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How to Start a Successful YouTube Gaming Channel

If you have a passion for gaming and want to share that passion with others, starting your own YouTube channel could be a great idea. That being said, you’ve got to go about creating, building and maintaining your channel the right way if you desire to see solid results from your efforts. Here are a few tips for making the most of your YouTube gaming channel:

Start Off With a Plan

While you might not see a YouTube channel as a business, like Bobby Kotick has with Blizzard, that doesn’t mean you don’t need to have a solid plan like you would when starting your own company. Decide whether your channel will be a hobby or something you want to make a bit of extra income from. Figure out how often you’ll upload videos, if there’s a specific game genre you’ll feature on your channel and how you’ll spread the word about your channel, which might mean setting up a Twitter or Facebook account in addition to a YouTube channel.

 

Pay Attention to What Other Successful YouTube Gamers Are Doing

Before kicking off your own YouTube channel, take a moment to see what makes the top YouTube gaming channels so successful. Do these YouTubers have a specific format or platform that seems to resonate with viewers? Is it their personality that keeps people coming back? Do they do more than play games on their channel? No matter what the appeal might be, see if you can model it on your own channel.

As you’re taking note of what popular YouTube gamers get right, pay attention to what they get wrong as well. Scour the internet to see if these individuals have been involved in scandals and why. It’s always better to learn from the mistakes of others rather than make those mistakes yourself and learn a lesson the hard way.

 

Make Connecting and Interacting With Your Viewers a Top Priority

Your YouTube channel won’t amount to much if you’re unable to capture and keep the interest of your audience. Make it a priority to connect with your audience and interact with them. This is as easy as inviting your viewers to leave comments or share their thoughts on the games you play. You can also ask your viewers if there are any games, in particular, they’d like to see you play. And when your viewers leave comments, be sure you respond to them. Should you ever find yourself so busy that you aren’t able to answer questions or interact with your viewers, tell them why and make an honest effort to do better in the future. Know there’s a chance your channel might attract online trolls who leave nothing but criticisms and hateful as well as hurtful comments. Don’t hesitate to block these individuals as soon as they crop up, and under no circumstances should you interact with them.

 

Create a Recording Schedule

To remain as consistent as possible, and to make recording for your gaming channel second nature, it’s a good idea to create a recording schedule. Not only is this easier for you, it’s easier for your audience as well because they know for a fact when they can expect new material from you. As you’re creating your schedule, be sure to account for the time it takes to edit and upload videos. If you anticipate any hiccups in your schedule make sure you communicate with your audience so they know what’s up.

 

Create Links to Your Channel

Don’t just rely on YouTube and Google search engines to let people know about your gaming channel. Take out some time to share links to your videos on your social media pages, gaming blogs, gaming websites and magazines; you never know how someone might manage to stumble on your channel and stick around to explore more of your material. You can also promote other gaming channels you like and want to support. Rather than see other YouTube gamers as competition, consider them to be your friends. After all, there’s plenty of room for everyone, and there’s no reason viewers can’t subscribe to multiple gaming channels. Other gamers can help you build your audience just as much as you can help them build theirs.

 

Create a Brand Graphic

What leading company today doesn’t have some kind of branding associated with it? None. To make it easier for your audience to associate you with your videos, create a unique graphic you attach to every video. Create a graphic you feel not only represents you, but your channel as well. Once you decide on this graphic, be sure it appears at the beginning of every video and that you add it as a watermark that appears unobtrusively in the corner of your videos.

 

Creating and building a successful YouTube gaming channel requires patience, effort and a solid strategy. Keep sight of your goal, and remember to have as much fun as possible.

 

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