3 Tips to Define Your YouTube Audience & Create More Strategic Content

Jun 12

The most unrealistic expectations business owners have about YouTube? All you need to do is post videos and people will flock to you. No extra effort needed.

That couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, posting and ghosting is a surefire way to keep yourself from the results you want.

What you actually need to do is build a strategy for defining and connecting with your target YouTube audience. Because the honest truth is that if you’re not showing up consistently, and you’re not getting specific about WHO you’re talking to, it’s going to be near-impossible to grow your YouTube channel.

So let’s dig into how you can define your YouTube audience, so you can start using the platform like the lean, mean, lead-generating machine it truly is!

Why defining your YouTube audience is so important

One thing to keep in mind about YouTube? It’s social media. So get social and build connections.

Building a loyal and engaged audience is key to expanding your YouTube channel and increasing your reach. Without a clear strategy, it’s going to be hard to attract new viewers, and then keep them engaged and coming back for more.

But with a YouTube strategy, you basically put your content on the bullet train to your audience. And when your content is in front of the right people, views turn into leads and eventually, sales!

Now let’s get into how you can do that.

YouTube Audience Tip #1: Clearly define who they are

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If you’re talking to everyone, you’re actually talking to no one. Talking to the masses means you’re just tossing your content out into the void, letting it get lost in a sea of other people’s opinions, advice, etc.

If you don’t stand out, you won’t attract the right people. That’s why you need to clearly define who you’re talking to.

If you’ve got your business up and running, you probably already have a good idea of who this is. Your target audience should be the people who you want to work with, the people you’ve niched down to serve.

Now, if you don’t have enough clarity on this yet, whether it’s because you’re a new business or you’ve recently decided to pivot, there are a few questions that can help you figure this out:

What are your ideal client’s interests?
What are their pain points?
What kind of solution would they be looking for?
What are their key demographics (are they working parents, young professionals, etc.)?

Step into that person’s life, what they like to do, and what they’re looking for so you can get specific.

Why niching your YouTube audience isn’t enough

Yes, you need to narrow down your audience. But you also need to be specific about what you want to talk about.

I could say that my target audience is small business owners with digital products, but that covers a HUGE range of people. It’s better than just saying “small business owners,” but there’s still no indication in that niche that they would be the people who would like MY content.

So brainstorm what other topics your audience would be interested in (that fall in line with the main content).

For example, if they’re a business coach, they’re looking for business and marketing strategies, but they probably also want time management and productivity support. That means you could say you’ve niched down to small business coaches who have a lot on their plate but have a hard time balancing it all.

Do you see what I mean? It’s all about understanding your audience and creating content that connects with them. So don’t be afraid to get specific!

YouTube Audience Tip #2: Find out what they’re watching

A good indicator of what your audience wants to see? What they’re currently watching on YouTube.

I always tell my clients that if they’re creating content on YouTube, they need to consume content as well — and in this case, it’s for some good ol’ research.

What are other people in your niche doing? What kind of videos are they creating? What are people engaging with and responding to? Look at their most popular videos to see what topics your audience is enjoying and see how you can fit that into your own content plan.

Now, this isn’t permission to copy them, but you can use it as a guide for what your audience wants to see.

YouTube Audience Tip #3: Fake it ‘till you make it

It’s just like Taylor Swift said in one of the BEST songs from The Tortured Poet’s Department… ”Babe, you gotta fake it ‘till you make it” and I did!”

That’s exactly what you need to do with your YouTube channel! You need to show up in every single video like you already have a full house watching you, waiting to hear what you have to say.

You need to act like you’re Taylor Swift and have a packed stadium on the Eras tour!

Listen, I know when you don’t have the channel size, the views, or even the traffic you want, it can be discouraging to keep showing up. But again — you gotta fake it ‘till you make it!

Your audience is out there and they’re waiting for content like yours. If you do your research and create what they need (not just random videos you feel like creating), give it some time and they will find you!

Get a plan together to define your YouTube audience

Now that you know the best ways to define your target audience on YouTube, you need a plan to set it all into motion!

But let’s not overcomplicate this — you don’t need to pull out all the stops to make that plan. I know YouTube can feel pretty intimidating, but the trick is to keep it simple.

Scratching your head thinking about how? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!

Check out my on-demand workshop, How to Simplify the YouTube Process, where I’ll show you how to keep YouTube as simple as possible while still helping you reach your people!

It’s also completely free and ready to watch RIGHT NOW — grab your seat here.