YouTube is growing, with a world full of population switching to digital content like Netflix, Prime and switching off their TV. For performing artists, YouTube is becoming a place to reach thousands of audiences at one go. An evolution started when renowned institutions like Sri Devi Nrityalaya took up their YouTube channel and busted to the tradition spaces of stage performances to digital content. Now there are hundreds of dance channels, videos, tutorials and much more than a dancer can access, share, learn and make money out of these spaces. YouTube becomes the one-stop space for creativity and ideas. Having said that, as we grow on with technology helping our act sometimes we tend to overuse it. While you get a world-class content, we somewhat cannot stand out of the others. However, not anymore. Here are few do’s and don’ts a dancer should keep in mind to make their channel stand out and create an impact which matters.
Have a unique idea for your YouTube channel
Content is the key, to make a difference we always need to understand that we need to bring in a unique idea into the picture. YouTube is all about giving that idea a space to propagate. May you love teaching and start some tutorial, may you like to set up a portfolio of your performances, may you like to talk about dance make-up or costumes first we need to define that idea and then craft the channel as per our needs.
Giving a channel name and channel art
The first thing a person finds after landing up into your channel is the channel name. set up a unique channel name with a logo of it. If it’s an institution add the website to your description. Create a channel art with an HD image and call out your idea and purpose in the description. Add the location and some basic information so that people can connect and relate to your channel.
Upload high definition videos only
Out of every 100 YouTube channels, only 10 to 15 have the best video quality and those are the ones which stand out. As the content we are sharing is for all types of devices we need to make sure that the video quality is at its best. Poor lighting, highly edited content, poor audio and vertically non-symmetric videos are some of the reason why a potential viewer will switch the video in its first 2 minutes. Its always required to edit the video before uploading it on YouTube.
Use Thumbnails for all the videos
Thumbnails are the first magnets which will make your viewers land up onto your video. YouTube automatically creates a thumbnail however the chances are that they are distorted and uneven. Also using a high clarity image as a thumbnail with editing the title and other details on the video will make it more interesting.
Title Your Videos with Search Engines and Humans in Mind
The same SEO techniques that you’re using on your web pages apply to your video titles. Include a keyword, but make sure the title is enticing to a human. Also, the first two lines of your video’s description are usually shown on YouTube’s search results. Make those two lines count.
Engage Your Audience Via Comments
Don’t be nameless and faceless. Audiences on YouTube want to connect with their favourite channels. One simple way to do this is to engage in the comments section of your videos. Yes, this can be time-consuming. But anything worth doing is worth doing right.
Ask Viewers to Subscribe to Your Channel Everywhere You Can
At the end of your videos, tell your viewers to subscribe to your channel. One common technique is to create an “end slate” for every one of your videos where you ask viewers to subscribe to your channel and to check out some of your other videos.
Use Annotations and Mark up text
Annotations are the connectors between the viewer and the content. if you are dancing in a regional language it is highly recommended to use annotations to explain the viewer its meaning and make him connect to your content.
Mark up text help people to jump into your other videos which are relatable in your channel in this way we can promote our brand of art.
Use tags and Hashtags in the description
Video description is the best place to tell your views about the backdrop of the video. also, this rich text field can be utilized as a search engine optimizer by using hashtags in this field. Once you add a hashtag you can see them reflecting about the title and this will also make the video accessible on google and other search engines. Tags are the categories which can help you connect with the database of the YouTube roturier. using common tags in the tag section of the video will make your video automatically propagate in the suggestions of the potential audience.
Use the premier option to share high tend video as live and interact with subscribers
YouTube new feature called “Premier” is a way where you can host a recorded video on a set time where the audience can see it instantly, just like “Live” on Facebook where you can respond to your audience on a timely manner.
[adrotate group=”9″]
Use YouTube Creator Studio for enhancement
This is a common situation mostly with classical dancers where we get sudden video calls and pokes (an option provided by Facebook) from people whom we hardly know. Firstly, both are not a tool for networking. One needs to understand that not all time is a right time for taking video calls as it hampers a person’s privacy and poking is one of the wasted features on Facebook which need to be unused.
Create playlists
Just like on other popular media sharing sites like Spotify and iTunes, you can create a “playlist” on YouTube – which is really just a place to store and organize the videos (your own and others’). You can keep playlists private, make them public, or even share them directly with others. Playlists are useful for many different types of users, from an individual collecting music videos for their upcoming performance to dance performance that’s segmenting its YouTube video content by topic.
So, go ahead and follow the above steps and remember, Social media Is just a tool created by humans. We, humans, are machines made up with better technology and it’s our shared responsibility to make a better use of it for a better society.
Check out my previous articles:
Instagram Hacks | Every artist should know!
Facebook Do’s and Don’ts, every artist should know!
and do checkout my YouTube channel too.
[adrotate group=”9″]
