Would you like to start a Vlog?

By Rene Santana on October 7, 2019

The first couple of videos I ever uploaded onto YouTube were of me playing Rock Band and Guitar Hero. I’ve deleted those videos since, so I’m not an expert on making a vlog. But I blog about content people would like to read. And that’s precisely what vloggers do. They create videos for people’s enjoyment.

Shooting video, though, is much more work than sitting at a computer to type out a blog post. While I may have done loads of research and deeply studied a topic, filming is all that plus the fine-tuning of editing, acting, and of course, shooting. Neither medium is better. But just whatever you prefer to use to get your message and story across. I love watching videos, but deep down, I just want to write every moment of my waking days.

Image by Katzenfee50 from Pixabay

So, how about it.? Let’s start with the good stuff. The best thing about starting a vlog in 2019 is that all really need all that you probably have. A smartphone, computer, and your colorful self.

Of course, if you’re filming higher quality videos, you’ll need to chunk out more cash. But what’s really going to matter in the end is your vlog’s content. If you don’t know what to make your vlog about, then I’d recommend holding off on pushing REC until you sit down and figure out your goals. I know, that’s the hardest part, but you’ll be lost wondering why no one clicks on your videos. Think about it this way, tech vloggers film tech, game vloggers film games, music vloggers film music, and so on. Do want you like, and make them the focus of your videos. And if you’re worrying someone has already done it, stop. I can guarantee that if you stay true to your real self, your content will shine bright because of it. Unless you go out and start making that content, I’m sure someone else will go and do it.

Making it past your self-doubt is the first hill. The next hardest thing you’ll face when vlogging is dealing with the trolls that’ll plague your comment section. A useful thing to do is stop it at its roots and working on deleting as many of these root comments as possible. First of all, nobody needs straight negativity, especially when starting out. Even if you think merely ignoring it will help, it won’t. Leaving those negative comments on your video will open the door for other trolls to mosey on in. As Travis MCP mentions in his video, The Tech Community is DESTROYING itself, all it takes for the troll train to gain momentum is just one trollish comment.

However, only being positive with all your content won’t help you in the long run. There needs to be a balance between negativity and positivity. Negative content, such as bashing on the newest smartphone, will get you more views than praising it. It’s backwards, but nonetheless true.

Yet you don’t have to let the negativity determine your attitude in general. For whatever reason, we humans love to watch the world burn. So until everyone starts to realize that we’re not doing anyone a favor sitting back and letting things go to heck, we have to make small steps to change our mindset. Bringing this back to the point, if you want to get your content out to a bigger audience, You may have to join the dark side and use a bit of negativity to get attention to your videos. However you do it, though, will be up to you. Just make sure you don’t lose your humanity in the process.

Harsh reality aside, you’ll need to focus on making content that people want, similar to how you would write a blog post that someone can benefit from. It’s nice to make videos and write about things you dearly love, but unless there’s something in for everyone else, you’re not going to get very many views doing things only you like.

Once you’ve narrowed your content, slain some trolls, and return into the light, you may want to take a small break. You may be able to rest only for a hot second, though, as you’ll need to stay updated on the platform’s algorithm. As tedious as it sounds, if you slack with following the algorithm, it’ll either make your video soar through the trending page or plummet into the infinite void of YouTube limbo.

Truth be told, you’ll have been grinding for about a year or so before you get some traction to with you vlog. While you could go viral on your first few videos, you still need to be accountable for your future content if you want to continue generating more views. As Roberto Blake puts it in his video BEFORE YOU START YOUTUBE… WATCH THIS VIDEO!, you need to put your ego aside and be consistent with your content.

A few last tidbits, as vlogging ain’t no easy thing. If your video channel starts to get big, you’ll need to figure out a way to delegate your work to help keep content flowing. Even if your channel hasn’t reached monumental status, it’s still not a bad idea to have a buddy or two to help out with video editing or setting up camera equipment while shooting in public. Two is always better than one.

If you feel like this was overwhelming to get through, it’s all the reality of being a vlogger. Even if it’s on a different platform, it still takes grinding day in and day out to make sustainable content. As I look at it, you’ll be cutting your teeth as well as biting the bullet, all while killing your darlings. This hustle is real. Never forget it.

But most importantly, just like with any fire and brimstone hustle, you need to take care of yourself. Your mental health is what will keep you fighting to the end. Know your worth, and connect with people who can pour into and likewise. From her report of the pressures facing YouTubers, Lindsay Dodgson points out how the internet never rests for nobody,

Having an online career such as YouTube means you get to see your reward all the time — be it the ability to reach others, the comments you get, or the views you rack up. But that also means you are immediately aware if you aren’t succeeding.

Now that you know the truth, I highly encourage you to go out and just got for it. Because until you go out and start this whole vlogging journey, you won’t know if you meant this work. Perhaps you have a story that needs to be heard or content that you feel people could benefit from. Either way, I know you have something awesome to say, so what are you waiting for?

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Get Top Stories Delivered Weekly

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format