Technical aspects

Hey guys !

I wanted to write a short article to talk to you about the most technical aspects of the Youtuber's life. I won't be long as I don't have many technical knowledge, but I still needed to tell you one very important thing : never, never forget the quality of your video, technically speaking. 

A beautiful picture

You have to make a beautiful video. If the light is yellow, or if you have a bad camera, people won't like watching your videos. If the quality of the picture is bad, why would I watch a video instead of listening to a podcast ?

Antoine Blanchemaison has recently bought a drone, it makes beautiful pictures.

A good sound

You need to have a good microphone, buying a real one is the best. We have to hear you without making an effort. 

A good rythm

You need to think about the whole structure of your videos. To know what will happen, what you will say. If you don't, it will be boring and not dynamic. It's like shooting a movie. The film directors know all the shots they want to do. Maybe you don't have to be that precise for Youtube, but you have to know precisely what will happen and what you will talk about in your video.

A good background

It's also very important. Admire the background of this video. The sun, the beach, the light... you are more likely to be convinced before the waves than before a cupboard.

Don't forget editing ! 

Editing is essential for at least three reasons : 

1) To cut all the hesitations, long moments of silence during your videos. It makes them more fluent, more impacting. Only the editing will prevent you from being boring, even if your oral communication is great. You have to cut all the superfluous moments of your videos. 

2) To add nice elements on your videos, that will appear on the screen : 

3) To add musics in your videos. For example, in Antoine Blanchemaison's vlog, the music is really an added value to his video. We are under the impression we are watching a movie or a real report. 

Still not convinced ? 

Well, here you can see one of the first videos made by Tibo Inshape.

We must admit he has made progress ! Which videos do you prefer to watch, the most recent ones, or this one ? For my part, the choice is made !

How to build your identity

People like authenticity, humor or serious but captivating subjects, "motivation" videos, but, above all, they like Youtubers with their own identity. I think this notion is really the key on Youtube, more than on any social media. I'm going to give you some tips to build your own identity. 

Structure of your videos 

Youtubers' videos often have the same structure. For example, Tibo Inshape always begins his videos with this catcher :

"DAAAMMN les gens, j'espère que vous allez bien, c'est Tibo Inshape et c'est un plaisir de vous parler aujourd'hui !" 

And all his videos end the same way :

"Et surtout n'oubliez pas que VOUS êtes les meilleurs, BOUUUM !"

These sentences are like his trademark. As for Antoine Blanchemaison, he always ends his video saying : 

"Et surtout, reste / restez libres"

And when he interviews someone, he asks him to say it.
These sentences are easy to remember and they reflect the main values of the channel. Many personal-oriented youtubers often begin or end their videos by this kind of strong sentences. 

To finish with, most of their videos often last the same time, but you can vary a little bit. Sometimes it lasts 3-4 minutes, and sometimes it's more between 7 and 11.

A specific vocabulary 

It's not a technique all youtubers use, but it can be really interesting. Tibo Inshape has built his own vocabulary, that we can't really understand if we are not used to watching his videos. For example :

- "Meules énormes" = big "boobs"

- "Petite veine du bibi" = the vein that appears on your biceps when you are muscular and eat well

- "Petite" = a girl

- "Le Temple" = the fitness center

This technique leans on the repetitive comedy. We rapidly can associate Tibo Inshape with these terms, and he makes us laugh. Don't hesitate to build your own vocabulary and invent your  own punchlines !

Oral communication 

The importance of your body language

Maybe it is the most essential aspect. You have to be fluent, and to develop your identity through your verbal and non verbal communication. “Your body language shapes who you are”, that was the title of Amy Cuddy’s talk for TED, and it is so true ! I invite you to watch and re-watch this conference. Paying attention to your non verbal communication is a necessity to succeed on Youtube. You can’t just forget this point, saying “I just want to be normal”. One of Watzlawick's communication axioms is : "one cannot not communicate" : even your non-language is a language, the silence is communication, and if you don’t have any apparent body language, it still means something and reveals something about you. So it’s more wise, instead of suffering your body language, to think about it and choose it. Control the image you reflect.

For that, you can write the script of your videos, of have a plan, but don't read too much ! Or don't read at all if you can. I think Tibo Inshape write all his scripts, and that Antoine Blanchemaison just have a plan. Here is a comment I found on Antoine Blanchemaison's channel :

You can also work on your voice, your tone, on the way you look at your audience (well, at your camera actually).

Youtube = theater ?

Finally, being a Youtuber is like being a movie actor. Do you really think actors just go on the stage improvising ? Do you think they just have to learn their text, and that's it ? No no no. To be a good actor, you have to work on everything. It's the same for Youtubers. What would Simone de Beauvoir say ?

One is not born a Youtuber but rather becomes one... 

What theme for a Youtube channel ?

So, that is the BIG question, the kind of question you can’t avoid. Indeed, to become a Youtuber, you have to know what you will talk about. And no, If you ask me “can’t I talk about everything, one video about something, and then a video about another thing ?”, I will answer a big N-O. Well, obviously it is possible to be original and creative, and not talking about the same thing in each video might be a wise decision. 

But, before choosing to be diversified, you have to create a global identity, to let people associate you to a big, general idea. People like simplicity, rapidity, and they don’t want to make an effort. If you want them to spend their time watching your videos, you’ll have to catch their attention immediately ; and you won’t be able to do that if don’t have a single idea what message you want to convey through your channel.

So identify one, two or maybe three ideas you want to develop. Obviously, some themes will be more difficult to choose than others, as some themes are already very competitive : personal development, fitness, gaming etc. It could be interesting for your to realize like a "market study" around the themes that could interest you, to know how many youtubers already talk about the same subjects, how they do it, how they can inspire you but also how you can differ from them...

Just watch this video, shot by Antoine Blanchemaison, you’ll have some precious advice about what subjects you can choose.

This is the key idea of his video : if you want to find a subject that will interest an audience, you have to find a theme that will fill a specific need, and these needs are the ones presented in the Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Once you have your global theme, you will be able to think about the “sub-subjects” you would like to develop, but, as I said, do that only AFTER having built your identity. It’s very important. Essential. By “sub-subjects”, I mean all the possible variants of your theme, and, secondly, the possibilities of evolution.

This is a non-exhaustive list of themes we can find in Antoine BM's and Tibo Inshape's videos (just click to make the view full screen) :

Globally, they are faithful to the theme of their channel, but there are thousands of possible ways to talk about it. For example, if Tibo Inshape wants to talk about a job interview or a CV, he does, but through the body-building.

So never forget this idea : be faithful to your core identity, and propose videos around it. You can explore very different subjects, don't worry, you'll still have many ideas !

And last but not least : once you have developed the general idea of your channel and what you want to talk about, think about the values you want to develop. It's also essential. It will really reinforce your identity and give a reason for people to follow you. Tibo Inshape wants to keep democratizing body-building, that still suffers from prejudices, to encourage people to do sport, to be inspirational, and he also values humor and auto-mockery. Antoine Blanchemaison, above all, values freedom and, through this idea, independence thanks to the web. If your values are strong, people will find your message more interesting and impacting.

So now you have all the keys you need to find the theme of your Youtube's channel ! Tell me everything : what have you decided to talk about ? What are your values ? 

The importance of working hard

Today, I would like to talk to you about the importance of working hard to become a Youtuber. As I said in my first article, one could think it is easy, that it's only a question of intuition; that making a video is fast and that you don't have to work that hard... 

Well, it's not true. As I watched Tibo Inshape's and Antoine BM's videos, I realized they work really hard. Tibo Inshape makes 2 videos every week, before it was 3. Just watch this video : are you really under the impression he doesn't work hard ? Could you really say he is lazy and that making a video is easy ? No. What we can realize is simple : he works hard, probably more than 35 hours every week. Of course, his job is great and he loves it, but he is still a hard worker. 

Antoine BM makes 3 videos every week, but during almost one year, he made one video every day, from monday to saturday. Here he explains why :

I think now you realize how motivated and passionate you have to be to succeed on Youtube. I think it is more important than your apparent "talent" or your relations... To become a Youtuber, you have to want it deeply, to be really patient, and above all, to work hard.

You don't have the time ? You have a full-time job that leaves you no time to work ? That, dear readers, is not a good reason, it is just an excuse. I suggest you watch this video, made by Antoine Blanchemaison, who tells us how he wrote one article every day (at the time he just had a blog) during an internship that was "hell" for him. 

You have to be responsible, and replace "I don't have the time", by "I don't take the time". We all loose time when we stay a long time on Facebook or when we spend the night watching the TV... Of course, you have the right to be tired and to do something that doesn't need much energy. Of course. But you have to know it's a choice. And when you are tired, when you just want to do nothing, well, during these moments, you will be able to really know how motivated you are to become a Youtuber. If you sit down with a paper and a pen, or your computer, and begin working on your project instead of resting because you are too "tired", then you'll know you are motivated. 

So stop saying "I don't have the time" because we all can find 30 minutes to work on our project. Just try to find them and stop losing time... if you deeply want it.

Good luck everyone, and good work !

Youtube through Tibo Inshape's & Antoine Blanchemaison's eyes

(just click to make the view full screen)

Who ?

I would love to study all youtubers on earth, but I must admit it would be a bit long and boring for you. So I've decided to analyse Youtube in general but through the experience of Tibo Inshape and Antoine Blanchemaison. Their channels will be my examples when I'm going to explain general ideas and concepts. 

Tibo Inshape is a fitness and humor youtuber, who has conquered an audience larger that just persons interested in fitness.

Antoine Blanchemaison is a more personal development oriented youtuber, as his purpose with his channel is to help people gain more freedom and autonomy. Thus, it is more specific than sport or humor.

Why did I choose these youtubers ?

As you may have noticed, the two youtubers I've chosen to study are very different : number of followers, theme of their channel... but they have one big common point : they live thanks to their channel. They earn enough money to live and they don't have a job besides Youtube.

They are very different one from another, but they share specific communication strategies to succeed, and also have specific strategies adapted to their own model. It was interesting for me to study their similarities and differences.

And now...

Now, before reading my articles, I invite you to watch some of their videos, to know better what I'm talking about. It is not indispensable, as I will put videos, but I think my analysis will be more helpful for you if you've seen some of their videos.