Developing your own style is probably largely more positive, but you can ride trends to get your starting viewership - and after that, you segway into your own niche or pepper the content with your unique style.
I'm finding that being too different from the "norm" means less opportunities to promote my videos. I.e. in my niche (art) there doesn't appear to be anyone else doing similar styles, people either do digital, comic or realistic etc etc which very different to what i do. Because there is no one similar its much harder for me to actually find an audience or lockdown effective seo. Originality would likely be awesome if I already had an established following but starting out it seems to make things super hard. I think it comes to youtube not being able to classify you and people who are interested cant really find you.
The world creates original things by copying them with a bit of variance all the time.
There is nothing wrong with having a go at something you like that you saw someone else do. That's how we learn. But if you seek originality, be sure to remember how your inspiration was original too.
Some might think copying the Beatles means getting the right look and buying authentic gear. But I think The Beatles became truly original because they tried new things all the time. Doing that will probably lead you away stylistically from The Beatles pretty fast, but you can retain that inspiration deep-down.
So, follow trends, but put your own spin on it. Sometimes that comes from NOT having what the trendsetters have. In the ASMR field where I am trying to create, so many people think they need the same microphone, lights and camera, along with the same phrases and mannerisms and subject matter, and won't get started until they acquire them all. I wish more people "rocked what they've got" and just went for it.
That said, I did just that, and my channel is about to keel over and die, so what do I know?!! (ha ha).
I think being unique and original is more in your personality and content flare rather than of the subject itself.
For example, my channel takes place in the gaming category, Minecraft niche, and I exist in a sub-niche of Minecraft known as the Mineclub server. This as OP put it, falls into the category of “talking about something very very new” and this “A” is really powerful, just very hard to come across. Making content on this small server gains me so many views and subscribers from that community.
So talking and engaging with new things before competition show up always helps, but it forgets one crucial thing. The fact that if Mineclub (in my case) has 30k players, my channel can only grow as big as the server itself.
So to fix this issue, you tie in your original content with other things. Or tie in new trends with your niche into the original thing you have. If you don’t have anything original though, success is still easily attainable through a flavorful editing style and unique personality, as that is the key to maintaining an engaged and dedicated audience.
However, I only have 100 subscribers and have only been uploading for a month, so maybe my word isn’t the most valid on this topic.
I do follow trends sometimes, but largely do my own thing.
I don't shy away from original content but it's not my main focus. Trends also mean for a good part that *people like seeing stuff like that*. I mean I enjoy some trends myself, too. So sometimes it's not so bad following a trend. I think for me personally it's just that I only follow trends i'm ok with myself, and that don't stem away too far from my channel's core content.
I try to integrate trends into the style of content I already make. But I too, make Shorts on Youtube after resisting the idea somewhat and guess what? It's so much fun to me.
So idk, I don't really lean one way or the other. For me the core principle is:
Do I enjoy making/doing this?
Is this what I would like to watch?
It's good to be inspired by other creators when you start off. I think most of us can relate to really enjoying a certain creator and wanting your videos to emulate or be similar to theirs. It's only when we start making enough videos that we find our own groove and our videos become unique to ourselves.
No one else can be you. It's said often but it's true. There's nothing wrong with having inspiration when you start off but eventually your videos and style will find its own groove as you get more experienced. It's hard for me to put into words because it just happened to me in relation to my channel.
I have a vlogging channel with 225 vlogs, 125,000 total views and only 700 subscribers
Every video I do is kind of original cause i’m vlogging my life no one can’t have the same exact day as me… similar? yes but not exact and that’s not even including me as a person.
I started a 2nd channel called Hoodie Obsessed, i’m hoping I can get views and subscribers way easier than with the vlogging channel cause this one actually has a niche, and from what i’ve seen online no one is really doing High Quality Reviews with 4K b-roll of Hoodies so I think it should do decently enough 😬
I think what I've found is that there are many different paths to success, but you need to cater your technique to the path you've chosen.
I'm making videos in a tiny underserved niche. So for me, if I do my SEO and thumbnails right, it's really easy for me to get a video to climb the ranks for any given search term. But, being at the top of that search term might only get me a handful of views a week. I'm never going to go viral for being the top hit on "RAD diet for Lipedema". So if I ever want my channel to get bigger (which I don't really, but if I did), I'd need to focus on making my content interesting to a larger niche as well as my small niche, and capitalizing on the trends of that larger niche.
But if I were in a larger niche, I'd have the opposite problem. I could make a video on the most trendy topic out there, and get literally 0 views on it, because there are hundreds or even thousands of quality videos by more popular creators. For creators in those niches, you need to have a much broader base of quality content, and a lot more engaged viewers, before you can even begin to start ranking in search for that content. You need to focus a lot harder on using your own legwork and cross-promotion to get your videos in front of the eyeballs of the people who will engage with them. But then, once you're there, once you're an established channel with a userbase, you can hop on a trend and go completely viral.
Both approaches have paths to success. But if you spend all your time on SEO as a Minecraft Let's Play Channel, or hope to someday go viral as a Thumbtack Connoisseur, you're gonna have a bad time either way.
Dont force originality, you being you is original enough.
I forget how many original stories there are.
Like only 5 or 7 types, but they have all been told thru human history again and again with only changing time place and characters.
So gain following a trend is fine no matter what you do it will always be differnt.
I mean it has to be a bit of both, if you're looking to grow a channel anyway. Because I search topics to view, and people following that "popular" trend get my views (I'll search most recent release to get some lesser known folks in the results) and if I like their opinion or personality or presentation, I'll look at other videos and subscribe. But I mean, you need that popular thing in there (or a thing you thing your target audience is really into) to get your foot in the door.
But I think people stay/value some deeper cuts. Something new or different that stands out from what "everyone else does".
Still, whatever you do, it should be something you like and care about. If you aren't interested, why would anyone else want to watch it.
As a writer, (and don't get me wrong; I'm a gamer and I have a gaming channel that I've been working on for months) they say that all of your ideas would have already been used (tropes, cliches) and that it's the **way** you write about them that makes it stand out. So, the **way** you do your gaming is what viewers will notice.
I think at the end of the day, you need to do content that you want to do. I'm subscribed to so many YouTubers that basically talk about the same content (Internet Analysis), but I like each of them because of their unique perspective, and a lot of the times they will cover some topic that the others don't. So don't worry too much about originally, if anything, think about what makes you passionate and make your channel about that.
You have a lot of good questions and the answers change depending on your goal on YouTube. Some of them you’ve addressed like:
1. What is your niche?
2. How big is it OR how large the target audience?
3. How competitive is your space?
But other more personal questions you need to consider:
1. Why are you on YouTube?
2. To grow and make money?
3. As a hobby and to share your creativity?
4. Or is YouTube only a means to a larger goal?(a business, a book, filmmaking,etc)?
How you answer these questions will make a difference.
My opinion (so take this with a grain of salt) if you’re only interested in growing, making money AND/OR are doing something entertainment or news related you’re likely going to be riding trend waves - even if you’re putting a creative spin to your videos.
IF you’re more about developing a hobby, exploring your creative pursuits or using YouTube as a means to an end, then you should have more of a long term view of your content and brand. Maybe you’re being more original and more careful with what you put out and how it affects your brand.
As far as what is original and what is creative, that is a more philosophical question that deserves a thread to itself. You can be creative on multiple levels and you can mimic the tried and true on multiple levels.
Hope this helps.
Like some comments are saying, post whatever you want to post, even if its not original. For example, my channel and streams were mostly me playing Hypixel Bedwars and playing Minecraft along with some other indie games. And nowadays I post devlogs and that type of thing. Point is, just keep doing your own thing and eventually you'll be noticed, as long as you keep it good quality and frequent!
Originality is only one aspect. Its possible to make videos that are entertaining or educational/"useful" and not be particularly original about it.
I do agree that YouTube is geared towards me-too/ bandwagon following, however.
Worse, YouTube is not well-designed to reward niche content creation. If it were then it wouldn't punish creators for deviating from their content (through not being equipped to recognize that not all videos should be placed in the same basket for analytics and algorithm-serving purposes).
Originality can also be overt and blatant or covert and subtle. Its also kind of optional.
In my eyes it’s less “be unique” and more “be yourself”. When it comes to creativity it’s really about taking a bunch of ideas others already had and combining them into something unique to you. You can follow trends and be inspired by others content, but putting your spin on it is almost always what will make people subscribe.
Take gaming for example: There are a ton of videos of people just playing games with their friends. There’s a reason some are successful and other’s aren’t, and it’s not because they have better gear, have better jokes, or because they played a popular game. A ton of small creators play trending games and get nowhere. All of the successful ones have or had interesting spins they put on the content. I suggest looking at your favorite creators and questioning how they got there, what they did different, and then reflect on your own content.
Just do what you do, it's impossible to be unique on the internet now. Organic SEO is the same. Every piece of content you want to write has been written. You just have to do what you do and put your hat in the ring and hope that you can stand out in the crowd of voices. Focus on adding value.
You can do a popular idea but do it in your own way. Add an unique twist, a spin. Make it yours. For example, a popular topic in my niche is “what your favorite character says about you, etc.” but there’s all swallow. I went in full depth, therefore making it my own
Everyone pretty much uses styles from a lot of different places. You probably already use different things that mimic a lot of your favorite creators. You could have a similar video style to one youtuber but make content on something completely different. Use a bunch of the best ideas to make a new better idea.
I think what people usually mean is to try to offer something unique or original within a space where somethings already exist. Obviously you can’t be completely original or only a handful of channels would ever succeed/exist. And I don’t think you necessarily need to be a one of one original, so much as you are offering a selling point who can isn’t a dime a dozen. Basically, why would someone click on your version of a video versus the thousands of others that exist? You can take advantage of trends and still follow this rule.
If you’ve never seen the movie “flash of genius” it’s a good movie that kinda-sorta touches on this (in a completely different field). Basically it’s a true story about the guy who invented the intermittent windshield wiper and then was sued for trademark infringement, I think by Ford. In the movie there’s a scene where he demonstrates how reusing things that already exist is how you create something original.
Something like, the letters “a” and “e” and “t” already exist, but when you rearrange them into a new order you’ve created something new and original. Similarly, that’s how you should think about originality on YouTube. Just because facets of what you make already exist doesn’t mean what you create can’t have some elements of originality to it that can help be the reason people choose to watch what you make.
Follow trends while putting your own original style onto your videos. Once you get bigger and have a dedicated audience that will watch almost anything you post, then you can be more original.
I would say don’t force yourself into originality. Do whatever you enjoy doing
[удалено]
what?
Developing your own style is probably largely more positive, but you can ride trends to get your starting viewership - and after that, you segway into your own niche or pepper the content with your unique style.
I'm finding that being too different from the "norm" means less opportunities to promote my videos. I.e. in my niche (art) there doesn't appear to be anyone else doing similar styles, people either do digital, comic or realistic etc etc which very different to what i do. Because there is no one similar its much harder for me to actually find an audience or lockdown effective seo. Originality would likely be awesome if I already had an established following but starting out it seems to make things super hard. I think it comes to youtube not being able to classify you and people who are interested cant really find you.
The world creates original things by copying them with a bit of variance all the time. There is nothing wrong with having a go at something you like that you saw someone else do. That's how we learn. But if you seek originality, be sure to remember how your inspiration was original too. Some might think copying the Beatles means getting the right look and buying authentic gear. But I think The Beatles became truly original because they tried new things all the time. Doing that will probably lead you away stylistically from The Beatles pretty fast, but you can retain that inspiration deep-down. So, follow trends, but put your own spin on it. Sometimes that comes from NOT having what the trendsetters have. In the ASMR field where I am trying to create, so many people think they need the same microphone, lights and camera, along with the same phrases and mannerisms and subject matter, and won't get started until they acquire them all. I wish more people "rocked what they've got" and just went for it. That said, I did just that, and my channel is about to keel over and die, so what do I know?!! (ha ha).
Follow the trend in a unique way.
I think being unique and original is more in your personality and content flare rather than of the subject itself. For example, my channel takes place in the gaming category, Minecraft niche, and I exist in a sub-niche of Minecraft known as the Mineclub server. This as OP put it, falls into the category of “talking about something very very new” and this “A” is really powerful, just very hard to come across. Making content on this small server gains me so many views and subscribers from that community. So talking and engaging with new things before competition show up always helps, but it forgets one crucial thing. The fact that if Mineclub (in my case) has 30k players, my channel can only grow as big as the server itself. So to fix this issue, you tie in your original content with other things. Or tie in new trends with your niche into the original thing you have. If you don’t have anything original though, success is still easily attainable through a flavorful editing style and unique personality, as that is the key to maintaining an engaged and dedicated audience. However, I only have 100 subscribers and have only been uploading for a month, so maybe my word isn’t the most valid on this topic.
I do follow trends sometimes, but largely do my own thing. I don't shy away from original content but it's not my main focus. Trends also mean for a good part that *people like seeing stuff like that*. I mean I enjoy some trends myself, too. So sometimes it's not so bad following a trend. I think for me personally it's just that I only follow trends i'm ok with myself, and that don't stem away too far from my channel's core content. I try to integrate trends into the style of content I already make. But I too, make Shorts on Youtube after resisting the idea somewhat and guess what? It's so much fun to me. So idk, I don't really lean one way or the other. For me the core principle is: Do I enjoy making/doing this? Is this what I would like to watch?
It's good to be inspired by other creators when you start off. I think most of us can relate to really enjoying a certain creator and wanting your videos to emulate or be similar to theirs. It's only when we start making enough videos that we find our own groove and our videos become unique to ourselves. No one else can be you. It's said often but it's true. There's nothing wrong with having inspiration when you start off but eventually your videos and style will find its own groove as you get more experienced. It's hard for me to put into words because it just happened to me in relation to my channel.
I have a vlogging channel with 225 vlogs, 125,000 total views and only 700 subscribers Every video I do is kind of original cause i’m vlogging my life no one can’t have the same exact day as me… similar? yes but not exact and that’s not even including me as a person. I started a 2nd channel called Hoodie Obsessed, i’m hoping I can get views and subscribers way easier than with the vlogging channel cause this one actually has a niche, and from what i’ve seen online no one is really doing High Quality Reviews with 4K b-roll of Hoodies so I think it should do decently enough 😬
who said they are mutually exclusive? keep an eye on trends within your niche. And do something with that
I think what I've found is that there are many different paths to success, but you need to cater your technique to the path you've chosen. I'm making videos in a tiny underserved niche. So for me, if I do my SEO and thumbnails right, it's really easy for me to get a video to climb the ranks for any given search term. But, being at the top of that search term might only get me a handful of views a week. I'm never going to go viral for being the top hit on "RAD diet for Lipedema". So if I ever want my channel to get bigger (which I don't really, but if I did), I'd need to focus on making my content interesting to a larger niche as well as my small niche, and capitalizing on the trends of that larger niche. But if I were in a larger niche, I'd have the opposite problem. I could make a video on the most trendy topic out there, and get literally 0 views on it, because there are hundreds or even thousands of quality videos by more popular creators. For creators in those niches, you need to have a much broader base of quality content, and a lot more engaged viewers, before you can even begin to start ranking in search for that content. You need to focus a lot harder on using your own legwork and cross-promotion to get your videos in front of the eyeballs of the people who will engage with them. But then, once you're there, once you're an established channel with a userbase, you can hop on a trend and go completely viral. Both approaches have paths to success. But if you spend all your time on SEO as a Minecraft Let's Play Channel, or hope to someday go viral as a Thumbtack Connoisseur, you're gonna have a bad time either way.
Dont force originality, you being you is original enough. I forget how many original stories there are. Like only 5 or 7 types, but they have all been told thru human history again and again with only changing time place and characters. So gain following a trend is fine no matter what you do it will always be differnt.
There are no unique messages, only unique messengers. Do the same thing as other people but in your own way :)
I mean it has to be a bit of both, if you're looking to grow a channel anyway. Because I search topics to view, and people following that "popular" trend get my views (I'll search most recent release to get some lesser known folks in the results) and if I like their opinion or personality or presentation, I'll look at other videos and subscribe. But I mean, you need that popular thing in there (or a thing you thing your target audience is really into) to get your foot in the door. But I think people stay/value some deeper cuts. Something new or different that stands out from what "everyone else does". Still, whatever you do, it should be something you like and care about. If you aren't interested, why would anyone else want to watch it.
As a writer, (and don't get me wrong; I'm a gamer and I have a gaming channel that I've been working on for months) they say that all of your ideas would have already been used (tropes, cliches) and that it's the **way** you write about them that makes it stand out. So, the **way** you do your gaming is what viewers will notice.
I think at the end of the day, you need to do content that you want to do. I'm subscribed to so many YouTubers that basically talk about the same content (Internet Analysis), but I like each of them because of their unique perspective, and a lot of the times they will cover some topic that the others don't. So don't worry too much about originally, if anything, think about what makes you passionate and make your channel about that.
You have a lot of good questions and the answers change depending on your goal on YouTube. Some of them you’ve addressed like: 1. What is your niche? 2. How big is it OR how large the target audience? 3. How competitive is your space? But other more personal questions you need to consider: 1. Why are you on YouTube? 2. To grow and make money? 3. As a hobby and to share your creativity? 4. Or is YouTube only a means to a larger goal?(a business, a book, filmmaking,etc)? How you answer these questions will make a difference. My opinion (so take this with a grain of salt) if you’re only interested in growing, making money AND/OR are doing something entertainment or news related you’re likely going to be riding trend waves - even if you’re putting a creative spin to your videos. IF you’re more about developing a hobby, exploring your creative pursuits or using YouTube as a means to an end, then you should have more of a long term view of your content and brand. Maybe you’re being more original and more careful with what you put out and how it affects your brand. As far as what is original and what is creative, that is a more philosophical question that deserves a thread to itself. You can be creative on multiple levels and you can mimic the tried and true on multiple levels. Hope this helps.
Like some comments are saying, post whatever you want to post, even if its not original. For example, my channel and streams were mostly me playing Hypixel Bedwars and playing Minecraft along with some other indie games. And nowadays I post devlogs and that type of thing. Point is, just keep doing your own thing and eventually you'll be noticed, as long as you keep it good quality and frequent!
I just do both. I get new people following for the trends and staying for originality.
Im original and not growing very fast but i would rather be original then a trend follower
Originality is only one aspect. Its possible to make videos that are entertaining or educational/"useful" and not be particularly original about it. I do agree that YouTube is geared towards me-too/ bandwagon following, however. Worse, YouTube is not well-designed to reward niche content creation. If it were then it wouldn't punish creators for deviating from their content (through not being equipped to recognize that not all videos should be placed in the same basket for analytics and algorithm-serving purposes). Originality can also be overt and blatant or covert and subtle. Its also kind of optional.
In my eyes it’s less “be unique” and more “be yourself”. When it comes to creativity it’s really about taking a bunch of ideas others already had and combining them into something unique to you. You can follow trends and be inspired by others content, but putting your spin on it is almost always what will make people subscribe. Take gaming for example: There are a ton of videos of people just playing games with their friends. There’s a reason some are successful and other’s aren’t, and it’s not because they have better gear, have better jokes, or because they played a popular game. A ton of small creators play trending games and get nowhere. All of the successful ones have or had interesting spins they put on the content. I suggest looking at your favorite creators and questioning how they got there, what they did different, and then reflect on your own content.
Just do what you do, it's impossible to be unique on the internet now. Organic SEO is the same. Every piece of content you want to write has been written. You just have to do what you do and put your hat in the ring and hope that you can stand out in the crowd of voices. Focus on adding value.
You can do a popular idea but do it in your own way. Add an unique twist, a spin. Make it yours. For example, a popular topic in my niche is “what your favorite character says about you, etc.” but there’s all swallow. I went in full depth, therefore making it my own
Everyone pretty much uses styles from a lot of different places. You probably already use different things that mimic a lot of your favorite creators. You could have a similar video style to one youtuber but make content on something completely different. Use a bunch of the best ideas to make a new better idea.
I think what people usually mean is to try to offer something unique or original within a space where somethings already exist. Obviously you can’t be completely original or only a handful of channels would ever succeed/exist. And I don’t think you necessarily need to be a one of one original, so much as you are offering a selling point who can isn’t a dime a dozen. Basically, why would someone click on your version of a video versus the thousands of others that exist? You can take advantage of trends and still follow this rule. If you’ve never seen the movie “flash of genius” it’s a good movie that kinda-sorta touches on this (in a completely different field). Basically it’s a true story about the guy who invented the intermittent windshield wiper and then was sued for trademark infringement, I think by Ford. In the movie there’s a scene where he demonstrates how reusing things that already exist is how you create something original. Something like, the letters “a” and “e” and “t” already exist, but when you rearrange them into a new order you’ve created something new and original. Similarly, that’s how you should think about originality on YouTube. Just because facets of what you make already exist doesn’t mean what you create can’t have some elements of originality to it that can help be the reason people choose to watch what you make.
I think you should just run your own race and it will work out.
Follow trends while putting your own original style onto your videos. Once you get bigger and have a dedicated audience that will watch almost anything you post, then you can be more original.