▷ How Long Does It Take To Grow a YouTube Channel! (2019)

Today I want to talk about exactly how long does it take to grow a YouTube channel nowadays and how you can fasten the process.

Although there are a variety of factors that have a role to play on how fast a YouTube channel can grow there are a few KEY components that are especially important for newbie creators.

And that is what I am going to talk next…

…so, without much further adeu, let´s begin!

What Does YouTube Have To Say?

First off, let´s start breaking down what is the offical posture on this matter, what YouTube´s team says about growth and how long it can actually take you.

Now, I´m going to talk about what actually works right now according to YouTube´s own statements and what do actual YouTubers say works, but one thing that you MUST is that all of this depends entirely on YOU.

How much time and effort you put in it´s directly correlated to how long it takes for you to grow a YouTube channel. Period.

Or at least that´s what I´ve found from doing this research. Now, let´s get into what the company says.

Now, although this is not from the actual YouTube team it helps that it´s from an expert within the official YouTube Help forum.

Let´s move on with another example:

Yep, going straight to the source is the BEST way to go.

The videos I would recommend you to watch in order to get more information on this is the Creator Insider´s channel as it is where YouTube employees share real updated information on any sort of topic.

In short:

No, there is no one right answer to how long can take to grow a YouTube channel.

Now, if you want to learn how actual YouTubers have grown theirs and how that can help you, then keep reading.

What Do YouTubers Say?

For example, Sunny Lenarduzzi (which has now more than 200,000 subs) says his first year of uploading content she started out with around 500 subscribers that she got from social media outreaches with just a handful of videos, and after a year posting consistently (a total of 52 videos) twelve months later she has grown to over 30,000 subs!

Another great story of how long and how far you can grow is Geraldine Lepere.

She is a charismatic YouTuber that started out with ZERO subs on her channel and slowly increased her account step by step.

Here´s a chart where she shares exactly how the channel grew in past few years:

She now has more than 2.7 million views in a few years since she got started back in 2013.

You can check out the post for further inspiration!

Now, here´s another one for you, from the DIY Mommy, Christina says that she was able to grow steadily and talks about what did she do to grow. Two years of entire growth!

In an interview with Video Influencers, Nikki Phillippi (1.3 M) said that it took her 6 months to earn her first $100 dollars and from that a few more months to make a full-time income that she could live of.

Last but not least, I want to finish off with a BIG top YouTuber so that you get an idea of what´s actually possible if you make really good videos.

Peter McKinnon´s channel surpassed 1 Million subs in about 9 months, yep, just by making great videos he achieved a really quick growth in the platform.

In fact, there´s even a video about that you might want to check out, I´ll live you the link right here. (👈)

In that video Paddy Galloway talks about how creating valuable content that actually helps the viewer can make or break your growth strategy. Check it out!

3 Effective Growth Tips That Work!

Okay, now that you know there are no hard rules when it comes to growth on YouTube it´s time to focus on what are the fastest and smartest ways you can grow a YouTube channel from the ground up.

Here are three proven strategies that can help you grow your YouTube channel fast.

The Sequel Technique

This one is one of my favorite methods to grow on YouTube, it is a growth formula that every channel can implement and get fast results from.

Brain Dean, the founder of Backlinko, is the one that invented the term to refer a strategy that laverages the power of suggested videos.

Now, as you may know, suggested videos is one of the major ways YouTube drives traffic to newer or more popular videos, so it is a great way to grow in the platform as you´ll be able to get more viewers that already like similar type of content.

Here´s how:

You go to one of your competitors channel, click on videos and then sort by “popular videos”, that´s it!

You´ll find all of the most successful videos on any given topic, just choose one or two that may appeal your audience and create a better video. (a sequel)

You already know that those are proven topics that work so that is what you will be taking advantage of, just make sure to make your content longer (if it makes sense), entretaining to watch, and that effectively grabs attention right from the start.

Increase Watch Time, Increase Subs

If you make longer videos (10+ minutes long) you´ll be able to improve your total watch time, which is a huge ranking factor that YouTube considers in order to promote your videos.

So, longer content leads to increased watch time which subsequently leads to higher rankings and more views and subscribers, great!

Plus! the more subs you have the better you´ll rank as you will increase your watch time at the same time, it´s basically a cycle that feeds itself.

The lesson (from Creators Academy) where this is shared talks about how you can grow a YouTube channel right from the get go.

“Subscribers tend to spend more time watching your channel than viewers who are not subscibed.”
YouTube Creators Academy
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Another little tip I want to give you!

You should use the End screen feature as it is one of the most effective ways to keep people watching more of your content and, therefore, a great way to increase both your watch time and session time.

Reply To Every Comment

Yes, it might sound simple but almost nobody does it!

If you show you care you´ll be able to grow much quicker and that will lead to a loyal fan base in the long run.

Here are a few awesome extra tips from a big channel that has grown a following one subscriber at a time.

People can easily whether you are committed to your channel and brand just by taking a quick peak at the comment section.

And, if you are one of those creators that tends to upload the video and then goes to watch some netflix then your chances of growth significantly decrease over time.

Nowadays YouTube demands MORE from newer creators, and interaction with fans is actually one of the biggest ranking factors there is (and that people tend to overlook).

Social Engagement signals are (coupled with Watch Time and Audience Retention) some of the key elements that tell YouTube whether they should promote a video or not, so keep that in mind next time you don´t feel like replying to fans questions.

Consistency Is NOT The Key

You have heard this over and over again, but it is NOT TRUE, let me show you why.

Although consistency is a great thing to have as a YouTube channel it shouldn´t be your primary concern, not at first.

If you don´t even have an audience yet then worring about making a new video every single week is not the answer.

The best part?

There are hundreds of channels that have grown a large audience by uploading videos from time to time, even months apart from each other believe it or not.

Now, I´m going to give you a few examples so you can check it out yourself.

On one hand, you have Brain Dean (who I mentioned earlier) who has 20 some videos on his channel and gets thousands of new subscribers every month, now it´s around 200k, and uploads videos every couple of months.

And on the other hand, there are more entertaining-related channels like Experimental Fun that have more than 300k subs and have a similar amount of videos on their channel, without ANY sort of consistency when it comes to uploads.

So, what is the real KEY to grow on YouTube?

That´s easy! It is pure and simple quality.

You want to aim for engaging, entertaining, educational, and fun videos that people tend to watch right till the end. Period.

Get Immediate Results With SEO

Another thing most people don´t talk about enough is SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and that has a major on ranking and how fast a YouTuba channel can grow or not.

If you pay close attention to which are the first videos that hit the thousands views in the early beginning of almost every big YouTube channel out there you´ll find how many of them have had SEO-rich keywords in them.

In fact.

Peter McKinnon´s growth is a good example of just that.

Whether he has done it on purpose or not he provided great tips with a few educational videos that provide useful content that was already being searched for.

THAT is one of the main principles concerning SEO: searchable content.

If you don´t believe me then check it out yourself:

Those are the exact first two videos that putted his channel on the YouTube map.

You can easily see that both are insanely practical tips and super educational content, hacks and tips anyone could use.

So, if you want to leverage the power of SEO yourself this is where you should start.

One GOOD way to do just that is by brainstorming ideas that could potentially help your audience and making your tips or advice actionable.

What You Should Avoid Doing?

Finally, let´s talk about what are some of the things that you MUST avoid if you want to have long-term success within the platform.

Don´t use clickbait – First off, you shouldn´t use clickbait in ANY shape or form to get more views or subscribers as it will certainly hurt your rankings once people click on your videos and bounce because you haven´t delivered what you promised.
Looking into the viewfinder – Simple yet common. There are way too many newbies that don´t pay attention to how wrong this is, the disconnect that not looking right into the lens of the camera causes.
Slow intro/hook – If you don´t grab the attention of the viewer right from the start you´ll lose them for good. That is what YouTube actually says when claims that the very first 15 seconds of a video matter.
Don´t spam – You should NEVER spam on the comment section as it is one of the fastest ways to look like a crappy creator and no someone that takes this seriously. If you want to grow don´t spam.
Keep in mind the audio quality – People can forgive a lower video quality if the content is good enough but they won´t tolerate bad audio quality, that is simply unforgivable for YouTube users, so invest in a cheap (yet effective) lapel mic and you´re set!
NOT Attention-grabbing thumbnails – Finally, not investing enough time in your thumbnails after you´ve recorded, and edited a 10-minute video that can easily take more than an hour to make is simply stupid. You want people to click on your video, so you HAVE TO put some thought into your thumbnail design.

If you avoid most (if not all) of these mistakes you´ll fasten your growth, or at least you won´t sabotage it.

The Digital Hustler

How Long Does It Take To Grow a YouTube Channel