips for Making a Great YouTube Profile Photo

Your profile photo is one of the first things people notice about your channel. It shows up next to your name on your channel page, under your videos, and even in search results.

Most small businesses go with their logo for the profile picture—and that’s a smart move. It keeps things consistent across your brand.

If you don’t have a logo yet, no worries. You can easily create a custom channel photo using Canva.

It’s a free online design tool that comes with ready-made templates for YouTube and other social platforms—super handy if you’re just starting out.

Using a different image editor? Just make sure your photo is a square and at least 800 x 800 pixels. That way, it looks crisp everywhere it shows up.

Once you’ve added your channel name, handle, and profile photo, go ahead and click the ‘Create Channel’ button.

YouTube will take care of the rest and send you straight to your brand-new channel page.

2. Securing Your Brand Name

Before you upload your first video, it’s a smart idea to lock down your brand name across the web.

This means grabbing a domain name that matches your YouTube channel, setting up a WordPress website, and creating social media accounts for your brand.

Doing this early on helps protect your identity, prevents copycats, and makes sure no one else grabs your name before you do.

Let’s start by setting up your website.

1. Making a Website for Your YouTube Channel

To get your site up and running, you’ll need two things:

• A domain name – this is your website’s address (like wpbeginner.com).
• Web hosting – this is where your website’s files live online.

Normally, a domain costs around $14.99/year, and hosting starts at $7.99/month (billed annually).

If that feels like a lot when you’re just starting out, we get it. That’s why we’ve worked with Bluehost to offer WPBeginner readers a special deal.

You’ll get a free domain name and hosting starting at just $1.99/month.

To grab the deal, head over to the Bluehost website and click the ‘Get Started Now’ button.

Why Do We Recommend Bluehost?

We have been a long-time Bluehost customer due to their solid performance, reliability, and excellent customer service. They are also beginner-friendly, which makes it easy for new users to get started quickly. For more details, take a look at our full Bluehost review.

On the next screen, you’ll be asked to pick a hosting plan.

The Basic and Choice Plus plans are popular with WPBeginner users—they offer everything you need to get started.

Go ahead and click to choose your plan.

Next, you’ll be asked to choose your domain name.

Try to get a domain that matches your YouTube channel name or handle. If it’s not available, Bluehost will suggest a few close options.

Need ideas? Check out our guide with tips for choosing the best domain name.

Once you’ve picked your domain, click ‘Next’ to continue and complete the signup process.

You’ll be asked to enter your personal details and choose your plan duration. The 12-month option gives you the best value for most beginners.

On the same screen, scroll down and uncheck all the ‘Add additional Services’ boxes. This helps you keep costs low—you can always add them later if needed.

Once that’s done, enter your payment info and finish the purchase.

Bluehost will register your domain, set up your hosting account, and install WordPress for you. WordPress is the best website builder out there, and you’ll be ready to go right away.

You’ll get an email with your login details so you can start customizing your site.

Need extra help? Follow our full guide on how to make a WordPress website.

For now, just set up your basic site. You can build and improve it later as your channel grows.

2. Securing Your Social Media Profiles

If you haven’t already set up social media accounts for your business, now’s the perfect time. It’s one of the easiest ways to protect your brand online.

Think about where your audience hangs out. That’s where you want to be. Depending on your target audience, some platforms will work better than others.

At the very least, we recommend creating profiles on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter). From there, you can branch out based on your business type and audience.

For example, LinkedIn is great for business-focused brands. Pinterest and Instagram work well for lifestyle or visual content. And if you’re running an educational site, Reddit might be a good place to build a community.

Try to use the same name across all platforms—matching your business name and YouTube handle keeps your brand consistent and easy to recognize.

3. Making Artwork for Your YouTube Channel

Let’s head back to your shiny new YouTube channel. Right now, it’s a blank canvas—literally.

A great place to start is by adding channel artwork, such as a banner, also known as the channel cover or header. This image appears at the top of your channel and sets the tone for your brand.

One of the easiest tools for this is Canva. It’s free, beginner-friendly, and comes with ready-to-use YouTube banner templates.

Scroll through the templates and find one that fits your brand colors and style. Then customize it right inside Canva—no design experience needed.

If you’re more advanced, you can create your banner using tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, or Affinity instead.

Just make sure your image is 2048 x 1152 pixels and under 6MB in size so it fits perfectly on your channel.

Once it’s ready, go to your YouTube channel and click the ‘Customize Channel’ button.

This will open the Channel Customization page. From here, switch over to the ‘Branding’ tab.

You’ll see your profile photo already in place. Now, click the ‘Upload’ button next to the banner image section to add your new artwork.

While you’re here, you can also add a video watermark. This small image appears in the corner of your videos and acts like a mini branding badge—or even a subtle reminder to subscribe.

Most channels use their logo or profile photo. You’ll upload it right here from the same Branding tab.

Just make sure it’s a square image, at least 150×150 pixels. A transparent background works best because it doesn’t distract from your video.

4. Creating a Featured Video and YouTube Channel Trailer

Your YouTube channel trailer is like your elevator pitch. It gives new visitors a quick taste of what your channel is all about.

Once added, this trailer shows up at the top of your channel page and plays automatically for people who haven’t subscribed yet.

You can also set a different featured video for subscribers. This one appears in the same spot but is only visible to people who have already subscribed to your channel.

Just keep in mind—if they’ve already watched it, they won’t see it again in that spot.

To upload either of these videos, go to your YouTube Studio page.

From there, switch to the Customization tab. You’ll see options to add your channel trailer and featured video right away.

Not quite ready to film something yet? No worries—we’ll cover how to make videos later in this guide.

5. What Do You Need to Make Great YouTube Videos

If you’ve ever watched videos from big channels like MrBeast, Lemmino, or Veritasium, you’ve probably noticed how polished they look.

They use high-end cameras, pro lighting, custom graphics, and top-notch editing to bring their content to life.

But here’s the thing—most videos on YouTube aren’t made in a fancy studio. And yours don’t have to be either.

You can shoot a great video using just your phone. Most modern smartphones have surprisingly good cameras built in.

With a bit of practice and a few low-cost tools, you can create high-quality content without a huge budget.

Here’s a simple list of gear to help you get started:

1. A Good Camera 📷

If you want to invest in a dedicated camera, digital cameras are more affordable now and can shoot crisp 4K video. We recommend checking out the GoPro Hero 11 for a compact and reliable option.

That said, if a new camera isn’t in the budget, no worries—your phone is more than enough to get started.

Phones like the iPhone, Google Pixel, and Samsung Galaxy already have excellent cameras. Even budget Android phones can record solid video if you use good lighting.

Pair your phone with a basic tripod, a cheap mic, and some soft lighting, and you’ll be amazed at how professional your videos can look.

Let’s talk about the other equipment that can take your videos to the next level.

2. An Affordable Tripod or Camera Stand

If you want steady shots, a tripod or camera stand is a must. It helps you keep your phone or camera steady while filming.

You’ll find tons of options on Amazon—tripods, selfie sticks, and even gimbal stabilizers if you want smoother motion shots.

Look for one that works with your device and offers adjustable height and angles. That way, you can experiment with different shooting styles.

If you’re filming with a smartphone, the Rode Vlogging Kit is a great place to start. It includes a mic with a 3.5mm jack for better sound and even has an iOS version.

3. A Basic Lighting Setup

Lighting can completely change the look of your video. If you’re filming indoors, adding a bit of extra light can instantly level things up.

While pro lighting gear can be expensive, there are plenty of budget-friendly options that work really well.

We recommend starting with a ring light. These LED lights are affordable, portable, and often come with adjustable brightness and height stands.

4. A Video Editing Software

Once you’ve recorded your video, it’s time to polish it up—trim a few parts, add music, maybe include your logo or some text.

You’ve probably heard big creators mention Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere Pro. They’re powerful tools, but they can be pricey and take some time to learn.

The good news? You might already have a great video editor on your computer.

Mac users can use the built-in iMovie app—it’s perfect for beginners and has everything you need to edit your first few videos. There’s also a mobile version for iPhone and iPad.

iMovie lets you add transitions, music, voiceovers, trim clips, and more—all without a steep learning curve.

Windows users can try Clipchamp, a free editor with ready-made templates for YouTube and other platforms.

You can also use Canva for editing. It includes a built-in video editor with drag-and-drop tools, transitions, stock footage, and effects. Plus, it works across all devices.

Canva is especially great if you’re just starting out—it’s simple, intuitive, and doesn’t require any previous experience.

All of these tools are beginner-friendly and more than capable of helping you create professional-looking YouTube videos.

6. How to Edit YouTube Videos 🎞️

Like we mentioned earlier, most YouTube videos aren’t made in high-end studios, and that’s totally fine.

You don’t need to be a tech expert to edit your videos. Just learning a few basics can make your content look cleaner and more professional.

Let’s start by talking about shooting your videos with editing in mind.

Shooting Videos with Editing in Mind

• Always shoot in the highest video quality your camera or phone allows.
• Use a tripod or gimbal to avoid shaky footage—it makes a big difference.
• If your camera supports it, use manual focus to keep your subject in sharp focus.
• Record in a quiet space, or use a microphone to cut down background noise.

Editing Videos for Your YouTube Channel

Once you’ve recorded your video, open it in your favorite video editor and start making it look great:

• Trim any mistakes or sections you don’t want to keep.
• Add background music to set the mood or fill in silent moments.
• Use transitions to smoothly move between clips.
• Add text, images, or graphics to explain things visually or reinforce your message.

Your editing software will give you a preview as you work. Once you’re happy with the final version, go ahead and export your video so it’s ready to upload.

Finding Media to Use in Your YouTube Videos

Quick heads up: YouTube takes copyright seriously. If you use music, images, or video clips without permission, your video (or even your whole channel) could get taken down.

Make sure anything you include—whether it’s music, sound effects, images, or video clips—is either royalty-free or something you have full rights to use.

The good news is that there are tons of royalty-free media sources out there. Most of the editors we’ve already recommended include built-in libraries of music and stock content.

YouTube also has its own Audio Library with thousands of free tracks and sound effects you can use in your videos.

You can find it inside YouTube Studio. Just search or browse the collection and download what you like.

Then, drop it into your editor to add it to your video, and you’re good to go.

Saving Your Video to Upload on YouTube

By default, YouTube lets you upload videos up to 15 minutes long. But once your account is verified, you can upload much longer videos.

The maximum file size is 256 GB or 12 hours of video, whichever comes first. That’s more than enough for most content creators.

When you’re done editing, make sure to export your video using the highest quality settings your editor allows. For best results, use the H.264 codec and save the file as an MP4. It gives you a good balance between quality and file size.

Just a heads up: exporting large files can take a while, especially if your video is long or includes a lot of effects. Be patient—it’s worth the wait.

7. Video Editing Best Practices to Follow

The more videos you edit, the better you’ll get at spotting what works and what doesn’t. Over time, you’ll develop your own rhythm and editing style.

Here are some simple best practices we recommend keeping in mind as you get started:

• Always export your videos in the highest quality settings. YouTube will automatically adjust the playback quality for viewers, but uploading the best version ensures the highest resolution is available.
• Longer videos can take a while to process on your computer. To avoid interruptions, keep your laptop or desktop plugged into a power source during export.
• Video files are large and take time to upload. Make sure you’re on a stable, fast internet connection before starting the YouTube upload.
• Watch your final video through completely before uploading. This helps you catch small mistakes, such as spelling errors, awkward cuts, or music that’s too loud.
• Don’t overuse transitions or effects. A few smooth transitions go a long way—keep things clean and focused so your message stays front and center.

8. Making Thumbnails for YouTube Videos

Your thumbnail is the first thing people notice before they click on your video. It acts as a preview image across YouTube, showing up in search results, recommendations, and your channel page.

Thumbnails play a huge role in getting clicks. In fact, they can make or break your video’s click-through rate.

Most experienced creators spend a lot of time designing and testing different thumbnail styles. You can look at what popular channels are doing and adapt their techniques for your own brand.

While YouTube gives you the option to pick a frame from your video, it’s best to create a custom thumbnail instead. A still frame often looks blurry or out of context.

We recommend using a tool like Canva or Photoshop to design your thumbnail. Make sure it’s at least 1280×720 pixels so it looks great on all devices.

Here are some thumbnail tips that have worked well for us:

1. Use High-Quality Images – A blurry or pixelated thumbnail can hurt your credibility. Use clear, sharp images that look good even at smaller sizes.

2. Catch the Eye – Use bold colors, strong contrast, and expressive faces to draw attention. That’s why you’ll often see thumbnails with surprised 😮, excited 😲, or dramatic 😥 expressions.

3. Highlight the Main Point – Show what your video is about right on the thumbnail. This helps viewers quickly understand what they’ll get from watching.

4. Use Text Wisely – Add a short headline or a few words that tease the content. Keep the font large and readable, even on small screens.

5. Keep It Simple – Avoid packing in too many elements. A clean thumbnail is easier on the eyes and often performs better than a cluttered one.

Once you’ve designed your thumbnail, you can upload it after your video finishes uploading to YouTube.

If you ever want to change the thumbnail later, just head to YouTube Studio and update it from there—it only takes a few clicks.

9. Uploading Your First YouTube Video

Uploading your first video is exciting, and YouTube makes the process pretty simple.

Start by heading over to your YouTube Studio page. Once you’re there, click on the ‘Upload Videos’ button.

This will open a popup where you can choose the video file(s) from your computer.

Click on ‘Select Files’ to get started.

You can upload more than one video at a time, but we suggest uploading one at a time to avoid any hiccups during the process.

As your video uploads in the background, you’ll be asked to fill in some details—like your video title, description, thumbnail, and tags.

Take your time with this step—your title and description help people find your video, and your thumbnail gets them to click.

Once you’re happy with the info, click the ‘Next’ button.

On the next screen, you can add extra features like subtitles, end screens, and video cards. These elements help promote your other videos and keep viewers engaged.

Click ‘Next’ again.

YouTube will now run a quick check for copyright issues or inappropriate content.

If everything looks good, click ‘Next’ one more time to go to the final step.

Now you’ll decide how to publish your video. You can make it Public (for everyone), Unlisted (only people with the link can view), or Private (only you can see it).

You can also schedule your video to go live at a later date. This is perfect if you’re planning content in advance.

When you’re ready, hit the ‘Publish’ button—and just like that, your first video is live!

10. Mastering YouTube SEO

We’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: YouTube isn’t just a video platform. It’s also the second biggest search engine in the world, right after Google.

That’s why paying attention to YouTube SEO from day one is one of the best things you can do for your channel.

Good YouTube SEO helps your videos appear in YouTube search, show up in suggested videos, and even land in Google video results or featured snippets.

Here’s an example below.

Here are some beginner-friendly YouTube SEO tips that can give your videos a boost in search rankings:

• Use Keywords in Your Title & Description – Think about what your viewers would type to find your video. Use those search terms—called keywords—in your title and description. You can also sprinkle them into your channel description and About page.
• Create a Custom Thumbnail – We talked about this earlier, but it’s worth repeating. A custom thumbnail gives context and increases your click-through rate, which helps your rankings too.
• Add Subtitles and Closed Captions – Captions make your videos more accessible and give YouTube extra text to understand what your video is about.
• Use Tags Strategically – Tags help categorize your video and can improve discoverability. They also tell YouTube what your content is related to.
• Make the Most of Character Limits – YouTube gives you a lot of space in key areas—use it wisely:
  • Title: Up to 100 characters. Use keywords and try to follow the title patterns that work for other creators in your niche.
  • Description: Up to 5000 characters. Add a detailed summary of your video, links to your site or blog, social media handles, affiliate links, and more.
  • Tags: Up to 500 characters. Use tags that describe your topic, related terms, and other variations people might search for.

YouTube SEO is one of those skills that gets better with practice. As you upload more videos, you’ll start to notice what works, and you’ll naturally improve your rankings over time.

11. Growing Your YouTube Channel

Growing a YouTube channel takes time, consistency, and a bit of patience. Most channels don’t blow up overnight—and that’s totally normal. Growth usually happens slowly and steadily, one video at a time.

Here are a few things we’ve learned that can help you keep building momentum and grow your channel over time:

1. Create High-Quality Videos

In our experience, people won’t stick around for videos that don’t offer something valuable, whether it’s tips, knowledge, or entertainment. We’ve seen this across all the channels we’ve built.

When you make content that answers questions or solves problems, people are more likely to subscribe. Useful videos build trust and keep your audience coming back.

2. Upload Regularly

Consistency is key. Almost every successful channel we’ve worked on or studied has a regular posting schedule. It helps build momentum and keeps the audience engaged.

If you’re just starting out, aim for one video per week. That’s a realistic pace for most beginners and helps you improve quickly. Once you find your rhythm, you’ll naturally get better at editing and presenting.

Whatever schedule you choose, stick with it. Consistency builds trust with your viewers—and the YouTube algorithm tends to reward it, too.

3. Engage with Your Audience

YouTube isn’t just for watching videos—it’s a social platform. That means engagement matters just as much as content.

We’ve had great success asking questions in our videos and replying to comments. Viewers love knowing there’s a real person behind the content. It builds a connection and gives them a reason to come back.

4. Curate Your Content in Playlists

As your video library grows, it can be hard for viewers to find related content. That’s where playlists come in.

We’ve found that grouping related videos into playlists improves watch time and makes your channel easier to navigate. Plus, playlists can appear in search results, which gives your content more visibility.

5. Dig Into Your Analytics

YouTube gives you detailed analytics, and we use them all the time to improve our content strategy.

We look at watch time, views, and audience demographics to figure out what’s working and what needs tweaking. It’s one of the best ways to create content your viewers actually want to see.

6. Promote Your Videos

One of the biggest lessons we’ve learned is that uploading isn’t enough. To grow your channel, you also need to promote your videos.

We’ve seen great results from sharing videos through email newsletters and embedding them on our websites. Every view counts, especially when you’re just getting started.

This brings us to the next part of the guide…

12. Using Your Website to Promote YouTube Videos

Every successful YouTube channel we’ve worked with has had one thing in common—a website. It’s been one of the most effective tools for driving traffic from YouTube to our business websites, boosting sales and long-term growth.

But it’s not a one-way street. We’ve also used our websites to send traffic back to our YouTube channels—helping promote videos, grow subscribers, and increase visibility.

Here’s a playbook we’ve used time and again to help grow YouTube channels using WordPress websites. You can follow the same steps:

1. Start a Blog to Promote Your YouTube Channel

We’ve seen just how powerful starting a WordPress blog can be. Blogging helps you attract people who are already searching for the topics you cover in your videos.

This free search traffic can then turn into subscribers, customers, or both. Repurposing your videos into blog posts is one of the easiest ways to rank for more keywords and grow both your website and YouTube channel.

If you’re still on the fence, check out our post on why blogging is worth it—we’ve laid out all the benefits we’ve experienced ourselves.

2. Learn WordPress SEO to Promote Your Video Content

SEO has played a big role in helping us promote our video content.

One of our go-to tools is All in One SEO, which we use across all our websites to get higher rankings and more clicks.

Note: You’ll need the Pro plan to access the video sitemaps feature, which is totally worth it for video creators.

We’ve made it easy to get started—check out our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Want to take it even further? Our full WordPress SEO guide walks you through every step to optimize your site.

3. Embed Your Videos in Blog Posts to Get More Subscribers

Embedding your YouTube videos in blog posts is one of the easiest ways to boost views. We’ve done this on nearly all of our blogs—and it works.

Just paste the video URL in the WordPress editor, and it’ll embed automatically. No extra setup needed.

4. Submit Video Sitemaps for Better Rankings

Want your videos to show up in Google search results with thumbnails and previews? That’s where video sitemaps come in.

We use the video sitemap feature in All in One SEO. It automatically finds posts with videos and includes them in the sitemap for better indexing.

To turn it on, go to All in One SEO » Sitemaps.

Here, you need to enable the Video Sitemap option.

Need help? Here’s our guide on creating and submitting a sitemap for search engines.

5. Create Video Galleries on Your Website

If you really want to showcase your content, consider building a video gallery.

We recommend using Smash Balloon’s YouTube Feed Pro plugin for that.

It lets you display beautiful, responsive YouTube galleries anywhere on your site with just a few clicks. We use it ourselves and love how flexible it is.

Check out our step-by-step guide on creating a video gallery in WordPress to get started.

Once the plugin is installed, go to YouTube Feed » Settings and enter your license key. You’ll find this in your Smash Balloon account.

Click ‘Add Source’ to connect your YouTube channel. Just follow the prompts—it only takes a minute.

To display your gallery, go to YouTube Feed » All Feeds and click ‘Add New’ to create a new feed.

You can customize the layout, colors, and style, and see a live preview as you go. Once you’re happy, click Embed to get the shortcode.

Paste the shortcode anywhere you want to show your video gallery—on a page, post, or widget area.

Here’s how it looked on one of our test sites.

We used a dark theme with a carousel-style layout, and it looked great on both desktop and mobile.

The best part? It works with your own channel, any public channel, or even keyword-based feeds, making it super flexible.

13. Making a Consistent Video Calendar

You’ll need to consistently upload new videos to make a successful YouTube channel.

You can choose your frequency, which gives you plenty of time to make a video. Many beginners start with one or two videos each month and gradually increase to one video per week.

You can choose a day and time to publish your videos. This way, your users would know when to expect a new video from your channel.

Now, the real challenge for most beginners is coming up with new video ideas.

The following are a few easy tips for generating video ideas for your YouTube channel.

1. View YouTube Analytics – You can see what kind of content your users like by viewing your YouTube Channel Analytics. Then, branch out your most viewed videos into deeper and related topics.

2. Get Hints by YouTube Search – As you type a keyword in YouTube search, it starts suggesting popular search terms. These are the search terms that users are already looking for, and they can be immensely helpful in generating new video ideas.

3. YouTube Comments – Your users will often post questions in the comments section below your YouTube videos. You can convert the most common questions into separate videos.

4. Your WordPress Blog – You can repurpose your most popular blog content into YouTube videos.

5. Ask Your Users – You can ask your users on social media profiles about what topics they’d like you to cover next. You can also run polls and surveys on your website to gather ideas.

6. Online Communities – Forums like Reddit, Facebook Groups, LinkedIn, and X (formerly Twitter) are goldmines for trending questions and discussions. Join communities that match your niche and watch what people are asking.

If you want to dig deeper into what people are searching for, here are a few keyword research tools we’ve found helpful for coming up with fresh video ideas:

1. LowFruits – This lightweight tool helps you find low-competition keywords with real ranking potential. We’ve found it super helpful for discovering video topics that smaller channels can rank for quickly.
2. vidIQ – A keyword and video idea tool made specifically for YouTubers. Great for staying on top of trends and audience interests.
3. TubeBuddy – A browser extension packed with tools for video SEO, thumbnail A/B testing, keyword suggestions, and more.

14. Experiment with Different Video Styles and Formats

Success on YouTube doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a bit of trial and error to figure out what kind of content your audience loves most.

While you’re still finding your groove, we recommend testing out different video formats to see what gets the best reactions, whether that’s more views, likes, or comments.

You could try short-form videos using YouTube Shorts, which are great for quick tips or behind-the-scenes moments.

You can also experiment with formats like how-to tutorials, interviews, video essays, commentaries, or even podcast-style videos. Each format has its own vibe and audience.

Mixing things up helps you figure out what your viewers actually enjoy—and once you find what clicks, you can double down on it.

You can also go back and update older videos that didn’t perform well. Try swapping out the thumbnail with something more eye-catching or tweaking the title and description to improve visibility.

Sometimes, a small change is all it takes to breathe new life into a video that’s been overlooked.

15. Frequently Asked Questions About Creating a YouTube Channel

Now that your YouTube channel is up and running, the following are some of the most commonly asked questions by beginner YouTube creators.

1. How many views do I need to get paid on YouTube?

You’ll need at least 4,000 public watch hours or 1,000 subscribers in 12 months to be eligible for the YouTube partner program, which gives you access to YouTube monetization tools, including ad revenue sharing. You’ll need at least 10 million views in the last 90 days for Shorts.

2. Can I start a YouTube Channel with my phone?

Yes, you can start a YouTube channel using your mobile phone. The YouTube app for smartphones makes it super easy to create a channel, record live videos, or upload videos from your phone.

3. How do you make money online using YouTube?

The easiest way to make money online using YouTube is by joining the YouTube Partner Program. Once you are approved, you become eligible to get paid for revenue sharing on ads displayed during your videos.

4. Can I start a YouTube channel without showing my face?

Yes, you can start a YouTube channel and upload videos without showing your face.

5. Do I need an LLC to start a YouTube channel for my business?

No, you don’t need an LLC to start a YouTube channel for your business. You’ll automatically be considered a sole proprietor of the YouTube channel, and all your earnings from YouTube will be subject to local taxes, such as income tax.

However, some YouTube channels may register as a limited liability company (LLC) to protect their business from potential liabilities, insurance reasons, and other legal and financial reasons.

Bonus Resources

Getting started on YouTube is just the beginning. We’ve put together a few extra resources to help you level up your content and grow your channel faster:

• WordPress SEO Settings for Beginners – Learn how to optimize your site so more people can discover your videos.
• What Is a Blog and How Is It Different From a Website? – See how blogging can support your YouTube channel and build your brand at the same time.
• Best WordPress Video Gallery Plugins Compared – Explore top tools to display YouTube videos beautifully on your site.
• How to Add a YouTube Widget in WordPress – Show your latest videos in your sidebar, footer, or any widget-ready area.

We hope this article helped you learn how to easily start a successful YouTube channel for your business. You may also want to see our list of other popular online business ideas or learn how to create and sell online courses to generate passive income.

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