Should You Use YouTube for Your Yoga Business? + Tips on Getting Started

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Brandon

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There are so many things you could be doing to market your online yoga business.Pinterest, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook groups, Reddit, email marketing, ads on many different platforms, YouTube…the list goes on.But as entrepreneurs, it’s important to focus your energy on what really works for your business. Every platform isn’t going to be right for everyone.This article will share how to decide if YouTube is right for your yoga business and how to get started with YouTube if it is.1004px Logo of YouTube 2015 2017.svg

 

Why YouTube?

Great question. Here are some of the benefits of using YouTube for your yoga business:  1. YouTube has an incredibly large audience

— almost a third of all people on the internet (Source). In fact, according to Nielsen, YouTube reaches more US adults aged 18-34 than any cable network.

2. YouTube can help with your SEO. First of all, hosting video content on YouTube keeps your site lighter and faster, which helps with SEO. Secondly, your YouTube videos could show up in Google search (YouTube is owned by Google) with the right keywords. I’ll dive into that a little more below!

3. YouTube content is easily shareable. A few clicks and your videos can reach a whole new audience of viewers. 

4. If your YouTube channel gets big enough, you may be able to make money from ads on your videos. This year, YouTube announced new requirements for monetization. Once your channel reached 4,000 watch hours in the previous 12 months and 1,000 subscribers, you’re eligible to join the monetization program.

There are plenty of pros to being on YouTube. But with all of that being said, there are a few questions to ask to decide if YouTube is right for you.

Questions to ask to decide if YouTube is right for you 

1. Does your content lend itself to video?2. Could video help you reach your business goals?3. Do you have the capacity to produce consistent, quality videos?

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Getting started with YouTube

So you’ve decided YouTube is right for your business. Great! Like any other platform, you have to do a bit of legwork in the beginning to get things up and running. Here’s what to do:

  1. Set up your channel.
  2. Create a strategy.
  3. Create content.

Let’s dive deeper into each of these topics.

 

Set up your YouTube channel

The first thing you’ll need to do is sign into YouTube with the Google account you’d like to link your page to, and click: create channel.There are two options: a business page or a personal page. Using a business page gives you more branding options, but it’s up to you! From there, you’ll have the opportunity to choose the basics: the category, your account name, etc. Then, it’s time to focus on branding! One of the most important branding pieces for YouTube is your channel art, which is similar to a Facebook cover photo. Below are a few examples of well-done channel art.

Screen Shot 2018 10 12 at 2.40.26 PM
Channel art from Adidas Women
Screen Shot 2018 10 12 at 2.40.10 PM
Channel art from Sarah Beth Yoga
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Channel art from Yoga with Adriene

Here are my guidelines:

    • Use a 2560 x 1440 pixel image (the size recommended by YouTube)
    • Include your social media handles
    • Include links to your other social media platforms in the bottom right hand corner of the channel art, but make sure they don’t cover up too much of your photo
  • Make sure text and/or logos are displayed correctly in all formats– mobile, desktop, and TV

I recommend using a free graphic design resource like Canva to help you do this!

 

Create a strategy for YouTube

It’s important to have a strategy for each platform you use because you want to make sure the work you’re doing there aligns with your overall goals. Otherwise, it can end up being a waste of your time.So what are your goals for YouTube? Some key YouTube goals are:

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    • Branding and awareness
    • Drive traffic (with links in video descriptions)
    • Increase views (this will likely be a goal for everyone since it feeds the other goals, but I add it here specifically because if you’d like to generate income from ads on your channel or sponsored videos, then this is its own goal)
    • Drive sales (Check out Ellen Fisher’s YouTube channel for a great example of driving sales– she has a vegan recipe ebook that she shares at the beginning of every video)

But they’ll be different for each business. Decide what is most important for you and what makes sense for your overall business goals.Once you decide on your goals, you’ll want to create content that serves them.

 

Create quality content

How do you decide what content to create for YouTube? Look at the goals you decided on in the paragraph above and create content that helps you achieve them. For example, if your goal is to increase email subscribers (which ultimately increases sales when you have a great funnel in place– learn how to create a great funnel here!), then think about:

    • Creating videos around topics that your freebie target audience is interested in. For example, if your freebie is a checklist of questions to ask to decide if a yoga teacher training is right for you, your content should cater to people who are interested in doing yoga teacher trainings but aren’t yoga teachers yet.
    • Having your freebie be a 10-20 second intro on each video
    • Linking to your freebie in the description
    • Referencing your freebie throughout the video
  • Having your freebie be a 10-20 second conclusion for each video

In terms of optimizing your videos for search so they actually get found, there are a few important things to know. Of course, creating consistent, high-quality content is the most important thing. But from there, you can optimize your titles, descriptions, and keywords for each video to help your videos show up in Google (yes, Google!) and YouTube search.Here are a few tips for SEO optimization:1. Research video keywords. Start by searching for keywords in your niche on Google. Jot down which keywords give video results (hint: anything how-to, fitness related, or reviews and testimonials usually get video results!).Then, go to the free Google Keyword Planner and look at the keyword search volumes to make sure people are regularly searching for those keywords. Then rinse and repeat for each video! 2. Weave the keyword into the title and description. Try putting your keyword at the beginning of the video title, and make sure you include your keyword early on in your video description. Include the keyword in the description at least 3 times!3. Make your video longer than 5 minutes. Longer videos rank higher in search. Great news if you’re doing yoga class videos!This SEO overview should give you enough to get started. If you’d like to learn more about optimization, check out YouTube SEO: The Ultimate Guide and How to Succeed with YouTube SEO.

 

Utilize your other platforms to increase video traffic

Once you’ve posted your optimized video to YouTube, there are a couple of other things you can do! Here are my recommendations:

    • Share your video on your personal and business Facebook pages
    • Post a teaser snippet from your video to your Instagram stories or news feed
    • Add the video to your Linktree on Instagram
  • Write a blog on your website as a teaser (include bullet points of why someone should watch your video!) and link to the video

Looking for more tips and tools to help you grow your yoga business? Check out these resources:

 
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What questions do you have about using YouTube for your yoga business?

Comment below and it might inspire our next article!

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About Brandon

Former corporate sales rep turned nomadic entrepreneurial yogi. Street food ninja, avid outdoorsman, craft beer geek, and live music junkie. Co-founder of The Yoga Nomads.

1 thought on “Should You Use YouTube for Your Yoga Business? + Tips on Getting Started”

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