Category overview, What’s working – Google YouTube Creator Playbook Guide Sports User Manual
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Category Overview
What’s Working
While sports channels on YouTube continue to experiment with finding new ways to succeed on the
platform, there are some proven, high-level techniques and strategies that have worked in the category.
Building a Strong Brand
On YouTube, building a strong brand is important for every category or content
vertical, but in the sports world, it is absolutely crucial. Build a brand that viewers know as a home for the
best clips or most insightful commentary. Successful sports channels frequently take advantage of an
established personality, team, league, or brand. So, if you are part of a well-known brand, use it! Example:
.
Capitalize on Tent-pole Events
If your channel doesn’t have direct access to an established brand or
personality, don’t worry. Many sports channels find success in other ways. One way is to capitalize on major
tent-pole events or connections to well-known brands. Example:
Frequent Video Uploads
The majority of successful sports channels have another thing in common -
frequent video uploads. Keeping sports content fresh is key to driving a loyal, sustained audience. In fact,
many of the top sports channels on YouTube upload more than 100 videos per month! Uploading frequently
has its own challenges, since you do not want to overwhelm your viewers. Effectively organizing your
content and activity feed is key
Building Content for an International Audience
Many sports have a global audience and YouTube allows
you to reach viewers from all around the world. Effective use of captioning, annotations, and metadata can
open content up to audiences in many countries and many languages
Read on for more details about best practices for sports channels on YouTube.