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The YouTube Community Tab is a powerful tool that can elevate your channel's engagement and reach. It's an underutilized feature that, when wielded correctly, can transform the way you connect with your audience on YouTube. Let's delve into how to maximize this feature for your channel's growth.
Understanding the YouTube Community Tab
The YouTube Community Tab serves as an inbuilt social platform on YouTube, opening up avenues for creators to engage with their followers beyond video content. It's a space where creators can share text posts, images, GIFs, and polls directly to their audience. This feature is a game-changer as it allows creators to foster a sense of community and engage with their audience in a more personalized way.
Why Use the YouTube Community Tab?
The YouTube Community Tab is like your channel's personal social media feed. It's a place where you can keep your audience updated, shout-out to fans, tease upcoming content, and gather valuable feedback. It's an excellent tool for audience engagement and provides a platform to connect with your followers beyond video content.
Not only does it add a personal touch to your channel, but it also gives you the opportunity to collect valuable data from your audience through comments and polls, which can help inform your future content strategy.
Getting Started with the YouTube Community Tab
Getting the Community Tab activated on your YouTube channel is a two-step process.
Step 1: Enable Intermediate Features
First, you need to verify your phone number to enable the intermediate features. Here's how to do it:
Sign in to YouTube Studio.
Click on Settings.
Select Channel.
Choose Feature eligibility.
Click on Intermediate features.
Select Verify phone number.
Enter your phone number to receive a verification code via voice call or text.
Enter the verification code.
Step 2: Enable Advanced Features
Once you've enabled the intermediate features, your next step is to enable the advanced features. Depending on your channel's history and status, you might need to go through additional verification.
Option 1: Channel History
If your YouTube channel is active and follows community guidelines, you might already be eligible for advanced features, including the Community Tab.
Option 2: ID Verification
If your channel's history isn't sufficient, you can use ID verification to enable advanced features. Here's the process:
Sign in to YouTube Studio.
Click on Settings.
Select Channel.
Choose Feature eligibility.
Click on Advanced Features.
Select Access features.
Choose Use your ID.
Click on Get email or scan the QR code.
Open the email or QR code link on your phone and select Start Verification.
Follow the instructions to take a picture of your ID with your phone.
Click Submit.
Your submission will be reviewed by YouTube within approximately 24 hours.
Option 3: Video Verification
If you don't have an ID, you can use video verification:
Sign in to YouTube Studio.
Click on Settings.
Select Channel.
Choose Feature eligibility.
Click on Advanced Features.
Select Access features.
Choose Use video verification.
Click on Get email or scan the QR code.
Open the email or QR code link on your phone.
Follow the prompts to record yourself and upload your video.
Again, YouTube will review your submission and respond within approximately 24 hours.
Creating Your First Community Post on YouTube
Once you've accessed the advanced features and the Community Tab is enabled, you can start posting. Here's how:
Sign in to YouTube.
Click the video camera icon in the top right corner.
From the drop-down menu, select Create post.
Type your message in the text box.
Use the icons at the bottom to add text, an image, GIF, poll, or quiz.
Click Post to post immediately, or schedule it by selecting the clock icon or the Schedule Post option.
Make sure comments are enabled in your channel's default settings if you want your users to comment on your posts.
Leveraging the YouTube Community Tab for Channel Growth: 7 Tips
The YouTube Community Tab is a versatile tool that can be used in various ways to promote your channel, increase engagement, and build a loyal audience.
1. Tease Upcoming Content
Use the Community Tab to build anticipation for your next video. Share behind-the-scenes footage or ask your followers a question related to your upcoming video. This strategy can boost engagement and build excitement for your new content.
2. Promote Older Content
The Community Tab is an excellent place to highlight your older videos. You can remind your fans of your past popular content and introduce new followers to your classic material.
3. Shout-outs to Collaborators and Fans
The mentions feature allows you to acknowledge fans, collaborators, or other channels. Use the "@" symbol followed by a YouTube username to mention someone.
This is such a cool way to make someone's day and let your fans know you care about them. You don't always need to do crazy things to show appreciation, a simple @ can often do the trick.
4. Exclusive Content for Subscribers
If you offer paid channel memberships, you can restrict certain posts to your paying subscribers. This can provide additional value to your memberships and reward your most loyal fans with exclusive content.
5. Engage with Your Audience
Boost engagement by asking open-ended questions connected to your content. When users respond, reply to them directly using the reply feature in the Community Tab. It is so much easier to hold actual conversations in the community tab than it is in videos.
6. Utilize Polls
Polls are a fantastic way to gather input from your audience. You can use the information gathered from polls to shape your future content strategy based on your audience's preferences. Polls are excellent data points for your future video or marketing strategy and often receive high engagement from your subscribers.
7. Regular Posting
Like all things in social media, the key to maintaining engagement with your audience is to post consistently between regular video uploads. This gives your audience a reason to visit your page and helps increase engagement without adding to your workload.
Pro Tip: Make 5-10 posts at the beginning of the month and forget about it. This should help you enjoy the comments more once you don't have to worry about constantly making community tab content.
Start Growing Your Channel Today
The YouTube Community Tab is a powerful way to boost audience engagement and channel growth. Whether you're a seasoned YouTuber or just starting, the Community Tab is a feature worth exploring and integrating into your YouTube strategy.
Looking for more ways to grow your YouTube channel? Considering subscribing to my channel where I help creators grow their reach and live their dreams on YouTube.
And if you need help growing your channel? Contact me and we can work together on a plan to make your goals a reality.
Written by Rob Miller
Founder, Creator Essentials
Rob has been on YouTube since 2016 and has worked on dozens of channels and websites, including his own, amassing hundreds of millions of views and hundreds of thousands of subscribers.
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