How Fast Does the Average YouTube Channel Grow?

Have you ever wondered- how fast does the average YouTube channel grow? With so many successful YouTube channels that exist, it makes you wonder how long it took them to achieve success. Does the average YouTube channel tend to grow fast or slowly? What factors contribute to the speed at which a channel grows? How can growth be sped up?

The average YouTube channel grows quite slow initially. Most channels take an entire year before they reach the 1000 subscriber milestone. However, it has been proven that once some momentum has been gained on YouTube, growing a channel becomes a faster and easier process.

Many factors affect the growth rate of a YouTube channel. Certain channels tend to grow faster than others based on their niche, upload frequency, adoption of best practices, etc. But what about when it comes to the average YouTube channel? Why is it so hard for them to grow, and what can be done to speed up the growth rate?

Why Is Growing on YouTube So Hard

Why is growing on YouTube so hard? So many people create videos, but so few achieve any success. Why is this? Is it due to the people themselves, or are the problems more related to the technical aspects of YouTube? Or, is the problem simply the fact that many people have unrealistic expectations when approaching YouTube?

The fact of the matter is, all of the things I just mentioned contribute to the difficulty of growing a YouTube channel. Non-technical aspects such as video editing skills play a huge role in the difficulty of operating and growing a YouTube channel. Technical aspects such as video SEO also have a huge impact.

Ultimately, the difficulty of growing on YouTube all comes down to this: There are a lot of skills that need to be learned to achieve success. As a content creator on YouTube, you need to learn how to record and edit videos, how to optimize videos, how to design graphics and more.

Just like with learning how to ride a bike, it takes time to become good at being a content creator. People like to assume that creating YouTube videos and operating a channel is easy, but it isn't. Many people approach YouTube with unrealistic expectations of growth, and this, I believe, is the biggest contributor to the difficulty of growing a channel.

How Can I Make My YouTube Channel Grow Faster

At this point, you might be asking yourself: "How can I make my YouTube channel grow faster?" After all, if growing a YouTube channel, while being difficult, is done by a lot of people, there must be some shortcuts to success, right? Well, there aren't any shortcuts to success, but there are things that can be done to speed up the growth of your channel.

Learn Video SEO

I talk about the importance of video SEO a lot, but this is done for a reason. Video search engine optimization (SEO) can help your videos get a significant number of organic views over time. While the results from video SEO typically aren't seen instantly (there are not any shortcuts to success), having videos that are properly optimized pays off in the long run.

Improve Your Video Thumbnails

If your videos don't get views, your channel will not grow. If nobody clicks on your videos, they will not get viewed. So, naturally, having good video thumbnails is important. However, many content creators tend to rush the process of designing thumbnails. The problem with this is, thumbnails can make-or-break a video.

Certain styles of video thumbnails lead to more clicks. More clicks lead to more views. Due to this, it's in your best interest to take the time to design click-friendly thumbnails for your videos. This is one of the quickest ways to increase the number of views your videos get, thus increasing the rate at which your channel grows.

Increase Your Upload Frequency

The fastest way to increase the number of views you get collectively on your channel is to upload more videos. Of course, you should combine an increase in upload frequency with good video SEO and good video thumbnails. However, it's important not to over-think these things and chase perfection, as this leads to a decrease in upload frequency.

If you've only uploaded 1 video each week for the past month, then uploading 2 videos each week will automatically double your upload frequency. This will lead to an increased opportunity for you to gain views. It's much easier to get 10 views on 2 videos than it is to get 20 views on 1 video as a small channel.

Improve Your Upload Consistency

While increasing upload frequency is a great way to get more daily views and channel growth, it's important not to neglect upload consistency. You see, there's no point in you uploading 30 videos in 30 days if you burn out and quit YouTube. You'd be much better off uploading 30 videos in 60 days, for example, as this would be a more sustainable workload.

Remember, YouTube is a long-term game. If you want to achieve success on YouTube, you need to be prepared to stick things out for the long term. You must be able to upload videos on a consistent schedule, or else you will lose your momentum. So, again, don't increase your upload frequency to a number that doesn't allow you to be consistent for the long term.

Conclusion

The average YouTube channel struggles to see much growth initially. Some channels see fantastic growth in their first year, but many channels take a year or more to gain 1000 subscribers. Knowing this, every content creator must approach YouTube with a long term view and position themselves to achieve success by following best practices.