The Improved YouTube is Here

We are excited to announce an improved YouTube, one you helped us build! The new site design will help you build a bigger, more connected audience by improving new channel discovery, simplifying subscriptions, and keeping your fans plugged in and aware of your new videos no matter where they are. Click here to learn more.
 



So, what does this improved YouTube mean for you as a creator?  

Here are the key changes:

• The subscription Guide is now everywhere, and it showcases your channel activity to your fans
• All the video information and engagement are consolidated below the video player, helping your video take center stage on the viewing page

• We are making it easier to subscribe with enhanced channel recommendations.  

Check out this one-pager for more information.

Your feedback matters

We know change isn’t easy, so we don’t take it lightly. Our experiments show that the new design drives subscriptions and keeps fans better connected to their favorite content.  We’ll be hosting a Google+ Hangout on Air as well as a Reddit IAmA to answer any questions you may have.  Stay tuned for more information.

Let’s keep building the future of video together.  

Alandha Scott, Content Creator Communications Lead, recently watched “ "Written By A Kid - the tale of a paper, panty-clad horse in ‘La Munkya”

YouTube NextUp: Get Collaborating

This is a cross-post from the Official YouTube blog

Alright stop, collaborate and listen.

YouTube has seen some pretty amazing collabs in its time. From exploring the possibility of a hollow earth to raging office warfare, you guys love to partner up and get creative. Collaboration, along with developing your audience and learning production best practices, has helped previous YouTube NextUp program alumni such as FinalCutKing, chescaleigh, TheCraftyGemini, and RatedRR take their channels to the next level.

Since the launch of the first YouTube NextUp program, a competition that we ran to help creators succeed back in 2011, we’ve helped turbocharge the careers of over 215 YouTube creators in 15 different countries. Today we’re re-launching YouTube NextUp for video creators in the United States: we’re looking for passionate, motivated YouTube creators who want to collaborate. To enter? Find another creator you’d like to partner with, and tell us what you’d like to film together.

If you’re selected as one of the top 30 channels, you will receive:

• $3,000 to help you make your video dreams a reality
• $4,000 of production equipment to up-level your skills
• Two one week-long Creator Camps at the brand-new YouTube Space LA in January and March 2013 to film your collaboration and to learn some more tips and tricks of the trade.

You can apply through our program site: applications are due December 27, 2012.

Austin Lau, YouTube Creator Programs Manager, recently watched “Silent Disco”

YouTube Creator Playbook and Creator Hub: fresher, bolder, and live on the web

The new YouTube Creator Playbook, your definitive resource for building an audience on YouTube, is now live, both on the web and available for download. Check it out and bookmark youtube.com/playbook.  

 
Since we released the second edition of the Creator Playbook in February 2012, much has changed in the world of YouTube. This new version provides fresh tips and strategies to help creators grow their audiences. It includes brand new sections to address YouTube’s recent focus on watchtime, such as, how to captivate your audience and how to create the best channel experience for your viewers. The latest edition also highlights new tools like paid promotion, Hangouts on Air, and InVideo programming to help you reach the widest audience possible. And, what’s YouTube without video? On the Creator Playbook site, we’re featuring great new video examples from inspiring creators who are finding creative ways to use YouTube. So go ahead and check it out - share it with other creators. And most of all, let us know what you think so that we can continue to make this the best resource for you! We’ve also completely rebuilt, refreshed, and revamped the YouTube Creator Hub at youtube.com/creators, which is chock full of resources and tools to help you build larger audiences, improve your skills, and make more money. On the new Creator Hub, you’ll be able to:

• Stay up to date on the latest feature announcements with our blog, social media outlets, and new bi-weekly Product Bulletin
• Learn from other creators via video tutorials and find new tools to help you grow your success
• Find new opportunities to join programs like Next Creator

The new Playbook is currently available in English, but will be available in more languages in the next week. We’ll continue to keep both the Creator Playbook and Creator Hubs updated, so keep them bookmarked, and remember to follow us on Google+. Lauren Vilders, Audience Development Coordinator, recently watched “You need to toughen up a bit”

Our November featured On The Rise partner is polcan99!

Congratulations to Tom Antos of polcan99, our featured “On The Rise” partner for this month. His channel is featured on the “Spotlight” section of the YouTube homepage today.

Tom has been a YouTube partner for three years, but has dedicated his entire career to film direction, cinematography, and VFX. His expertise has earned Tom an array of awards as he’s worked on both large productions and small-budget projects including Hollywood features, short films, and music videos. On YouTube, Tom goes one step further, uploading tutorials to share his experience and knowledge with his filmmaking peers. He can help you design great-looking music video shots, entertain you with a Dragon Ball remake action video, or even let you choose your own real-life Angry Birds adventure! No matter what you choose to watch, you’ll be impressed with Tom’s innate talent and his dedication to both entertaining and educating his viewers.



Here are a few words from Tom:

I'm a filmmaker, and I love good entertainment. Doesn't matter if it's a good TV show, film, stage play or a book, I enjoy it all. Now I try to create entertainment on the internet... more specifically on YouTube, mainly because of their great tools. I now have 2 channels; Polcan99 is where I put up my action and VFX filled films along with filmmaking tutorials... and GalgaTV is where I put up comedy videos. I feel very fortunate to be able to entertain others for a living, and I'm thankful for being chosen by YouTube as the November "On The Rise" Partner. If you like what you see on any of my channels then please subscribe! 

If you’ve enjoyed this monthly On The Rise blog series and want to see more rising YouTube partners, check out our On The Rise channel. Keep an eye out next month for a chance to nominate some of your favorite channels for On The Rise in 2013 - we’ll be coming back to you in January with another round of rising talent.

Christine Wang and Devon Storbeck, YouTube Partner Support, recently watched “More Twilight - A Bad Lip Reading of The Twilight Saga: New Moon.”

YouTube Space Los Angeles: where creators learn, share, and create.

At YouTube we're only as successful as you, our creators. From our NextUp series and the launch of a new home page focused on your channels, to funding a small group of original channels, our goal remains the same: to help all our creators build big audiences on YouTube.

That’s why we’re thrilled today to announce the opening of YouTube Space Los Angeles -- our flagship collaboration and production facility built for the exclusive use of YouTube partners.  

The Space, a 41,000 square foot former helicopter hangar in Playa Vista, is a place where established and emerging creators from our Partner program can work together to cultivate big ideas and ambitious ways to tell their stories. And like the YouTube Space London, YouTube doesn’t charge you any fees for use of the Space or the production equipment that’s housed there.

At the YouTube Space LA creators can:

Learn: From training programs and workshops to master classes, there are plenty of opportunities to get hands-on experience from industry leaders.

Share: Attend events, meet fellow creators, spark new ideas and share your favorite ways to use YouTube.

Create: This is your space to bring your stories to life. You’ll have access to a variety of resources, including two production stages, a recording studio, three green screen rooms, a motion capture studio, a screening room, collaboration spaces, a backlot equipment room with cameras, lights, mics and grip equipment available for checkout, and more. Production access is on an application basis, open to YouTube creators who qualify. 

Watch this video for an inside look at the Space: 

Find more creator resources at youtube.com/creators and learn more about the YouTube Spaces in Los Angeles and London at youtube.com/space.

Want to be part of the Winter Creator Class at YouTube Space LA?  Submit your application for the class here by December 3.  Kathleen Grace, Manager of Production and Programming, YouTube Space LA, recently watched “Thanksgiving Outfits for Jive Turkeys“

Coming soon: Link your channel with a Google+ page (and keep your channel name)

Over the past several months we’ve been giving YouTube users the ability to change how they appear on YouTube, by using their Google+ profile on their YouTube channel.  Well-known creators such as Michael Buckley, Philip DeFranco, Kina Grannis, and Felipe Neto have chosen to use their Google name as their identity on YouTube, by linking their Google+ profile with their Channel. This has helped them access engagement and social features like Hangouts on Air.

You may have seen a prompt like the one below inviting you to use your Google identity on YouTube. If you haven’t, and you can opt in right now using your account settings.


Or you can keep your channel name!

While using a full name from a Google+ profile might work well for a creator who wants to build their brand as an individual, this simply doesn’t work if you don’t want a full name on your channel.  If you run a channel with a name like BlueXephos or VlogBrothers, you should create a Google+ page (as opposed to a profile) with that name.

In the coming weeks we’ll launch the option to link your channel with a Google+ page, which will allow you to use your channel name (even with spaces in it!) as your Google identity.  And yes, the advanced Google+ page management features that enable up to 50 people manage a single Google+ page, or a single person to manage up to 50 Google+ pages, will also work for channels that are linked with Google+ pages.

We’ve been beta testing this option with some channels such as Google Analytics and YouTube Creators, and we’re planning to make this feature available to all creators in the coming weeks.

Why should creators use a Google identity?

If you unify your YouTube identity with Google+, it will be easier for your audience to find and connect with you on YouTube, Google, and across the web, and it will help you build your brand across all of Google’s products.  We’re also continually developing new engagement features like Hangouts on Air that take advantage of the best that both YouTube and Google+ have to offer.

David Boyle, recently watched MEERKATS 3D

The Channelization of YouTube: how you can build a cohesive channel experience

This blog post is part of an ongoing series that shares tips from the YouTube Creator Playbook. The Playbook is YouTube’s official resource of best practices for audience development.

You’ve heard about the channel-ization of YouTube. Success is no longer just about getting a one-off viral hit. Now, more than ever, to be successful on YouTube, you need to think about how to create a cohesive channel experience for your audience. You’ve got to take on the role of channel programmer. This means really investing time into your channel, and building your subscriber base. Why? The numbers speak for themselves: subscribers watch nearly twice as long as non-subscribers. In other words, your subscribers are your fan base.  

Here’s a few things you can do to develop your channel:

1. Promote your channel! Remember, your audience doesn’t know about your channel and all the great content that’s there unless you let them know! So, go ahead and message this out to your audience: invite your viewers to check out your channel through a call to action in the video’s introduction, or a branded end-card. Also, if you haven’t spent time with the new Invideo programming feature, check it out. This new, easy to use feature is a great way to reinforce channel branding across all videos in your library and drive your audience to all your other content.

Another easy way to promote your channel is through your videos’ metadata description. In addition to context around the specific, individual video, add a brief snippet about your channel, and provide links to the channel page, as well as programmed playlists.  

2. Make playlists a key piece of your channel strategy. Playlists create a programmed, extended viewing experience for your audience, and they’re also a great way to increase watch-time.

Use playlists to program your channel -  separate shows into different playlists, or group content around similar themes or tent-pole events. You can use the ‘start and end time’ feature to set in and out points for all the videos you curate into playlists. And, if you want to go the extra mile, consider creating and optimizing hosted playlists. Hosted playlists have intros and/or interstitial content to provide context in between videos. Once you’ve got your playlists all ready to go, publish full playlists to your subscribers through the channel post feature.

3. Program the channel feed. Think of your channel’s activity feed as the your main line of communication with your subscribers. Make sure your feed is active so that your audience keeps coming back for more. When you add a video to a playlist, like, or comment on a video, it appears in the feed for your subscribers to see. So, mix up your own uploads with curated content, and be a tastemaker for your audience.

All of the content you upload and promote through the activity feeds collectively tells your audience a story about your channel and what it stands for. Make it count - tell a strong, interesting one!

Those are just a few quick tips to help you start thinking about your channel strategy. As we roll out new features, we’ll be sure to let you know how you can use them to make the most out of your channel.

Lauren Vilders, Audience Development Coordinator, recently watched “Shaun Sperling Bar Mitzvah Dance - Madonna, Vogue - 3/14/92”