A while ago, I wrote a post about YouTube Channel Trailers. They were a relatively new thing then–the idea is to tease your brand-new audience with a hint of what you do on your channel.
The YouTube Channel Trailer has basically one goal: to convert new people into subscribers. The channel trailer is only shown to people who have never been to you channel before, and the idea is to give them a sense of who you are and what you do, and get them to subscribe.
After they subscribe, they see a slightly different version of your channel–one that doesn’t include the trailer.
I made my YouTube Channel Trailer quite some time ago, now. I’m not exactly sure when… YouTube says I uploaded it a year ago, but I know it’s been longer than that. It’s time for me to redo.
So, as I prepare to redo my trailer, I thought I’d do a bunch of research and see what the best practices for a YouTube Channel Trailer were, and share them with you!
UPDATE: I primarily use iMovie to edit my videos, but Canva has just released YouTube Trailer templates that you can use to build your own professional-looking trailer. Check it out here.
Here are some ideas for making a Killer YouTube Channel Trailer:
Keep it short. The sweet spot seems to be around 40 seconds, but you don’t want it to be any longer than 1 minute.
Be yourself. You want the new folks to get a sense of your sparkly personality. Introduce yourself and say a little about your channel and what kind of videos you make. Maybe say a few brief words about your passion.
Include B-roll: To give people a real sense of what your channel’s about, show them. Include clips of videos you’ve made in the past.
Have a sense of humour: Everyone likes to laugh. Include bloopers and general silliness.
Don’t forget a call to action: You can do this in a couple of different ways. By actually asking people to subscribe in your video, and also by using cards & annotations. You can also take the opportunity here to say a little about your channel; like for example how often you publish videos, and on what days.
Here are a few examples for you:
Quick-paced, this trailer for Apartment Therapy gives you a good sense of all the different things that channel does.
Simply Sona’s channel follows the formula for creating a YouTube Trailer really well:
Got any advice for me as I get ready to shoot my new YouTube Channel Trailer? Leave it in the comments below.
