Youtube channel checklist
This checklist is for setting up a new channel on youtube.
The steps required for an algorithm friendly and viewer friendly channel.
I have created a Discord Group if you have any more questions or want to talk further https://discord.gg/qYPVhysEAz
Step 1:
Channel name
Make it something easy to remember. This is required less for the algorithm and more for word of mouth.
If some one likes your channel may bring it up in conversation. Want it some what memorable. This name will also be your brand going forward so worth checking X, Instagram, Tiktok and domain to see if they are available if your plan to branch out.
Step 2:
Channel banner
Use Canva to create the Youtube Banner.
Use the guideline and graphic here YouTube Banner Size and Dimensions Guide 2024 | Wyzowl
Creating the banner is unintuitive as you are actually creating a banner for 3 different screen sizes at once.
If you use photoshop there are PSD templates on the web. Channel banner should convey the purpose/theme of the channel.
It's actually what sticks in the viewers mind when they think of the name of your channel.
Step 3:
Channel Logo
You can use Canva for a nice text logo and if you need a graphic you could use any AI Art generator out there.
They are pretty easy to use. Mid Journey does cost money however there are many free options. If you are an Adobe subscriber, firefly provides great results. In the prompt make the background colour different than the main logo so that “remove background” options will work on any program.
Step 4:
Channel Settings
Go to the channel settings in the Youtube Studio.
We have a few things to tackle here for optimization. First go to Channel in “basic info” you will be adding your channel tags. Fill with as many relevant keywords for your over all channel (not video specific) You Can have up to 500 characters total in tags. You should maximize that as much as possible. If your struggling for keywords you may use Gemini or another LLM. (Gemini is hooked into google directly as it is their AI and is free to use)
Now go to upload defaults. Here we are going to setup a template for posting.
If you are constantly linking information like a website, community, a Patreon we can do it once here and never have to do it again. You can add things that will be in every description or title so they automatically populate. More importantly below that is tags for the video. Prefill this in with your channel tags again. When you upload a video you will replace as many as you can that are more relevant to the video, how ever the rest will be autofilled saving you a lot of time and frustration. Set visibility to Private. This way you can upload your video have it fully render on Youtube and then control when you release it. Putting a video in private keeps the algorithm timer from starting. This gives you time to double check things, and even upload ahead of your post schedule.
Now save your channel settings.
Step 5:
Channel customization
This is where you get to set your handle, channel name if you have to change it and channel description.
Chose your @ for your channel. This use to be how you got your channel short name now it does not have requirements so lock it up right away. Your link going forward would then be http://youtube.com/@channelname or whatever you choose to set.
Channel description is where we start getting into a weird dilemma. With a little logic we can have it work for us. Just takes sometime to get a really solid description. We want to be as keyword friendly based on your channel tags as possible however, the first 14 - 15 words we need to be catchy if someone is reading it. Channel descriptions show up on top of the channel page and only show the first 14 - 15 words before fading out then requiring a person to click. 99% of people will never click so that first sentence needs to be readable and catchy and we can worry bout the keyword rich text after.
Don't underestimate a channels description!
If you have completed your channel trailer which I highly recommend and I make all my clients do, you can add it in layout.
If you do not have a channel trailer put either your most relevant, most popular or the best representation of your channel possible. Having no channel trailer will hurt the overall growth of the channel.
Step 6:
Verify your account. Just get this out of the way. They just need to verify its a channel owned by a real owner. Your going to need to do this for monetization down the road anyway but it also unlocks all the channel features. Don't put this off. It literally takes 30 seconds if you do the facial recognition. Now if you add any channels under that email address, all channels will be verified instantly.
Optional
Step 7:
Install Youtube studio on your phone. You want an easy way to monitor your videos growth and channel growth and a way to respond to comments on videos.
Step 8:
Planning for a YT manager/moderator. Start building a list of people you trust to help keep your channel clean in the comments.
When your channel starts getting larger you will want some one to help monitor the comments for spam and scammers. Every so often YT goes through a ban wave of channels that do not moderate their comments. They take the stance that the channel is the responsibility of the channel owner.
If you notice your getting the same spam over and over you can add some of the keywords in the spam to a filter list that will automatically block the comment, however you do not want to limit legitimate comments. This is where eventually having people help you moderate the comments will be more beneficial in the long run.
I have created a tool to help with Scripts, Titles, Description and Tags
If you would like an AI that handles the SEO/Algorithm for your videos check out the AI Tools post on this wiki to learn more.
AI Tools | Channelyzer Wiki