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You’ve heard the girly man, seen baby Charlie and watched all the edited versions of the fat Star Wars kid. We know what you’re wondering now–why not me?
Agreed. Why not you? You’ve got the voice, the moves, or maybe just the thirst for online stardom. And c’mon, even our professors are YouTube-ing. So as you bask in the suffocating heat of mid-summer boredom, claim your fame by following these simple suggestions.
Despite what she said, length matters.
People. Have. Short. Attention spans. We know that some videos out there are an ungodly eight and ten minutes long, but try to keep your video around two or three. At that, it’s a good idea to have something amazing happen in the first 15 seconds of your video. We’re talkin’ wam, bam, thank you, ma’am.
Audience motion-sickness is a no-no.
Invest in a rinky-dink tripod for your camera. When you’re ready to set your camera in motion (along with your YouTube stardom–hollah!), we love dolly-shots on carts or desk rolling chairs.
Some call it cheap, we call it resourceful.
The obvious thing to do is suggest a fancy schmancy camera and microphone, but if all you have is a webcam, all is not lost. Key in on your lights and sounds. DL.TV’s Roger Chang recommends three light sources for your video, “one key light in front as the primary lighting; a fill light to fill in shadows from a side angle; and a backlight to ensure figures pop out of the background.” If you want to show off a beautiful singing voice, the acoustics in a tiled bathroom will do wonders with your sound quality.
Comment whore.
Put your Facebook addiction to good use. Take advantage of “Posted Items,” “Share a Link” and that “Notes” section where you can tag 30 of your nearest and dearest friends, then let StalkerFeed–oops, NewsFeed– take care of the rest.
You say it’s to keep in touch with high school friends, that you only use it to look at other people’s pictures, and that your friend made it for you, but admit it, you have a Myspace. Post your video in a bulletin, and now you have one more excuse for your place for friends. Leave Tom a link of your vid as a comment. Spam is more than just delectable mystery meat. You get the picture–leave links everywhere.
Lastly, “Video Response” other YouTubers. The secret is out! Half of the walk to fame is via piggy-back ride.
Tags are your best friends.
Be as descriptive as possible in your video title, but exploit the ‘tags’ section. After that, cheat and type in random words that bored viewers search! We personally will watch anything tagged “funny,” “hilarious,” “bored” and “Japenese Game Show.”
More, more, more!
Don’t settle as a one-hit wonder. Rather, leave your audience wanting more than just the video. Content is important, but also remember to be consistent, on-time, and high-quality.
There you have it—the formula for success. All you need is lights, camera, action. But don’t take our word for it. Look to the Cal stars like Marie Digby and the lovable “Milk and Cereal” guys.
Image Source: thms.nl under Creative Commons
How to Become a YouTube Star [PC Magazine]
Earlier: Keep Cool Before School
Comments:
Jul 14, 2008 at 10:33 am
thanks