Need Advice Has Anyone Hit Rock Bottom, But Finally Succeeded?

[Mark2022F]

Hi. Let me start out by saying I don't really know what I'm looking for from the community. It's a cry for help, but I don't think anyone could really help. Maybe some sort of relatable experience from someone who has been through this but finally succeeded?

My wife and I have been trying to get traction on our YouTube channel since last March, and it's destroying her. She's made over 150 videos (I write a bunch of the background music), and spent hundreds of hours on this, but nothing is working to get views and subscriptions. And worst of all, the topic is so saturated, searching never finds our channel unless we enter the full name of the channel. She puts her heart and soul in creating these videos, and it is so utterly painful to see her so disillusioned and depressed about it. She thinks she's a failure. (It's been one attempt after another at so many different things, and her luck has been horrible for the most part.) I told her it has nothing to do with her, and that she's doing everything right that she could. She works so hard. And she's been trying for decades make a living from her incredible artistic talents. She's universally praised for her work, and has a pretty large following on Facebook, but when she posts links to the videos, Facebook suppresses it because it takes people away from Facebook. So having a large following doesn't help at all.

I don't know what else to do. She got so excited when so-called YouTube experts (won't name names right now) were describing and instructing how this type of video is so popular and a great channel to start with, and how to start it. I've never seen her so discouraged, and it hurts so much, especially seeing her so hurt. It breaks my heart.

We've done everything we're supposed to do. Everything. We've read a half-dozen books, watched dozens of tutorial videos, took courses, used TubeBuddy, etc. We only ever get subscribers when we run ads. And even that is just a handful at a time. People who see them, like them, but the YouTube algorithm completely ignores its existence. It seems like such a crap shoot, and since we didn't start years ago, we've lost the chance to make our own mark. I feel so lost now, and I don't know how to lift her spirits about this (or anything) anymore. It was supposed to be fun and exciting, yet it's brought on so much more pain.

Thanks for listening.

 

[Stanley | Team TB]

DM me a link to the channel, I'll take a look for you

 

[MattCommand1]

Hi Mark,

Your post is very timely and heartfelt. I would be interested in seeing the channel if you want additional feedback. You can also message me the channel link.

Having said that, one thing that I rarely see anyone discuss is that launching a YT channel to monetize is actually an entrepreneurial endeavor. As such, one should have or adopt an entrepreneurial mindset tackling a YT channel.

And here is the ugly truth about entrepreneurial endeavors, most of them fail especially if you have had no experience launching a business, project, etc. Very few people are successful launching on the 1st attempt. Many entrepreneurs usually have many setbacks and failures before succeeding but very few ever talk about that. There is a mental resilience, fortitude, and outlook that should be adopted which is part of the entrepreneurial mindset.

The feelings your wife is expressing is one almost every passionate entrepreneur encounters. They put everything they got and things don't work. In the physical world, that can mean closing shop. However, on YT it can be different. You can simply step away for awhile to recharge your batteries, you can restart the channel, or start an all-new channel. Or it is possible, that she has to give it up especially if it is taking such an emotional toll. Being disappointed is natural but it seems her emotional state is more than disappointment.

Because you are doing outreach, there is a chance you can save the channel. @Stanley OrchardBuddy has good eyes and he will provide you lots of great insights. But fortunately or unfortunately, your wife will have to execute. And sometimes you can be doing the right things but the execution doesn't resonate. In my view, the extreme emotions you write about is concerning to me. My gut instincts say that you guys need to step away for a while to recharge your batteries but also to rethink how you approach this. Being passionate is commendable but right now, the current emotions don't seem to lend itself well to creating positive results.

I am not an "expert" but I am knowledgeable and I know where to go get info and insights. I recommend you get Derral Eves book and subscribe to Derral Eves channel. You should also visit competitive channels that your wife admires. What you are trying to do is "get a feel" of what works and what doesn't.

People often say YT is a marathon, not a sprint. But in the YT marathon, is perfectly permissible to take breaks to sleep, rest, recharge, decompress, etc. If you don't do any of this, no amount of YT advice is going to help you.

YT can be mentally and emotionally taxing for a creator. That is the underlying foundation before you can get any good YT-specific advice. It sounds like you got a lot of good info from various experts. But ultimately, you have to be at your best to execute. Getting others to see your channel will allow you to see blindspots. Sometimes, we are too close to the work.

Having said all that, I would be willing to look at the channel to give my 1st impressions.

 

[Mark2022F]

Hi Mark,

Your post is very timely and heartfelt. I would be interested in seeing the channel if you want additional feedback. You can also message me the channel link.

Having said that, one thing that I rarely see anyone discuss is that launching a YT channel to monetize is actually an entrepreneurial endeavor. As such, one should have or adopt an entrepreneurial mindset tackling a YT channel.

And here is the ugly truth about entrepreneurial endeavors, most of them fail especially if you have had no experience launching a business, project, etc. Very few people are successful launching on the 1st attempt. Many entrepreneurs usually have many setbacks and failures before succeeding but very few ever talk about that. There is a mental resilience, fortitude, and outlook that should be adopted which is part of the entrepreneurial mindset.

The feelings your wife is expressing is one almost every passionate entrepreneur encounters. They put everything they got and things don't work. In the physical world, that can mean closing shop. However, on YT it can be different. You can simply step away for awhile to recharge your batteries, you can restart the channel, or start an all-new channel. Or it is possible, that she has to give it up especially if it is taking such an emotional toll. Being disappointed is natural but it seems her emotional state is more than disappointment.

Because you are doing outreach, there is a chance you can save the channel. @Stanley OrchardBuddy has good eyes and he will provide you lots of great insights. But fortunately or unfortunately, your wife will have to execute. And sometimes you can be doing the right things but the execution doesn't resonate. In my view, the extreme emotions you write about is concerning to me. My gut instincts say that you guys need to step away for a while to recharge your batteries but also to rethink how you approach this. Being passionate is commendable but right now, the current emotions don't seem to lend itself well to creating positive results.

I am not an "expert" but I am knowledgeable and I know where to go get info and insights. I recommend you get Derral Eves book and subscribe to Derral Eves channel. You should also visit competitive channels that your wife admires. What you are trying to do is "get a feel" of what works and what doesn't.

People often say YT is a marathon, not a sprint. But in the YT marathon, is perfectly permissible to take breaks to sleep, rest, recharge, decompress, etc. If you don't do any of this, no amount of YT advice is going to help you.

YT can be mentally and emotionally taxing for a creator. That is the underlying foundation before you can get any good YT-specific advice. It sounds like you got a lot of good info from various experts. But ultimately, you have to be at your best to execute. Getting others to see your channel will allow you to see blindspots. Sometimes, we are too close to the work.

Having said all that, I would be willing to look at the channel to give my 1st impressions.

Thank you so much for your taking the time to respond.

We've run our own companies in the past (which are now defunct), but she didn't have the same emotional response. It centered around software. I think she's taking it very personally this time, because she's used her artwork in many of the videos.

I'll send a link in a DM.

I really appreciate this. Thanks.

 

[Damon]

Yeah, I'll take a look at your channel as well. I can best help with the videos themselves. Shoot me a link to your channel.

Yup, it's devastating. My current channel is my third channel. It's best to identify an audience first, then find a commercial application for your artistry. Things like art and education long to be free from market force dynamics, two great institutions that help check-and-balance the open market.

150 videos is a lot of work. I had a hard time starting my third channel because the other two were unsuccessful. It took a long time to decide to start a third channel. Fortunately it has been my most successful channel. The current channel started with a people group:

• People who want to catch a boatload of fish without spending a boat load of cash.

From there I developed a product: Dad used to make fishing floats for personal use. I improved, adapted the design for faster production, better looking, and more efficient rigging and fishing. Sold those on Ebay and various fishing forums. It wasn't long before customers started to ask about the best ways to rig and fish these. That's when I started the current YouTube channel. It was just a way to serve my current customer base. From there the channel grew, slowly.

Orvis, the long-standing fly fishing company, produced an ad. The CEO and his son went on a fly fishing trip to Cuba, one of these once-in-a-lifetime sort of trips. They shot the ads just like a documentary film. That ignited something in me. I saw a way to blend my love of art, music into something commercially viable. From there I started studying film-making, especially documentaries. Eventually bought a modular synthesizer to compose my own music. That has led to the style of video you see on my channel today.

I say all that as encouragement from a fellow art-minded person. It may take two or three tries before all the elements come together.

We've read a half-dozen books, watched dozens of tutorial videos, took courses, used TubeBuddy, etc.

Let me ask, how many of those books, courses and videos were about video production, film making and cinematography?

 

[Mark2022F]

Yeah, I'll take a look at your channel as well. I can best help with the videos themselves. Shoot me a link to your channel.

Yup, it's devastating. My current channel is my third channel. It's best to identify an audience first, then find a commercial application for your artistry. Things like art and education long to be free from market force dynamics, two great institutions that help check-and-balance the open market.

150 videos is a lot of work. I had a hard time starting my third channel because the other two were unsuccessful. It took a long time to decide to start a third channel. Fortunately it has been my most successful channel. The current channel started with a people group:

• People who want to catch a boatload of fish without spending a boat load of cash.

From there I developed a product: Dad used to make fishing floats for personal use. I improved, adapted the design for faster production, better looking, and more efficient rigging and fishing. Sold those on Ebay and various fishing forums. It wasn't long before customers started to ask about the best ways to rig and fish these. That's when I started the current YouTube channel. It was just a way to serve my current customer base. From there the channel grew, slowly.

Orvis, the long-standing fly fishing company, produced an ad. The CEO and his son went on a fly fishing trip to Cuba, one of these once-in-a-lifetime sort of trips. They shot the ads just like a documentary film. That ignited something in me. I saw a way to blend my love of art, music into something commercially viable. From there I started studying film-making, especially documentaries. Eventually bought a modular synthesizer to compose my own music. That has led to the style of video you see on my channel today.

I say all that as encouragement from a fellow art-minded person. It may take two or three tries before all the elements come together.



Let me ask, how many of those books, courses and videos were about video production, film making and cinematography?

Thanks! I'll DM you the link. Our YT channel is mainly music-focused. There are hundreds of similar channels, but we *thought* we could do it better and more consistently. My wife has an artist's perspective when combining her images with some animation, as well as some PD video clips and then her own videos ($$$$$). She started using background music from YT's library, but wanted us to do our own, so she pointed out a MIDI controller on Amazon. I never, ever wrote music before, but I figured I'd give it a shot. Bought one in late May, 3 days before my 60th. Had GarageBand on my Mac, started playing around with it, and music started pouring out. Turned out I was pretty good at it. Must have been a dormant skill for decades. Then I graduated to Logic Pro, and I'm obsessed. One good thing that came out of it -- I write music now, and released my first album in November Writing code after work used to be my hobby. But I needed to use a different part of my brain after work, and now I know what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life. I always wanted to do something in the music field. Never, ever, ever thought it would be making my own.

Hours, and hours of video courses (DaVinci Resolve, GarageBand / Logic Pro, music theory, animation), and books on making a YouTube channel with the goal of making it a career. My wife did learn a new skill spending so much time in DaVinci. She's been a photographic artist for years (Photoshop wiz as well), and this was a next step for her. We also spent $$$$$$$ on video cameras, new iPhones mainly for video...

 

[Theory Guitar]

Thanks! I'll DM you the link. Our YT channel is mainly music-focused. There are hundreds of similar channels, but we *thought* we could do it better and more consistently. My wife has an artist's perspective when combining her images with some animation, as well as some PD video clips and then her own videos ($$$$$). She started using background music from YT's library, but wanted us to do our own, so she pointed out a MIDI controller on Amazon. I never, ever wrote music before, but I figured I'd give it a shot. Bought one in late May, 3 days before my 60th. Had GarageBand on my Mac, started playing around with it, and music started pouring out. Turned out I was pretty good at it. Must have been a dormant skill for decades. Then I graduated to Logic Pro, and I'm obsessed. One good thing that came out of it -- I write music now, and released my first album in November Writing code after work used to be my hobby. But I needed to use a different part of my brain after work, and now I know what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life. I always wanted to do something in the music field. Never, ever, ever thought it would be making my own.

Hours, and hours of video courses (DaVinci Resolve, GarageBand / Logic Pro, music theory, animation), and books on making a YouTube channel with the goal of making it a career. My wife did learn a new skill spending so much time in DaVinci. She's been a photographic artist for years (Photoshop wiz as well), and this was a next step for her. We also spent $$$$$$$ on video cameras, new iPhones mainly for video...

Could you send me the link as well. I am also running a music channel.

 

[Mark2022F]

Sure... here it is: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFqrEUcPswe7njNEWDqHsRQ/

What channel is yours?

Thanks.

 

[Theory Guitar]

Sure... here it is: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFqrEUcPswe7njNEWDqHsRQ/

What channel is yours?

Thanks.

Its called Theory Guitar I have only been doing it for a couple weeks now. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7ZM52ujmxf_yak1z9Lqo3g

 

[FilipFIXtiger]

Hi. Let me start out by saying I don't really know what I'm looking for from the community. It's a cry for help, but I don't think anyone could really help. Maybe some sort of relatable experience from someone who has been through this but finally succeeded?

My wife and I have been trying to get traction on our YouTube channel since last March, and it's destroying her. She's made over 150 videos (I write a bunch of the background music), and spent hundreds of hours on this, but nothing is working to get views and subscriptions. And worst of all, the topic is so saturated, searching never finds our channel unless we enter the full name of the channel. She puts her heart and soul in creating these videos, and it is so utterly painful to see her so disillusioned and depressed about it. She thinks she's a failure. (It's been one attempt after another at so many different things, and her luck has been horrible for the most part.) I told her it has nothing to do with her, and that she's doing everything right that she could. She works so hard. And she's been trying for decades make a living from her incredible artistic talents. She's universally praised for her work, and has a pretty large following on Facebook, but when she posts links to the videos, Facebook suppresses it because it takes people away from Facebook. So having a large following doesn't help at all.

I don't know what else to do. She got so excited when so-called YouTube experts (won't name names right now) were describing and instructing how this type of video is so popular and a great channel to start with, and how to start it. I've never seen her so discouraged, and it hurts so much, especially seeing her so hurt. It breaks my heart.

We've done everything we're supposed to do. Everything. We've read a half-dozen books, watched dozens of tutorial videos, took courses, used TubeBuddy, etc. We only ever get subscribers when we run ads. And even that is just a handful at a time. People who see them, like them, but the YouTube algorithm completely ignores its existence. It seems like such a crap shoot, and since we didn't start years ago, we've lost the chance to make our own mark. I feel so lost now, and I don't know how to lift her spirits about this (or anything) anymore. It was supposed to be fun and exciting, yet it's brought on so much more pain.

Thanks for listening.

I hit Rock T0P, Thank You very much!