Consistency is Key!

When I first became a travel YouTuber, I often ran across an argument around whether consistency or quality was more important for fast channel growth. Unfortunately, I did not understand that the question itself lacked nuance and was often answered by people who didn’t understand the nuance. Both the question and the answer left me with unhelpful information that had a big impact on how I chose to grow.

The conclusion I have come to after being a YouTuber since July 2020 is “both” are important, but primarily because I believe “consistency” is not truly understood.

What is CONSISTENCY?

When most people think of consistency, they think of frequency. “If I post every week, I am being consistent,” and “If consistency is more important than quality, my channel will grow.”

The first problem with this argument is that there is a base level quality that needs to be met in order for consistency, when referring to how often you publish a video, to work. If you improve your quality with each published video, you will eventually get to that base level of quality, but the reality is those videos leading up to that base level may actually hurt your YouTube Channel long term. You may accidentally start a negative feedback loop with the algorithm, which is hard or even impossible to escape.

The “Negative Feedback Loop”

At the end of 2021, I went through a massive topic pivot which killed my channel. After speaking with a consultant, I realized that I was stuck in a negative feedback loop.

You see, the algorithm was being signaled that my videos weren’t very high quality because I had a bunch of videos on an old topic which had brought in the majority of my followers. Those followers weren’t watching my new videos on a new topic and also a higher quality because they weren’t interested in the new topic and had too many low-quality videos to trust me. This signaled to the algorithm that it shouldn’t push my videos outside of my own audience. Because of this, I couldn’t reach a new audience. Because my videos were consistently performing bad, any potential new audience that may have gotten an impression on my video was also less likely to click it because low views signal bad quality, even if that’s not the case. With each new video, the negative feedback loop continued. I was stuck.

This was all in theory and it could have been that my videos sucked, but evidence and the YouTube consultant suggested otherwise. I decided to launch a whole new channel to test the theory. Now, I have a video on my new channel that is my biggest video in over 8 months across both the new and old YouTube channels, and I can see that the algorithm is sending it on another spike just today!

Those are watch hours by the way, not views.

What’s even more amazing about this is only 3.2% of all views on my new YouTube channel come from my old YouTube channel. I know this by looking at external sources, referring videos, and search terms related to my new or old name. This is all the algorithm pushing the video – no advertising or old followers making this happen!

The negative feedback loop is a real risk that you should be aware of. But, as a lot of YouTubers will tell you, Just Start if there is a risk that not pressing ‘publish’ would cause you not to get started in the first place. Alternatively, if you can get yourself motivated to make videos that you know you will never publish, I would argue that getting yourself to a base level of quality FIRST is a better way to set you up for success and prevent you getting stuck in a negative feedback loop with the algorithm.

The Consistent EXPERIENCE

Beyond consistency with regards to the frequency with which you post your videos, consistency is about the EXPERIENCE. According to one source, the average person subscribes to approximately 40 channels. So that is 40 different experiences people are choosing to have. Viewers choose which YouTube channel(s) to watch on any given day based on how they are feeling, what they are currently interested in, and what they are trying to learn. Their preferences change throughout the weeks, months, and years.

When a person chooses to watch your travel vlog, it’s because they felt a certain way and had preferences which aligned with what your YouTube channel provides.

A problem arises, though, when your YouTube channel doesn’t provide a consistent experience, and therefore, the viewer doesn’t have a clear understanding of what emotion your travel vlog will provide them (because it’s all about emotional experience). I gave an example in the last article of a how-to-fix-your-boat channel that later switches to being an explore-by-sail channel. If I, as a viewer, were on this channel to learn about fixing boats, I would not stay with the new topic of exploring because that’s not why I came to said channel. The channel is no longer providing the experience I came to expect.

Big Pivots versus Small Pivots

What I have described in the last paragraph is a big pivot that a lot of us may be forced to make. And if that is something you foresee, then I recommend reading this article on how to pivot your YouTube Channel topic.

But consistency in experience goes beyond big and obvious pivots such as previously described.

On my former YouTube channel, I was often doing yacht deliveries. At the same time, I was processing the hell of a year 2021 had thrown at me. Half of my videos were me just having fun while sailing, and the other half were these deeply emotional and personal videos pouring my heart out. Even within one video, I would have these deeply peaceful or exploratory moments, and the next minute, I was telling people about some scarring trauma. While deeply cathartic (and arguably worth the lessons I learned about YouTube), people didn’t know if they’d be crying or laughing on my channel. There wasn’t enough consistency throughout the videos themselves either!

If people come to your channel for sailing, what experience should they expect? Will they always leave inspired to sail like when they watch SV Delos? Will they feel calm and introspective like when you watch Christian Schaffer? Will they leave feeling resourceful and having learned something like with when they watch Free Range Living?

Trends Are Out

A common way lack of consistent experience finds its way into our travel vlogs is when we are tempted to follow trends. Following trends can be a consistent strategy in itself, but I would be mindful if that is what will work for your YouTube channel goals.

You see, there is a scenario that I have seen over and over again, and which I also fell into: I did my research. I looked at successful topics of big YouTube channels. I looked at the YouTube trending page. I used a private browser to see what video topics pop up under the search term, “sailing”. And then I created those videos in hopes that I would also blow up.

This was all common YouTube advice distributed by people NOT in the adventure and travel sphere. And surprise surprise, it didn’t work.

One example is when I created listicle style videos. They brought in heaps of new viewers at first.

But then….

Because the listicle style didn’t align with the storytelling style I had established on my channel, nor did I continue the experience of the listicle style for the new viewers, few of those viewers turned into subscribers, views quickly plummeted, and the algorithm stopped pushing the listicle videos in search. I wasn’t providing a consistent experience for either my old or new viewers, which caused the total “session time” of both the old and new viewers to plummet.

Side note: I would argue “session time” is singlehandedly the most important metric to make your channel grow.

Unless following trends is part of your channel goals, then just don’t. Create your channel goals, create a brand that supports that, and then FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS.

Stay Put, Adventurer

The other way consistency is necessary is with location, which I am sure a few of you will rear your heads at. “We travel way too much to be consistent in location!!!” I hear you, but hold on!

​Eva Zu Beck, my favorite YouTuber of all time is a fellow adventurer, and yet she remains consistent in her location. If you open up Tubebuddy and look at her top keywords, the search term she most highly ranks for is “Unusual places”. True to that keyword, she consistently goes to unusual places.

Consistency can exist within inconsistency.

As you move around in your travel vlog, have a think about how you can provide consistency in where you travel or what you visit along the way. I promise, there is a way to provide consistency within your inconsistency!

Takeaway

I know I am a record on repeat, BUT THAT’S BECAUSE OF HOW IMPORTANT IT IS. Staying consistent in all forms I have mentioned starts with knowing your goals and branding.

Right now, I am in the midst of this as I am home in the USA (I normally live in New Zealand). I need to record an episode, but being in New Zealand is a big part of my brand. I am having to actively think about how I can relate my adventures in the USA with my brand of being in New Zealand. The majority of my new audience have found me via the keyword, “New Zealand”, so if I don’t keep that theme going, I am going to break expectations.

Remember, we’re here for the long-haul, which means not jumping on short term gains that won’t benefit us in the long run.

Stay curious! 🙂