Starting a YouTube channel was one of the most intimidating things I have ever done thus far in my 22 years of living. I started with this blog to get used to putting myself out into the world without putting my face out. I shared many tips, tricks, and emotions I had starting in 2021 and finally decided to start a YouTube channel in 2022, almost a year after starting Lily-Anne’s Way. Here are 5 things I learned in my one year of growing my YouTube channel, even if it is only 50 subscribers.
5 things I learned in my one year of growing my YouTube channel with only 50 Subscribers
1. Getting to 100 subscribers is not easy. Neither was 50 subscribers.
My goal was to reach 100 subscribers by August 2022 and by August 2022, I still only had 16 subscribers. Yes, my goal was 100 and I only had 16. This really took a toll on my self-confidence because this lack of 100 subscribers made me feel worthless and unworthy of the platform. Was it my editing skills? Was it my content? Was it me? I can tell you right now that it’s all three and more.
2. I have to do more than just post 10-minute-long YouTube videos.
For a whole year, I was filming myself, editing it, uploading it, and hoping it would be my first viral video (and by viral I just mean a hundred views within the first 24 hours, don’t judge me lol). Of course, hence my only having 16 subscribers by August, I was underestimating how much more work I had to do.
I started gaining more subscribers when I learned how to film and upload YouTube shorts. My first one was when I went to Eurasian Bistro with Jamie and my short got 2.1K views. I gained 2 subscribers after that Short. AMAZING.
A few weeks later, I uploaded 2 more shorts and I hit 24 subscribers. These numbers may seem very small to you compared to the big-name YouTubers out there but to me, this was a big deal. I was finally seeing growth. Here I am with almost 10 shorts uploaded, with 50 subscribers.
3. I need to get over my fear of what other people think.
I need to advertise my channel and OWN IT. This is an add-on to point #2 but I think it’s a big enough topic to have its own section. I am still at the stage where I am scared to admit to my friends and family that I have a YouTube channel. There’s this feeling of potentially getting judged and made fun of.
“Oh, you want to be a YouTuber now? Your content isn’t even that good.” NO ONE HAS TOLD ME THESE THINGS (yet). These are 100% the paranoid thoughts I have constantly with every video I put out.
So far, I have told my mom and some friends from social media. Among those people, only my mom and Jamie seem to have some interest in my channel and what I do with it. Everyone else just sees it, moves on, and doesn’t care.
I’m pretty sure 95% of the people I share my video with, that know me in real life, don’t watch my videos. This is a bummer but it’s all the more reason to just get over my fear of judgment and advertise my video anyway. There is still a chance that one of the people I share my video with will click on the link and find enjoyment in my content.
4. Unless I plan on teaching my audience anything, my channel is ONLY for me.
Now that I’ve hammered in my brain that no one cares what I do with my life and getting fun of wouldn’t be so bad after all, I can start thinking about growing my channel the way I want and posting the content that makes me the happiest.
Sure, I still want to make it interesting with music, zooms, and cuts, but the main focus now is “Would future me watch this? If not, then why would anyone else?” When I put myself first, it makes it easier for me to make my channel both personalized for me and also naturally become tailored to my audience.
5. The internet wasn’t lying when it said consistency is the key.
I was doing very well uploading once a week for the first few months. Then, I continued to get almost no views except for the 3 views from Jamie and me, two of which were mine from two different devices. It was very unmotivating and I started to lose the creative mind of coming up with YouTube videos.
Eventually, I started skipping a week and posting once every two weeks and then back to once a week. I wasn’t consistent. Because I was enabling myself to take breaks and give myself time to think, I started losing the habit of putting work towards my channel. Growing my YouTube channel was no longer a priority.
The times I got back into it and finally put a new video out, I felt like I was back to square one again, trying to find my audience and still only getting the same 3 views. Had I kept going and not missed a week at all, I feel like I would’ve prioritized my channel more and MAYBE even gotten to 50 subscribers sooner.
Of course, it’s hard to see if consistency is really worth it when I only have 50 subscribers.
6. BONUS: I have so many memories to look back on and I have no regrets about starting this channel. (50 subscribers isn’t everything).
My favorite video I’ve posted is my Orlando Vlog I filmed with Jamie. I also have videos of when I went to baseball games, hockey games, and other trips. These aren’t just memories anymore. They’re all tangible and that’s actually one of the reasons I started my YouTube channel in the first place.
If you want to feel some cringe, you can watch the first YouTube video I ever uploaded. It’s under 3 minutes but I am very sure you’ll click off within the first 45 seconds. It’s pretty bad. I can’t even watch it back myself.
All I know is that my YouTube channel makes me feel proud and is a constant reminder of all the things I’ve accomplished or done over the last year. No regrets at all. (Well maybe some editing choices >_<)
Ending Note
I learned so many things when I started this YouTube channel and I am sure there are more than what I’ve listed in this post. These are just the ones that come to mind the most.
Having only 50 subscribers really undermines the amount of work I actually put into my channel but it also shows how much work I DIDN’T DO to grow my channel. So which is it? Did I do a lot of work with very little return? Or did I not do enough and I’m whining?
I guess I’ll find out next year when I have another yearly YouTube channel update. I sure hope I at least get to 100 by February 2024. However again, the goal is in August. By August 2023, I will most certainly have 100 subscribers. I got this.
While I have you here, would you mind stopping by my channel and showing a little support? *wink wink*
Thank you so much for sticking around. Hopefully, I was able to give you an insight into what it was like to be on YouTube for a year and only get 50 subscribers. I plan to continue working on my channel and maybe I’ll be at 100 subscribers in no time. Thank you so much for reading. Be sure to head over to my channel, and read other past blog posts on Lily-Anne’s Way or not. Have a great day!
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