The Secrets of YouTube Success – 2012 Edition

In March 2011, I wrote an article entitled “The Secrets to YouTube Success.” For those of you who read it, you were probably disappointed to learn that there really aren’t any secrets – in short, it’s about defining your goals, listening to your audience, and making quality content.

Those fundamentals haven’t changed – but a lot of other things have. YouTube changed how their partnerships work – the only gatekeeper now is an algorithmic one. In addition, there are a slew of “Networks” like Machinima, Maker, Revision3, etc. who are looking for talent to sign on and fill their rosters. There are gigantic funded channels now, some of them created by YouTube Partners, some of them created by Hollywood production companies, dedicated to making online content. In short, there’s a whole lotta new stuff that affects content creators we want to discuss.

So the following is the article, updated for the state of online video in 2012. This our advice to aspiring YouTube content creators (and online video makers in general) who are clawing at recognition and success, based on our own experiences as well as numerous conversations with other YouTube partners.