A Step-by-Step Guide to Your First YouTube Video (7 Steps you can start using now)
The misconception that’s holding you back
“It’s too expensive. I’ll look foolish. I don’t have time. I don’t have the skills.”
Do you ever find yourself thinking any of these?
Its a common misconception that there is a high barrier to entry for starting a YouTube channel. Here’s the truth.
According to a 2024 report, 91% of businesses use video as a marketing tool. Furthermore, 87% of marketers report that video gives them a positive ROI. YouTube isn’t just a “nice-to-have” or optional strategy - its an essential component of your business growth.
Despite what many people might think, getting started with YouTube does not have to be expensive. You won’t look “foolish.” In fact, you’d be surprised just how big of an impact you’ll make (even I was surprised when I first started my YouTube channel. I thought I would be drowning in negative, nasty comments - but the exact opposite was true. My heart filled with warmth at the kind, supportive, and amazing comments I got from my viewers.) And you don’t need a degree in film production or 10 years of experience video editing to start your YouTube channel.
In this blog, I am going to further debunk the myth that YouTube is impossible to begin if you are not a traditional creative, filmmaker, “influencer” or video editor. I’m going to share a 7 Step plan that you can implement immediately to create your very first YouTube video. I wish I had a plan like this when I first started my YouTube channel, so I’m super excited to share a few nuggets of wisdom with you and hope you find it helpful!
Alright, let’s dive right in! :)
Step 1: The Plan (Before You Hit Record)
Here’s what I want you to do before you hit record. Before you even write a script.
Take a moment to ask yourself these questions:
Who is this video for?
What do I want the viewer to get out of watching this video?
WHY am I making this video?
Answer these questions as honestly and openly as you can. Lets walk through an example together. Let’s say I’m a consultant. I help young moms navigate running a business while managing motherhood and family duties. I’ve decided to start a YouTube channel to provide more resources and hopefully increase awareness about the work I do. I want to make a video on how to take client meetings while working at home with little ones. I’ll go ahead and answer the three questions above with this creator profile in mind.
Who is this video for? My target audience is mom entrepreneurs aka “mompreneurs” as I like to call them. Moms who run an online business (or even an in person one) while parenting their children full time. Moms who are interested in learning more about juggling the busy entrepreneur workload with all the responsibilities of being a parent.
What do I want the viewer to get out of watching this video? I want the viewer to get tangible strategies for taking client meetings while working at home with children.
Why am I making this video? Because my mission is to help other mompreneurs like myself develop creative ways to work and parent. I wish I had resources like this when I was starting my business and navigating motherhood so I am excited to pay it forward!
Here’s another framework I find helpful when developing a video topic.
Problem + Solution = Video Idea
If you are still struggling to come up with a video idea try stepping into the shoes of your target audience. Think about the problems or pain points they might be experiencing. Then, think about how YOU can solve their problem. Discussing the problem, then sharing your solution makes for an excellent video framework. You can do this for one, or multiple problems per video.
Here are a few prompting questions you can use when brainstorming your video idea:
What is a problem or pain point my target audience commonly faces?
What is the solution to their problem?
How does my product or service provide a solution to their problem?
If you are feeling writers block or struggling to develop video ideas. I often find it helpful to take a break and do something else - go on a walk, listen to some music, or browse through some other Youtube videos in your field to get some inspiration. Give yourself a 5-10 minute break. Then, sit back down. Open up your laptop or grab that pen and paper - whatever works best for you! Set a timer for 5 minutes and just allow yourself to brain dump. Write down all the ideas that come to your mind and don’t stop. No idea is a bad idea here, this is just a brainstorm and you don’t have to marry any idea just yet. Then after your brainstorm, put a star next to your top 5 favorite ideas, and choose one from there to start with! If you want to learn more about developing your YouTube video idea, check out my YouTube video here. And check out my blog, to help you Never Run Out of YouTube Ideas.
Once you’ve chosen your video idea, and thought about the WHY behind it, the next step isn’t to dive into filming just yet.
Before filming I (and clients have worked with) have found it incredibly helpful to script the video before hand. You can either write an entire script, or an outline. Regardless of whether you are a travel vlogger, a food vlogger, or a mompreneur, I think its helpful to take some time and to consolidate your thoughts on paper before hitting record. In fact, I’ve written an entire blog on scripting here if you’d like more info on this topic. You can also check out my YouTube video, To Script or Not to Script.
Essentially, writing a script allows you to plan out a captivating hook that will help reel your audience in. It will also give you an opportunity to research the topic and add more authority to your video. When it comes to using your script you have a few options.
You could write out your entire script and then jot down some bullet points to use when filming.
You can use a teleprompter and read your script as you film.
You can read a line from your script, memorize it, then say it to the camera and repeat. You can then cut out all the parts where you aren’t speaking to the camera in the editing phase.
You can choose not to write out an entire script, and simply write an outline with some talking points to help keep your video focused.
Feel free to explore different scripting methods to figure out what works best for you! Every content creator is different - and the method you choose may depend on your level of experience or comfort with filming and public speaking. Regardless, one thing I know for sure is that you’ll get better and feel more confident with practice. You may even catch yourself going off script, and find that those candid, raw moments are the most valuable parts of your video! The magic of editing means you can pick and choose what you showcase to the world, so its okay to make mistakes, re-film bits, and try new methods!
By now you’ve learned how to develop your video idea, validate it, and prepare a script or outline. The next step is to get your gear ready so you can finally begin filming!
Step 2: The Gear & Setup (Keeping it Simple)
A 2023 study by Verizon found that viewers are far more likely to stop watching a video because of bad audio than because of low quality video. Poor audio is a major source of viewer frustration.
Its common to think that starting a YouTube channel requires fancy film equipment and editing software. That’s far from the truth.
You can start a YouTube channel with your smart phone, a microphone, a window for light, a quiet room, FREE editing software, and free music & stock footage.
You can also start your YouTube channel with an expensive camera, an expensive microphone, lighting, and paid, professional editing software, and a paid subscription to music and stock footage.
Its entirely up to you and your budget!
However, its important to ensure that you don’t skimp out on the audio quality. Purchasing a microphone can go a long way! For example, we use the Rode VideoMicro which is a high quality on camera microphone that is compact. This microphone is great for vlogging and creating YouTube content. We also use the fluffy microphone cover (called a dead cat), to minimize wind noise while filming outside.
Check out my Ultimate Pre-filming Checklist on YouTube to learn more about how to prepare for filming day!
Step 3: The Filming (Lights, Camera, Action!)
So you’ve come up with your video idea, written down your script, purchased that high quality microphone and set up your filming station. Everything is ready, and all you need to do is press record and begin filming.
But you’re feeling incredibly nervous because this is your first time and you’ve never filmed a YouTube video before. What if its terrible? What if it gets no views? What’s the point?
If you’re feeling nervous to begin filming, here’s my advice.
First, take a nice, deep breath. You got this!
Every major YouTuber with 100s of thousands of millions of subscribers all started somewhere. They started with zero. They started with their first video. If they can do it, so can you!
Building a YouTube following of thousands or millions of followers does not happen over night. It takes time, and dedication. Its a marathon and not a sprint.
Those who win at YouTube are willing to play the game for the long run. They are willing to sit down, and press record and speak into the camera even if their video gets only 10 or 100 views. Even if their subscriber count is less than 100.
In fact, if you’re feeling a bit nervous about filming your first YouTube video, you could even use that to your advantage! Now don’t take this the wrong way but, you could say, well my channel is small, its probably not going to get seen by millions of people, so the stakes of this video are relatively low and I should just go for it. The goal here isn’t to make yourself feel bad about the low reach of your channel, its to cut yourself some slack and leverage the infancy of your channel in a helpful way.
In this video I share 10 tips to help you boost camera confidence.
How long should your first video be?
We encourage our clients to aim to keep their videos around 10-14 minutes. When your YouTube channel starts to get monetized, ads will be played every 8 minutes so its a good idea to keep your YouTube videos at least 8 minutes if possible. The most popular YouTube videos on the Home page are often between 14-17 minutes.
Long Form YouTube videos provide an opportunity for your audience (your ideal client or customer) to get to know you. So, longer is better.
If you want to create short form content (60 seconds or less) exploring a platform like YouTube shorts, Instagram Reels, or TikTok is a great way to go.
Alright so are you feeling ready to film?
Now its time to press record and let yourself shine!
Just be yourself! Remember, your followers will watch your content because YOU are in it. Pour your heart and soul into the content you create and your followers will love it. The key is to be authentic and to stay true to yourself. You got this! Now go get to filming and have fun with it. :)
Step 4: The Edit (The Magic)
Amazing job on filming your video! The next step is to get to editing. This is where you can add your creative flair and magic touch to cut out any pauses, and choose your best clips.
You have a few options when it comes to editing software. If you are just starting out and want a simple, basic editing software to begin with you could start with using iMovie. iMovie is quite easy to learn, however its simplicity is a tradeoff for more sophisticated editing techniques. Its a great tool for getting started, in fact its the software I used when first starting out with video editing!
If you are looking for more advanced editing software (that isn’t as complicated as you may think) but will give you more nuanced options when it comes to editing, you may consider trying the Adobe Creative suite. This is what I currently use.
Adobe Premiere Pro is a professional video editing software, used by major media companies and film production teams. Its really cool to think that you could be using the same software the pros use in your YouTube videos!
Its also great to note that if you are a student, you can get a student discount - we used this while we were students and it was really helpful in making the price a bit more affordable!
How would I recommend learning it? Well there are a few ways you can learn the Adobe Creative Suite.
You could take a course at a college class. I took a course on Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro and I found this very helpful.
You could take an online course.
You could learn by watching free tutorials on YouTube.
You can download it and just start playing around!
Remember that although Adobe Premiere Pro may look intimidating at first. The key is to just keep practicing. The benefit to learning a sophisticated software like Adobe Premiere Pro means you can make all the nuanced edits you would like!
So go for it, and try editing!
Step 5: The Upload (Getting it Seen)
Now that you’ve put all this effort into creating your video, how can you make sure it gets seen?
One of the first things a viewer sees isn’t actually your video. Its your thumbnail!
Creating a captivating thumbnail that will catch your readers attention is a crucial part of getting your video seen.
What are some characteristics of a solid thumbnail?
Use a high quality, clear image. An image of a person showing a strong emotion works really well. Some strong emotions might include surprise or shock, excitement or joy, curiosity or confusion. Here’s a pro tip: ensure the face is well-lit and makes eye contact with the viewer for best results.
Avoid busy and distracting backgrounds. A solid color like black or white, a gradient or a blurred out photo often works best.
Keep the text short and sweet. Use 3-5 powerful, bold words. Words like Secret, Warning, Mistakes, Proof create a sense of urgency and intrigue.
Once you’ve crafted your thumbnail go ahead and upload your video to YouTube!
You will also want to include a catchy title, a description and YouTube chapters. YouTube chapters will section off your video so the viewer can skip through to the parts that are most relevant to them. These are great especially for longer videos or podcasts!
Step 6: The Conclusion (The Push)
What is the final call to action for your viewer? What is the next step you want them to take? Do you want your viewers to watch another video, read a blog, download a worksheet, sign up for your newsletter or schedule a free strategy call to you?
Think of your call to action and be sure to incorporate this in your video and include a link in your description!
Keep your audience engaged and invite them to connect with you in some way or another.
Step 7: Celebrate Your Win & Prep For The Next Video!
Congrats! You’ve now finished your very first YouTube video. Amazing job - I am so proud of you!
The next step is to apply these techniques to create your next video. Rinse and repeat and keep up the great work.
Remember, its totally normal if your very first video doesn’t get thousands of views! We all start somewhere. Just keep at it, don’t give up and you’ll get there. :)
