Creating a YouTube Channel for your company is a hassle-free and speedy process that comes with no cost. Follow these easy steps to get started:
1. Create a Google account (because Google owns YouTube).
- To ensure privacy and easy management of your business YouTube account (and other Google products), it’s recommended to create a separate Google account dedicated solely to your business. This way, your personal emails and information remain safe from unauthorized access.
- While it’s possible to manage a business YouTube channel using your personal Google account and keep your Gmail private through permission settings, having separate personal and business Google accounts is similar to having separate personal and business checking accounts – it helps keep things organized and distinct.
- Creating a specialized Google account for your business is a simple process. Start by searching ‘create a Google account’ on Google and click on the relevant link. You’ll be directed to a page resembling the following:
- To illustrate, I have generated a Google account with the email address. However, if your business already possesses a designated Google account, there’s no need to establish a new one. You can simply proceed to step #2.
2. Create your YouTube channel.
- After logging in to your dedicated Google account for your business, head over to YouTube.com. Find the profile/avatar icon located at the top right corner of the page and click on it. Next, choose the “My Channel” option from the drop-down menu, as illustrated below:
- Upon reaching this page, locate and click on the “Use a business or other name” option:
- On this page, input the name of your business or brand and then click on the “Create” button. Keep in mind that you can modify your YouTube channel’s name later if necessary. As an example, I have opted for the straightforward approach of using “Mark Brinker” instead of my business’s full name, which is “Mark Brinker & Associates
- You’ll then see this page. Click “Customize Channel”:
3. Customize your YouTube channel.
There are 3 things to customize:
Channel icon (aka “profile image”).
The channel icon typically features your company logo or headshot if you are the face of your business. The ideal dimensions for the image used as your channel icon are 800 x 800 px. To upload your channel icon, hover over the brown channel icon placeholder and click on the small pencil icon that appears.
PRO TIP: Opt for an image that remains visually appealing when reduced in size, as it will appear small on a YouTube watch page (below the video, to the left, alongside your YouTube channel name). Keep in mind that the channel icon is even smaller on mobile devices, and YouTube applies a circle crop on the icon, leading to the edges being removed.
Channel art.
The large rectangular space at the top of your YouTube channel is equivalent to the cover photo, commonly known as the “banner image” on Facebook and Twitter pages. While your YouTube channel can function without channel art, adding a picture can enhance its visual appeal, as opposed to the plain and dull default image. For branding purposes, consider using an image that accurately represents your company’s image and conveys to viewers that they’re in the right place. It is recommended that you use channel art with dimensions of 2560 x 1440 px.
To upload channel art, click on the blue “Add channel art” button.
PRO TIP: Opt for a simple image when designing your channel art, as YouTube automatically crops the image on mobile devices. Don’t worry too much about your channel art at this stage, as you can always modify it later. The primary objective for today is to establish your YouTube channel, give it a respectable look, and start utilizing it right away. If you don’t have a high-quality image on hand, consider uploading a solid color or a simple color gradient image for now. It’s sufficient to begin.
About section.
Keep your channel description brief and to the point, highlighting your identity and professional expertise. Incorporate a few relevant keywords to enhance your searchability on YouTube. Additionally, don’t forget to mention your business website, email address, and other contact details so that interested parties can get in touch with you. Here’s an example of how to format your description:
4. Adding managers to your YouTube channel.
If you have assistants aiding you in managing your YouTube channel, follow these steps to add them as managers:
- Start by clicking on your profile/avatar in the top right corner, and then choose “Settings” from the drop-down menu, as depicted below:
- You’ll then see this page. Click “add or remove managers”:
- Click the “manage permissions” button:
- In the dialog box that appears, click on the icon in the top-right corner, and input the email addresses of the individuals you want to invite to manage your YouTube channel:
Customizing your YouTube settings can be done at a later date if desired, but for now, your channel is ready to be launched!
How A YouTube Channel Helps Your Business
Even if video promotion isn’t currently a big part of your business strategy, YouTube can serve as a cost-effective solution for hosting your videos on your website. This is essential because video files tend to be large and can quickly use up your website’s bandwidth and server resources. Standard web servers are not built to handle video files, so hosting videos on your website may result in choppy playback and poor image quality. With YouTube, you can bypass these issues and ensure that your videos play smoothly, even on slower internet connections.
Uploading your videos to your YouTube channel and streaming them onto your website is a great solution to the problem of large video files and limited server resources. By doing so, your website will benefit from YouTube’s advanced video server technology, ensuring smooth playback on all devices and screen sizes. Additionally, YouTube takes care of encoding your videos properly. This makes video hosting on YouTube an excellent option for businesses looking for fast and reliable video hosting for their website. Some examples of how businesses are using YouTube-hosted videos on their websites include:
Product videos.
By using YouTube as a hosting platform, our client EZ-Screen.com leverages the expertise of a videographer to create high-quality product videos. Once the videos are complete, EZ-Screen uploads them to their YouTube channel, which we then seamlessly integrate into their company website. This approach enables EZ-Screen.com to showcase their products with professional videos while ensuring fast, reliable video playback without overwhelming their web server resources.
Video testimonials.
Are you looking for ways to improve your business? Adding video testimonials can be a great way to do so! Even if you don’t have a professional camera crew, you can still create high-quality testimonials using just your smartphone. One of our clients displays video testimonials on their website, showcasing their satisfied customers and their experiences. By doing so, they’re able to build trust with potential customers and increase their credibility.
Animated/Motion backgrounds.
Tony Polecastro, a renowned guitar player and instructor, has a stunning website that showcases his talent and teachings. Using a captivating video effect on the homepage, TonyPolecastro.com features a YouTube video of multiple guitar players strumming in the background. This technique adds a unique touch to the website’s design and is an excellent example of how YouTube videos can enhance the overall user experience.
Conclusion
Did you know that video content made up 73% of website traffic in 2016? And that number is expected to rise to 82% by 2022, according to Cisco. With advances in video technology, it’s becoming easier and more affordable to create compelling video content. If you’re not already using video in your marketing strategy, it’s worth considering. And if you want to get started quickly, setting up a YouTube channel for your business is a great first step.
