Discover how to get your first 1000 YouTube subscribers in this article, it may seem like a daunting task when starting out, but I’m going to help you through it.
I know how it feels to start and grow, the energy & enthusiasm may be there, so you create your YouTube video and then another one. You wait eagerly, anticipating those likes, subs & comments to start rolling in.
You wait, wait & wait some more, only to hear the sounds of crickets in response to your efforts.
This can be very disheartening & everyone that’s started from scratch knows this feeling. The first 100 or 1000 subscribers can be the most difficult to get & can also be the most important subscribers for a YouTube Channel.
But that’s what we’re covering today, looking at exactly how to get these YouTuber subscribers.
The problem with a new channel is that YouTube hasn’t yet recognized you as being relevant. This means your videos won’t be ranked very easily & you have a real tough time getting viewers to your channel because of this.
Let’s take a look at the 15 best tips on how to get your first 1000 YouTube Subscribers FAST! It doesn’t matter how often you make videos (although more on that later), or what type of videos you create. YouTube has over 2 billion active monthly users, meaning the odds are in your favor to find viewers that can relate and appreciate your videos.
1. Niche down your YouTube Channel.
A lot of the time when people start out on YouTube they create a wide variety of different videos that they think people will like. They try to appeal to everyone, but whilst doing this they alienate the rest of their viewers that aren’t interested in that type of content.
Focus your efforts on a specific audience and create videos that they will like. You can cautiously branch out later!
Look for other channels that create similar content, find keywords & look at what’s popular in your niche & then create focused content for those viewers.
Related: The 20 most popular Niches you can start on YouTube.
2. Upload your videos more consistently.
Subscribers love consistency & structure. They want to know when your next video is going to be published & YouTube’s algorithm is also more favorable to channels that upload regularly & consistently.
Create a video schedule for your channel. Then display this on your channel’s banner & on your About page to let your viewers know exactly when they can expect to see more of your content. Decide on what type of schedule you are capable of delivering & then stick to it.
Some channels upload weekly, bi-weekly, or even daily videos. For channel growth, I’d recommend uploading at least one video per week. If you can create more, great! Let your new visitors & subscribers know when they can expect your next video!
3. Create an attractive & organized YouTube channel.
A lot of the time viewers look at a channel’s main-page to see what type of content they create and to gauge if they are worth subscribing to. This is why you need to create an attractive & organized channel to highlight what your channel is about & to encourage viewers to watch more of your content.
Related: How to set up your YouTube Channel for success!
4. Upload a channel trailer.
A channel trailer is a short video, normally under 2 minutes in length, that automatically plays when new viewers visit your channel. Your trailer should be short and exciting, highlighting what you or your channel is all about, and should end with why they should subscribe to your YouTube channel.
5. Write an interesting About page.
The About page is an often overlooked and forgotten page that can be extremely beneficial to getting potential subscribers.
This is a space where you can sell yourself to potential subscribers by letting them know what they stand to gain by subscribing to your YouTube channel.
Another useful feature to note is that the keywords used on your About page also help your ranking in search results. All the more reason to niche down! 😉
6. Use a YouTube watermark.
Found in your channel settings, YouTube allows you to easily add a watermark to your videos so that viewers can subscribe to your channel with one easy click.
7. Create more clickable thumbnails.
Your thumbnail is normally the first thing people see when they’re looking through search results or YouTube. If your thumbnails don’t catch their attention, they’ll never click on your video & you’ll have lost a potential subscriber.
Your thumbnails should catch potential viewers’ attention by standing out from the competition & creating intrigue or clearly showing what you can expect from watching your video.
Bright, high-quality thumbnails, with large clear text, generally perform the best. Test different thumbnails & look at your competition to see what works & how you can stand out to get your first 1000 YouTube subscribers.
Protip: Use Canva to create engaging and clickable thumbnails easily.
8. Optimize your titles, tags & descriptions using TubeBuddy.
Optimizing your video titles, tags & descriptions is one of the most effective ways of getting more viewers and subscribers through search results. One of the best tools to help you optimize your videos is TubeBuddy. You can install the free browser extension & TubeBuddy will recommend keywords & terms that you can use to help rank your videos higher in search results.
TubeBuddy comes with a number of free features that can help with your channel growth, including detailed video analytics & their video upload checklist.
9. Comment on other YouTubers’ videos.
One of the hardest challenges of starting a YouTube channel is getting people to view your content. A good way of getting more views is to put your channel in front of as many people as possible… In a non-spammy way of course! By commenting on other videos in your niche, you’re increasing the chances of potential viewers clicking on your channel & subscribing.
The most important aspect of commenting on other videos is to provide actual value with your comments. No-one is going to click on someone’s channel if you’re just spamming the comment sections of your competition!
By writing good comments on videos, others will upvote your comment. Meaning it will be seen by more people. After a while, you’ll find yourself with the top-ranking comment on a popular video that can bring in hundreds, or even thousands, of potential subscribers.
P.s. If you’re lucky & you create really good comments; the video creator may even pin yours to the top of the comment section!
10. Share your videos on social media to get your first 1000 YouTube subscribers.
Another place to get your videos in front of other people is to use social media. Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc. These are all social media platforms you can use to try and drive traffic to your YouTube channel.
If you have an existing following on any of these networks, leverage it to get more viewers and subscribers to your YouTube channel.
Even if you haven’t got an existing following, you can use the specific benefits each platform provides. Pinterest, for example, is particularly useful for DIY & make-up channels.
Related: How to create amazing Pins for free using Canva.
11. Respond to your comments.
The best way to create an engaging community is to reply to comments left on your videos. These can be questions, praise, or critic. Don’t let any critique get you down, and look at it as a way to make your videos better. If it’s just plain uncalled for hate, you can either delete the hate comment or if you have a supportive community, they’ll take care of the troll for you.
An active and engaging community means, more of your subscribers will be shown your new videos, and with it, more will like & comment. This then will help your videos get pushed to further potential subscribers!
P.s. The YouTube Studio app makes it easy to reply to comments directly from your smartphone.
12. Create YouTube Playlists.
Playlists are a massively underutilized tool that most creators overlook whilst trying to grow their channels. Not only can you organize groups of videos into a sequence that may make more sense, but playlists also show up in search results!
If you are just starting out and you don’t have much content, you can curate other creators’ content to your playlists for your potential subscribers to enjoy. This is another way to fill up your channel during those first few weeks.
Here are the 3 main reasons why you need to start using YouTube Playlists.
13. Add End screen cards in your videos.
End screen cards are a great call to action for your target audience to either subscribe to your channel or watch another one of your videos. Leave 10-20 seconds at the end of your video for the end screen cards & then don’t forget to add them once your video has been uploaded.
You can find the end screen options in your; Creator Studio -> Content -> Select the specific video.
14. Use YouTube’s free built-in analytics.
YouTube provides a wealth of free analytics built right into the platform. One of the most useful for your channel is the viewer retention graphs. Here you can find out how your videos are doing with your target audience.
Are viewers clicking away? When are they clicking away? Maybe you need to shorten your intro or switch things up in your videos. The longer viewers watch your video the better your videos will perform in search results.
Better performance in search results means more views, which in turn means more subscribers!
15. Translate your Titles & Descriptions. (When applicable)
Another useful feature in your analytics is the ability to see the average percentage of countries and people that speak a particular language, that watch your videos.
You can translate your video title & description into multiple languages in your video. By using multiple languages, your videos can rank for keywords in other languages as well as that of your primary language.
If you can speak multiple languages then you are already one step ahead, otherwise, you can use translation apps like google translate, or hire someone on sites like Fiverr or Upwork.
Translating your titles & descriptions work best if your videos aren’t language-dependent; mainly visual content. For example, travel highlights with music or How-to videos where you show your viewers how to achieve something.
TubeBuddy also has a whole host of useful translation tools in some of their paid plans.
{BONUS TIP} Just ask.
Don’t just assume that people will click on that subscribe button if they’ve liked your video. Don’t be shy to end your video off by inviting your viewers to subscribe for more awesome videos like the one they’ve just watched. You’ve provided the viewer with some form of value, you’re allowed to ask them to subscribe! 😉
How to get your first 1000 YouTube Subscribers FAST! – Summary
- Niche down
- Be Consistent
- Organize your Channel
- Upload a Channel Trailer
- Write your About page
- Use a watermark
- Make better Thumbnails
- Optimize with TubeBuddy
- Comment
- Use Social Media
- Reply to comments
- Use Playlists
- Add End Screen cards
- Check your analytics
- Translate
- Just ask!
As you can see, there’s quite a lot that you can do to speed up the process of reaching 1000 subscribers. Focus on providing your potential subscribers with value, follow these 16 tips & they will come!
If you enjoyed this article, I’d appreciate it if you shared it with someone that may also find it useful. 🙂
Any & all questions, drop them in the comments.
P.s. Looking to start a YouTube Channel on a budget? Then I have the guide for you! Click here to check it out.
P.p.s. Learn everything you need to know about YouTube SEO with my Ultimate YouTube SEO Course… Plus, it’s FREE – Check it out here.
David Woutersen
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Thanks……. You very much…… 😊😊😊😊😊😊
My pleasure 🙂
Hey David, this post was incredible helpful. I almost covered every point, but the tip with the 20 sec time for endscreencards and Tube Buddy I will try.
My name on Youtube is Jenny Amaka. I am from Germany. Thank you!
Guten tag Jenny 😉,
I’m also currently in Germany. Thanks for the kind words 🙂
Best Regards from the Westerwald.
All the ways which are described in this blog are very effective its helpfull for me also all the information is very detailed. very impressive article and everyone want to gain theirs subscribe nowadays.
I appreciate your kind words. 🙂