Frequently asked questions about YouTube are part of my job. No matter if they come up in one-to-one consultation or in YouTube webinars. They seem to be the same questions that are on most peoples mind.
Here’s the thing: being on YouTube as a creator can be much different than being on YouTube as a musician or band. Why?
Because creators are oftentimes doing YouTube as a fulltime job. Also, a lot of YouTubers actually have a background in PR or communications.
On the other hand side, musicians use YouTube mainly for promoting their music and hence showing music videos. This is a very different content type then most YouTubers produce.
However, this doesn’t mean that musicians can’t be successful on YouTube the same way full-time creators are. In order to help you as a musician to navigate YouTube with more ease I have compiled here some FAQ I get asked most often.
Perhaps you can find yourself in those questions and they’ll give you answers.
Frequently Asked Questions About YouTube
What video ideas work beside the normal music video?
There are many alternative video ideas you can use in order to amp up your YouTube channel.
Lyric Video: Display your brilliant lyrics in an attractive way. This can help promote a new single before you want to release the official music video.
Also, it can help your fans learn the lyrics before the single is out. Perhaps you have a fanbase in an area that doesn’t speak the language you are singing in as a mother language.
For example, let’s say you sing in English but you have a lot of Spanish fans, producing a lyric video can help everyone to get along with the message of your music.
Tutorial Video: Use Spotify for Artist and identify your best performing song. Now go and make a tutorial about this song!
You can teach your fans how to play the song on guitar or on drums, for example. Also, if you are singing in a special way you can create a kind of karaoke sing-along video for your fans to dabble in.
Anything that connects you with your fans is amazing!
Favourite albums: Are you still collecting vinyl? Take your favourite albums and talk about them. How did they influence your music?
What track get’s you every time? When do you like to listen to those albums? Why do you have especially this album on vinyl?
Talking about your musical influences can help your fans to get to know you better without oversharing private information. If you are not at all comfortable talking about your real gems you can always simply pick an album from the charts and talk about this.
Frequently asked questions: How often should I upload new videos?
The recommended upload frequency is around two times per week. However, consistency is even more important.
If you don’t manage to upload two videos a week, find a frequency that works for you and stick to it. YouTube is powered by an algorithm that likes to be fed regularly.
One very important ranking factor in the YouTube algorithm is how fresh and new your content is. The more often you upload something the fresher the content is.
However, if you let a video stand alone on the channel for too long it can become outdated in the view of YouTube. The goal of YouTube is to always serve the most entertaining content to a search query.
Make sure you have something new and exciting to offer every time a fan re-visits your YouTube channel.
I’m very self-conscious and don’t feel very comfortable in front of a camera. How can I overcome this in order to make the most out of my YouTube channel?
It is really common not to feel at ease when being in front of a camera. The least people are born with a natural talent for the spotlight.
Also, as a musician, your first goal is surely to write and play amazing music. Not wanting the be the centre of attention is very normal for musicians.
What is more, a lot of musicians are more on the shy side. The old cliche of the stage-struck rockstar who loves to take a bath in peoples attention is really not the norm.
By all means, rock music isn’t the only genre of popular music. For one thing, working on your self-esteem in order to get better at YouTube can only help you enlarge.
You can’t become self-confident in only one area. The brilliant thing about it is that once you start working on it, you will notice your whole life will be affected by it.
This is crazy, especially women and female-identifying musicians oftentimes struggle with self-esteem. Breaking through the cycle of cheapening yourself is vital, not just for YouTube!
There you have it. 3 of the most frequently asked questions about YouTube. At the end of the day, you simply need to try out what sort of video content feels good for you. Also, make sure the videos are fun to produce!