If you still don’t know how to create a YouTube account for your business, it’s not too late to get started.
But for businesses on the fence about video marketing, we’ve almost reached the point of “now or never.”
The numbers don’t lie: YouTube’s growth is unparalleled when it comes to traffic, revenue and a rabid user-base that just can’t get enough of video content.
The good news? The options are seemingly endless for brands regardless of their target audience or budget.
Want to create bite-sized commercials to attract customers? Check.
Looking to educate your target audience with how-tos and tutorials? YouTube’s gotcha covered.
Heck, just want to go behind the scenes and show folks what life is like at your business? Totally fair game.
That said, you’re going to need to figure out how to create a YouTube account if you want to take advantage of the platform. Before hitting “record,” it pays to understand how to set up and optimize your channel properly. You will find that with proper optimization, viewers will come rolling in!
If you’re a total newcomer to YouTube, don’t sweat it. The process is relatively straightforward and creating your channel only takes a few minutes.
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In this step-by-step guide, we’ll break down how to create a YouTube channel for businesses of all shapes and sizes.
Here is a high-level overview of our six key steps to follow when creating a YouTube account:
How to Create A YouTube Business Account
- Sign into an existing Google account, or create a new, dedicated account specifically for your YouTube business account.
- Once you’ve created your Google account, make your way over to YouTube’s homepage.
- On the YouTube homepage, click on the avatar icon within the top right corner of the screen.
- Click on “My channel” from the drop-down options.
- For personal YouTube account creation, input your first and last name into the required fields. For YouTube for Business account creation, click “Use a business or other name” which will lead you to a screen where you can enter your brand’s name.
- Click “Create” to activate your new YouTube account.
Now that we have outlined the YouTube account creation overview, let’s dive deeper to walk through each step:
First thing’s first. Before you can get started on YouTube, you’re going to need a Google account.
Now, you can either create a new, dedicated account specifically for your YouTube business channel or use an existing, personal account.
Creating a new login is often ideal as you don’t have to worry about security issues tied to your personal Gmail. This is also a good idea if you’ll be sharing the account with others. Ultimately, the choice is up to you.
As a side note, you don’t have to use your business’ name when creating a Google account. YouTube gives you the option to use a business name or your own, which we’ll cover shortly.
Once you’ve created your Google account, make your way over to YouTube’s homepage. To begin customizing your channel, click on the avatar icon on the top right corner of the screen. Click on “My channel” from the drop-down options.
You’ll then be prompted by the following screen which asks for your first and last name. Notice that YouTube also gives you the option of using a business or product name for your channel as noted earlier.
Unless you’re a solo business owner that wants to be associated with a personal brand, creating your YouTube channel as a dedicated brand account makes more sense.
Click “Use a business or other name” which will lead you to a screen where you can enter your brand’s name. The name you choose will be the one associated with your YouTube brand account.
And presto!
Pretty simple, right?
Now that you know how to create a YouTube account, it’s time to make your channel a bit less bare-bones. Below we’ve outlined the steps to fine-tuning your channel to attract attention from viewers and search engines alike.
Filling out the details of your YouTube business account
There are many moving pieces to any given YouTube channel, but the following information will represent some must-dos for brands.
Click on the “Customize Channel” link. You’ll be presented with the following screen which clues you on what your channel needs to appear more complete.
Channel icon and artwork
Before anyone actually views your video content, make sure that you’ve crafted imagery for your channel that clicks with your brand. Just as you have a dedicated icon and banner for the likes of Facebook or Twitter, YouTube is no different.
The dimensions for YouTube images are as follows:
- Channel icon: recommended as 800×800 pixels, displays as 98×98 pixels
- Channel banner: 2,560×1440 pixels, safe area for mobile and web (without text and logo cropping) is 1546 x 423 pixels.
Since these dimensions are relatively large, you need to use high-res images rather than pictures that could get cut off or distorted. This is where resources such as Canva are invaluable as you can craft such images in a matter of minutes thanks to their ready-to-go templates tailor-made for YouTube channels.
Let’s start with our channel icon. When you go to change your icon for the first time, you’ll be provided the following prompt.
Meanwhile, updating your channel art results in a straightforward image upload screen as well.
When uploading your creatives, YouTube provides you with a preview and cropping option to make sure nothing gets cut off. This might take a bit of trial and error to get right, but doing so ensures that your account looks professional.
And here’s the end result of updating our sample channel’s imagery after whipping up a couple of quick examples in Canva.
Hey, not too shabby!
There is no blanket approach to YouTube images – this means you have plenty of creative freedom with your channel. Here’s a beautiful example from Mint, including a minimalist logo and cartoony banner which are both in line with their branding.
It may take some experimenting to get your YouTube business channel’s images to your liking, but taking the time to make your channel aesthetically pleasing is definitely worth it.
However, your YouTube channel isn’t quite 100% yet: it’s time to fill out some key details.
Channel description
Easy to overlook, the “About” section of your profile is a crucial piece of figuring out how to create a YouTube channel that actually results in long-term leads and followers. Not only is this a place to make a personal impression of your viewers, but also funnel them to your social profiles or homepage.
Channel descriptions don’t have to be rocket science, though. A brief mission statement or welcome message is all that’s really necessary. If you want to include a few links or a call-to-action, go for it.
Oh, and don’t forget to add a business email as an extra point of contact.
The last piece of your description is arguably the most important. That is, adding in links to your homepage, social profiles and any other places you’d like your YouTube traffic to land. Including these links increases the chances of your traffic becoming long-term followers of your brand.
YouTube allows you to add up to five links and customizable hyperlink text up to 30 characters.
After filling out the description, the end result looks something like this:
As an added bonus, YouTube adds your site’s social links to your channel banner to make them even more accessible to viewers.
Your description isn’t a place to stuff keywords, but rather let your viewers know the purpose behind your YouTube business channel and what you’re doing beyond the realm of YouTube.
Featured channels and activity
Just like any other social network, YouTube represents a community. Signaling yourself as an active participant in the community means following other channels, liking other videos and letting your viewers know that you’re involved in your industry.
Highlighting featured channels and “liked” videos is a subtle way to show your fellow YouTube creators some love. Likewise, it’s a smart strategy to make your YouTube business channel appear more active if you don’t plan on uploading frequently.
Which channels should you feature and “like,” though? While there are no hard and fast rules about who to engage with, stick to these pointers:
- Highlight industry leaders and influencers (hint: but not competitors)
- “Like” the content of companies or creators that you admire or find entertaining yet relevant
- Avoid any content that could be perceived as controversial or otherwise unrelated to your business
On that last point, try to keep things strictly professional in terms of activity on your YouTube business. If you want to “like” the latest Taylor Swift video or leave a comment on a political video, do so on your personal channel.
In your channel settings, make sure to have your subscriptions and “liked” videos set to public so viewers can see them.
Your “liked” videos and subscriptions will be featured across your various profile tabs, which helps complete your profile.
Now that your profile is ready for action, you can upload your first video and start publishing.
How to create a YouTube account that’s fully optimized
Once your account is filled out, the ongoing process of optimizing your channel and content is the final piece of the puzzle. We’ll briefly touch on some tips that encourage new viewers and traffic once you’re ready for your first upload.
1. Include a channel trailer
The best place for creators to start for video optimization is by creating a channel trailer. Such videos are meant to introduce first-time viewers to your channel and ultimately outlines the type of content they should expect. These videos are typically less than a minute long and serve as a supplement to your channel’s “About” page.
Short, simple and to the point, this trailer from Animoto is a great example.
And here’s what a channel trailer looks like on the sample channel we put together earlier.
2.Optimize your YouTube channel
Each video you create is a new opportunity to score viewers and subscribers. It might be cliche, but every creator has the potential to blow up over time if they’re crafting the right sort of content that resonates with their audience.
Here are some key aspects to pay attention to when optimizing your YouTube channel:
- Relevant keywords and phrases in the titles and descriptions
- Crafting custom captions and transcripts that make your videos easier for YouTube to crawl
- Creating unique thumbnail images that catch the eyes of potential viewers
- Tagging your videos to make them show up in relevant search queries
Sound like a lot of work? Maybe so, but after getting the hang of uploading and creating content for your YouTube business channel, the fine details of optimization quickly become second nature. You can read a more comprehensive list of our YouTube optimization tips here.
How to promote your YouTube business channel for the long-term
It should come as no surprise that video content represents some of the most engaged-with on social media and the web at large. As a result, you can’t take an “if you build it, they will come” approach to growing your audience.
Whether through social scheduling, commenting on other videos or running ads, finding new opportunities to promote your YouTube channel should be a top priority of any budding creator.
With the help of Sprout Social, you can schedule your content and cross-promote it to social media all within one platform. Additional features such as ViralPost can ensure that your content goes live at the optimal time. This approach to promotion maximizes your potential for engagement no matter what channel you’re boosting it to.
And with that, we wrap up our guide on how to create a Youtube account!
Do you know how to create a YouTube channel that draws in viewers?
There’s no denying that mastering YouTube takes time. However, the initial setup of a new account is relatively straightforward. By sticking to the tips outlined in this guide, your channel should be up and running in no time.
We want to hear from you, though. If you’ve been struggling with your YouTube business account, what’s been holding you back? Any surprise success stories with your channel? Let us know in the comments below.
