21 Free Ways To Get More Subscribers On YouTube

Long gone are those days when you would ask your audience to subscribe to your YouTube channel and like and share your videos.

Also, how many people would actually subscribe and like your videos on a daily basis? 3 out of 10?

If you want to grow as a YouTuber, you have to have a solid fanbase who actually learn something from your videos cause that’s when they will subscribe and see your videos daily. 

Getting subscribers and a solid fanbase is no cakewalk. One needs to work hard and be smarter, along with tons of patience (cause building up a community does take long). 

People will not directly start following you. You need to first build trust and rapport with them.

How to do that?

People are only going to trust you when you give them legitimate content in a very engaging way. Your videos need to be attractive, enthralling, and informative. They should give something to the audience. If you’re confused and don’t exactly know the information, you’d better not mention it in your videos; you may get into legal troubles due to it as well. 

YouTube is filled with channels of different niches. And those different niches have plenty of channels on YouTube, like, the food niche; YouTube has so many channels of the food niche, giving out recipes, teaching how to cook, etc. So, in short, there’s lots of competition for every niche on YouTube. And to grow through this competition, one needs to be really good at their skills (which they’ll be showcasing on YouTube and should be able to speak and engage with their audience).  

Whatever niche you’re into, you are going to need lots of followers to prosper. So, what do you do to get more subscribers on YouTube?

How to get more Subscribers on YouTube?

A lot of hard and smart work goes behind earning subscribers on YouTube. In this article, we’ll show you a few ways that’ll help you get more subscribers on YouTube. So, let’s get started!

#1. Optimize YouTube Titles for CTR

Everything starts with a title. And the title does play an important role on YouTube.

So, ready to know how to get more subscribers on YouTube?

Now, imagine there’s a food channel on YouTube named “Seven Savoury Spoons.” 

What would be your reaction when you see this title in your search result?

“Ohhhh, impressive name. #outoftheboxthinking.”

Right?

Now, imagine you have a food channel on YouTube, having this name.

People will have the same reaction that you had reading the name. 

Now, imagine coming across another food channel on YouTube named “EatTreats.” 

There might be so many channels having similar names as above. 

What will happen then?

Firstly, your channel will get lost in the others having similar names. 

Secondly, as this is a common name, it won’t interest people, and they won’t be curious to know what exactly it has, resulting in low profile visits and subscribers. 

And thirdly, this is the most important one, if a person looks for a recipe of, say, patsa on one of the many similarly named accounts and their recipe fails. Another time, when that person is looking for another recipe, he/she will avoid checking your account in the search result, saying, “my last recipe from EatTreats went failed, the channel is useless, wasted so much of my time last time.” all of these foul words for your channel, entirely due to having a similar name as another channel. 

This won’t only cost you one subscriber but many of its other friends and family too due to their negative marketing. 

The same goes for titles. Make sure you give them enthralling names. Having quirky, creative names will itself drive half of the traffic to your channel, all out of curiosity.

So, what do ya think now? Thumbs up for quirky, creative, enthralling channel names?

But just having offbeat and attractive names won’t do. 

You will need to optimize your channel name and video title with SEO. 

Why so?

Because google crawlers don’t watch videos the way they read blogs, they rank a video based on the channel name and video title. If the name and title have the words a person is searching for, then only Google will rank it in the search results. 

So what do you need to do to optimize your channel?

Use your main keyword in the title– Putting your keyword in the channel name or even in the title will help Google bots know what your video is all about. 

Take help from Google Adwords to find out exactly what people are searching for on the web– Try and tackle videos with a perfect blend of low competition and high volume searches.

Don’t make your title too long– Google will truncate the video down 66 characters and will also add ‘YouTube | ’ before the video, taking 10 additional characters. So, your video title should not exceed 50 characters. 

Make your title descriptive- Give your prospective subscribers a sneak peek as to what the video is all about. It will help people know exactly what’s in the video. 

Make the title engaging- quirky titles = more clicks and more clicks = higher rank. 

Avoid using the word “video” in it-  Its [pretty obvious that YouTube is only going to have videos. Adding the word “videos” in your title will only take up more space (and you’ve got just 50 characters) and won’t help you rank higher on YouTubes search engines. While this is true, the addition of word videos may have an effect on normal search engines.

In a nutshell, just learn how to write relevant, catchy, enthralling, and optimized titles for your videos on YouTube. This will give your channel more exposure.

#2. Increase your upload schedule

Tell me, being a viewer, why would you subscribe to a particular YouTube Channel?

The reasons include:

• You love the channels work
• You are into the niche, and the videos help you learn more about it. 
• You just simply love watching the content, maybe because it’s enthralling and engaging. 
• Or it’s your friends/relatives channel, and subscribing to it was just a forceful formality.

Except for the last one, all the other reasons state that you want to take something from that channel, and that is why you’ve subscribed to it. 

So, it’s clear that your subscribers want you to post different videos every now and then, and that’s what keeps them engaged in your channel. 

If you don’t post often, there are high chances that your followers will unsubscribe to your channel cause; obviously, they aren’t getting any content from you. So, you have to be able to keep up with your subscribers’ demands. 

Always remember, 

Consistency is the key to developing a long-lasting relationship with your subscribers. 

It is advised that you release your videos in a timely, recurring, and structured fashion. 

Make a schedule and stick to it. Do not upload videos off that schedule, or it will affect your reputation.

Why go according to a schedule?

Basically, your subscribers know that you post in these particular hours in a day, so they come to see it at that time. It’s like watching a TV series; new episodes released every day according to their regular schedule so that people can wind up the rest of their work and sit and watch it.

This consistency will help you stay engaged as a viewer.

This technique will surely help you get more subscribers on YouTube. 

#3. Add Watermarks to your Videos

This is the most simple and most effective trick to get more subscribers on YouTube. And something that you can do right away. 

YouTube lets you add watermarks to your videos. You can have anything as your watermark, like your name, your channel’s name, or a subscribe picture. 

Anything that promotes your channel and urges people to subscribe to your channel will do the job.

Another benefit of adding a watermark to your videos is that your content remains yours; no one can steal it and tell it theirs as it will have your name on it; so they’ll have to give you the credits. 

And suppose some big restaurant sees your recipe videos daily on another platform and wants to offer you a job as they like the videos, then with the help of the watermark of your name or your YouTube channel name, they can easily approach you on YouTube. So, no setbacks in having a watermark in your videos. 

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#4. Write compelling and optimized video descriptions

Video descriptions on YouTube are not to be neglected. 

YouTube is all about videos, so how does video description matter here? 

If this is what you’ve thought, then you obviously have got the WRONG idea! 

Video descriptions play a prominent role on YouTube too. 

These video descriptions, like descriptions in blogs and other platforms, will help your videos to be found in search engines, along with giving the potential viewers and subscribers an idea of what your video is all about. 

So, make sure your video descriptions are optimized with SEO. Make use of your main keyword in the descriptions as well. And always write a compelling and quirky video description. 

Also, look after that you don’t overdo your video descriptions. Writing long descriptions won’t provide any extra help. Instead, you’ll just waste your time creating and writing such big video descriptions. 

Why?

Because,

Firstly only the first few lines of your description will show up when your video is loaded. 

Secondly, no one is actually going to read so much; they might just read the first few lines and go on watching the video.

And third, you don’t want to tell everything in your descriptions itself; leave some content for people to watch in the video too.

Also, talking about SEO and keyword inception in the video description, using your over-smart brains, don’t put 15 keywords in the description. This is in no way going to help you rank higher on search engines. And in fact, using these over-smart tricks is only going to hurt your chances of even showing up in the search engine results. 

Keep the description natural and authentic to get more subscribers on YouTube!

#5. Consider a collab with your fellow YouTubers

Collaborations are seen reaching new heights in recent times. They’ve gained immense popularity and have only benefited everyone around. 

If you see, earlier, people working in the same niche or other were nothing but competitors. They used to compete with each other, in whatever field, trying to be better than others. This leads to nothing but envy for one other, loathing the other’s success, leaving you languishing. 

But, a few years ago, the word “collaboration” gained popularity. It not only decreased the feeling of envy towards others but also promoted one’s own growth. And this is the sole reason why it’s still trending.

Instead of being jealous and loathing the success of people, everyone must help one another to succeed. 

Collaborations have benefits for everyone!

• It will decrease the feeling of bad competition, jealousy, and loathing.
• It will help people grow together.
• It will make your followers happy, offering them something new.

Having collaborations on YouTube will also help you and your fellow friend connect with a new audience. Your viewers will surely love this extra value they’re getting, and if they like your collab and content, then they’ll even start following you and vice-versa. This is a great way to get more subscribers on YouTube. 

Collabs, for sure, are a win-win-win! 

Collaborate more, grow more!

#6. Consider giveaways and video challenges

Who doesn’t like giveaways?!

Personally, I love giveaways very much. And why should one not? 

Big brands offer giveaways to their customers/followers in return for their loyalty. 

But, in recent times, giveaways have become famous for gaining new followers. 

You can have these giveaways or video contests giving rewards on your channel to gain new followers.               

You can gift anything that you want, like-

A branded T-shirt

Accessories

An OTT subscription

A video game

Diamond Jewellery…! 😛

Whatever it is, people always love to get the chance of getting something for free. And they will also tell their friends and relatives about it (especially if the prize is something very precious and valuable). This will help you reach more and more people. 

You can also have some conditions to your giveaways (easy ones only), like:

• Like, comment, and share your recent videos 
• Ask your followers to mention a few friends in the comments, and in turn, ask them to follow too. 

A few YouTubers, for really big giveaways, ask users to follow all of their social media profiles to enter the contest. 

Also, it’s best if the thing you’re giving away is related to your niche, but even if it’s not, your audience is still gonna love getting something absolutely free.

#7. Interact with your loyal fanbase

Social media is built upon this intangible thread of connecting and interacting with fellow people. 

It’s all about how much you care and show it. 

When you care for someone, the other person cares for you too; the same goes with your subscribers on YouTube. You care for them -> they care for you.

And to show your fanbase that you care for them, interact with them, listen to their requests, reply to their comments, and hear their comments.  

While doing this, you surely will face plenty of backlashes and anger in your comments sections, but you should brush them off elegantly and concentrate on listening to your loyal fanbase. 

Replying to comments and hearing your audience will make your viewers feel connected to you all the time. This will build trust between you and your followers, let them know that you care about them and in turn even they will care for you and respect you, and they may even suggest your channel to their friends and relatives, not just as a formality but because they genuinely would feel you’re great. 

And according to research-based data, heart notifications get 300% more clicks than average, awesome right?!

So, whenever genuine fans and other people leave solid and awesome comments, hook them with a heart. 

This will bring them back to your video and make them very likely to subscribe to your channel.

#8. Do cross-platform promotion

If you want to build a brand, being discoverable is a must. And to be discoverable in this tech era, you need to be active on all the major social media platforms, apart from YouTube. 

While you can always use YouTube ads, Facebook, Ads, Google Ads, Instagram promotions, etc., for promotions but if people don’t know you, haven’t heard of your channel or page before, aren’t aware of your (great) work, then these promotions won’t help in any way. But you can still try them to increase your chances of being seen around the web. 

In fact, being visible everywhere on the web is how successful brands are built.

What cross-platform promotion really means is that you promote the content you post on all platforms. 

So, being a YouTuber, your main platform is YouTube, so if you post a new video, you must promote it on all your other social media platforms too. 

This will help you reach more people across all the social media platforms, thus giving you more exposure. 

You may also choose to post your videos on other social media platforms.

You can also ask for help from your friends to promote your channel. Just ask them once or twice and not more than that. You should not pester people or take any unnecessary obligations from them. They’ll do it if they want to. 

And this is all that you’ve got to do for cross-platform promotions. 

#9. Look after the quality of your videos

While quantity is an important factor, one should not forget to look after the quality of their videos. 

Both quality and quantity should be on point; you should consistently maintain the flow of both. 

You can’t leave one and concentrate on the other or vice-versa. 

What will happen if you only focus on one aspect?

If you only focus on the quantity of videos, people might avoid watching them as it may not have good content quality, and if you only focus on quality, then people might want to unsubscribe as you don’t post often. 

So, you won’t be able to grow your channel, focusing only on one aspect. You need to maintain a balance in both aspects. 

So, while making videos, pour your heart and soul into it and make them at a greater pace, so you’ll have good content quality in your videos along with a substantial amount of them in your bag.

#10. Append your Channel URL with Subscription String

This is another smart way to exponentially get more subscribers on YouTube. 

It may sound new and complicated, but it’s not. 

So, what do you do in this?

You just add an SML magic string in your channel link. So, whenever any user clicks on your link that is attached with an SML magic string, a pop-up will appear on the screen with the subscription icon, which will help people quickly subscribe to your channel. 

Basically, one just needs to insert “ ?sub_confirmation=1 ” in their channel URL link and the jobs done!

SML Magic Strings remove friction and allow users to quickly and easily subscribe to your YouTube channel. 

You can use this YouTube subscription string whenever you add your YouTube channel link on your blog, social media, or any other place.

#11. Embed YouTube Videos in Blog Posts

How is embedding your videos in your blog post going to help?

Blogs are a huge unexplored source of views and subscribers. And they get our videos in front of more people, And not just random people. 

How?

If someone is reading your blog content, it’s clear that they like your stuff. And this makes it clear that they’re primed to subscribe. 

This is why you should embed your YouTube videos in your blog post.

You can have step explanatory videos, how-to videos, etc. Anything that you want and that matches your text can be embedded in your blog post. 

And as you will be showcasing your videos in front of people who are genuinely interested in your stuff and content, you can be sure about a subscription from them. 

Another thing is that videos also help people learn faster, and having them in your blog will help people understand the concepts better. And if they understand and like your blog post and content, they’ll keep coming back to your website and channel. 

So, you’re only benefiting from it!

#12. Turn a Set of Videos into a Binge-Worthy Playlist

Firstly, how is making playlists going to help you earn subscribers?

It will! Sounds weird, but it will. 

Playlists help in keeping your channel organized. You can list a set of videos belonging to the same section and make one single playlist out of it.

This will allow your subscribers to continue watching without having to manually search and click on the next video.

This also is a great way to keep viewers on your channel for a longer time and show them that you’ve got a plethora of (quality) content. 

So go group together similar videos from your channel and create a majestic playlist out of it!

#13. Make the most out of meta tags

A low video count may not always be the result of poor content; it could also be the result of poor discoverability. 

Not being discoverable is the worst thing content creators had to go through at the start, as it keeps their talents away from reaching the word. But, keywords and other tags solved this problem a long time ago by giving them the needed exposure even at the beginning. 

But, keywords alone can’t do the work alone, and that is why meta tags came in to help!

Meta tags are basically snippets of text describing a page’s content. These tags don’t appear on your main page but are present in your website’s page source code. These small descriptions help search engines know what the page content is all about. 

This is why metadata is considered to play a prominent role in getting your videos displayed in search results. 

You can research them on the internet or look for them in some well-converting videos to get a brief look at them.

So start with your research work right away!

#BONUS. Create YouTube Shorts

https://youtu.be/9EJIH8kxTn8

YouTube’s short-form video creation tools are available in India and the U.S. We’ll continue to add more features and enable more countries over the coming months. In the meantime, creators outside of India and the U.S. can still get started creating Shorts by uploading vertical videos up to 60 seconds and including #Shorts in the title or description to help our system recommend your Shorts across YouTube

#14. Create Evergreen YouTube Videos

Evergreen, as you all might be aware of, refers to something that is timeless, and that can be used anytime.

By saying “creating evergreen videos,” we mean making videos that will remain relevant today and five years later in time. 

For example, a video on hair care will come under evergreen videos because the process for it is going to remain the same now and five years later. New ways may emerge, but that doesn’t mean the old ones are going to end or change. Even how-to videos, recipe videos, etc., come under Evergreen YouTube Videos.

Now, what doesn’t come under Evergreen YouTube Videos?

Videos on marketing strategies, educational videos (as the curriculum/chapters may change), etc., don’t come under evergreen videos as their methods, etc., are bound to change in the future. 

So, go on making evergreen videos to generate more and more subscribers. 

#15. Look For Popular Keywords on YouTube

Keyword research on YouTube?

Yes! You read that right!

YouTube is the second largest search engine globally, so there’s going to be some relevant data on it. 

So, how do you do the keyword research on YouTube?

You simply enter what you’re about to post; suppose you’re posting a nail art video, you can start by typing terms like “nail art,” “purple nail art,” “nail extension art,” etc., depending upon the color and other items the videos consist of. 

Typing these terms in the search box will show you an umpteen number of results/ suggestions, and you can choose a few from them. 

The more different terms you put in the search box (may or may not relate to the video topic), the more concise keyword suggestions you’ll see. 

And why should you go for these keywords?

These terms (or keywords) appearing in the search results tell us that more people are searching for these terms when they want to see something of the niche. And would help us avoid making videos on terms that are least searched for by people. 

If you’re going to post lots of content consistently, you’re going to need lots of keywords relating to the same niche, so search wisely and use almost every keyword that you think might be fit for your content type.

And you can always make use of other keyword generators like Google Keyword Planner, YouTube Analytics, etc., or tale inspiration for keywords from other popular YouTube channels (of the same or relating niche, ofco).

#16. End your videos by mentioning which one you’re working on next 

Subscribing to YouTube channels is often regarded as an act of anticipation. Viewers who’ve just seen what your brand is about are primed to want more of it if you’ve done the job right. 

If people like your content, they’ll always want to come back to you.  

Telling people what you’re working on next at the end of your video will leave them curious about it, and they’ll end up subscribing to your channel to get notified as soon as you post your next video. 

This is considered the most organic way to get more subscribers on YouTube.

So, next time you upload a video, make sure you promote the ones that are to be aired in the future too. 

#17. Use YouTube Cards

After YouTube Annotations, YouTube cards are the best way to engage your audience. And the best way to get more subscribers on YouTube too. 

You see an “i” icon in our videos on YouTube?

Have you ever tap-opened them?

If you have, then you might know what’s in there, and if you haven’t, I’ll explain. 

The “i” icon has other videos in a type of a suggestion format. 

And that’s what a YouTube Card is all about!

YouTube cards allow you to attach a URL, a video, or a playlist, polls, or other content in your video in order to increase interactivity during your video. 

One is allowed to add up to five cards to their video. 

However, viewers will need to click on the “i” icon, and then too, they’ll only be taken to the video or the link you’ve attached and not to your channel, and no subscriber box will pop up. 

Still, it’s a good way to promote your content.

#18. Host Interviews 

Interviewing people or relating to your niche can help you fetch a good number of subscribers on your YouTube channel. 

And this technique will work better if you’ve got a decent number of subscribers on your YouTube channel already. 

And even if you haven’t, your low subscriber count should stop you from using this method. 

Interviewing people will attract their audience to your channel, thus increasing your subscribers.

Try and see how it works with the big names from the niche to get more subscribers on YouTube.

#19. Target Topics that People are searching for

YouTube allows you to see topics that are trending all over the world in its Trending Tab, in Explore. 

You can even find the most searched topics on YouTube in the search box as it gives suggestions for the most trending topics. 

These topics, shown in the search box and in the trending tab, are the most searched topics by people across the world. 

You can seek ideas from these topics and make a video of your own on your YouTube Channel. 

Creating videos that are tending will fetch you more views and thus more subscribers. 

Not only this, your video will have more shares, and it might even become trending. 

Creating videos on trending topics will help your channel stay up to date with the world, and people love watching what’s new and trending. 

So, start making videos on topics that are trending, in your niche, or overall!

#20. Use YouTubes Clickable Tools in your videos

Using clickable tools in your videos will help you high time to get more subscribers on YouTube. 

Wanna know how?

YouTube clickable tools help you convert your viewers into subscribers. 

You see those CTA buttons of “subscribe now” at the end of your videos? Those are the clickable tools you can add to your videos. 

They are known as “End Screen.” These still images appearing at the end of your video remind your viewers to subscribe. 

As these buttons pop up right after your video ends and before youtube takes them to another video, they are good CTAs to get more subscribers on YouTube, especially because there’s no guessing work involved in it. 

You can even add these “End Screen” to your existing videos; this will be a great way to start converting viewers into subscribers right away from your existing content.

#21. YouTube Thumbnails

Thumbnails are the most critical aspect of your video that determines whether a viewer will play your video or not, so you’ve got to make it beyond creative and engaging. 

These mini movie posters persuade viewers to click on your videos. These are a great way to get more subscribers on YouTube. 

There exist various types of thumbnails ranging from simple to creative to extraaa creative. 

Like, 

For a video talking about aliens, one can simply add a picture of an alien

OR

A picture of an alien on some foreign planet with a UFO

OR

A picture along with a text in it (this is the most creative way, but don’t just insert any text)

You can even choose to heavily edit your thumbnails; if you aren’t a good editor, you may choose to hire someone who’s a pro at it. 

You can even have a consistent design, font, color palette, and composition for your thumbnails, which you’ll use for every video. This will show your branding and will make people aware that they’re watching a video from your channel, at least subconsciously. 

That was all for now!

In the End

Ignoring the potential that exists on YouTube is a huge mistake. 

Hardships are a part of life, and you find them in everything you do. So running away is not a solution.

Likewise, buying subscribers because you don’t have a good amount of them is NOT A SOLUTION. 

To organically gain subscribers, you have to have good content on your channel. After you’ve got a nice, clean, and helpful channel, wait for people to watch your videos, and subscribe because they like your content. You may even promote your channel to reach more people or use any of the above-mentioned ways to get more subscribers on YouTube. 

So, just create exceptional content, and that’s all that you need to get more subscribers on YouTube. 

Good content always keeps the audience engaged and viewers coming back for more. 

So, get started NOW!