All About Blogging and Vlogging

Do you ever find yourself spending hours on the internet watching other people do cool stuff on say, YouTube, through creating their own quirky shows and becoming stars? And are you interested in doing the same? Well, you can. There’s no doubt that digital media is popping these days – so many people are calling themselves bloggers and vloggers, and for good reason.

With technology and the internet so readily available for users these days, it’s as simple as pointing a camera at yourself and making magic on screen. Not interested in people seeing your face all the time? Then how about starting a blog where you can write whatever you want? If you’re not sure how to go about doing this, we’ve got some awesome advice for you:

One of the most popular sources of vlogging is YouTube where users can track the number of views and build up subscribers. It takes a lot of marketing to get those views up. But starting is simple. All you have to do is sign into YouTube, go to settings and create a channel. Remember to think of a catchy brand name – and if you’re stuck, use your own name so that people can easily identify you.

Also, when you enter information in your channel description, make it interesting and add links to other social media platforms to make it easier for people to find you. As YouTubers The Fine Brothers said: “Don’t steal or just copy other people’s tags, descriptions, or titles for your video” as it’s “not a good approach for attempting to become connected to a YouTube influencer”.

Feel like you’re as creative as can be? Create a logo for yourself and set it as the banner for your channel – want your face on it? Even better. Just remember to keep it high quality. If you can’t do it by yourself, hire a professional designer who knows the ins and outs of coming up with a great brand name/logo. Also, ask the people around you if it’s any good – after all, it’s your image that is on the line at the end of the day.

Content is plenty – use what you have around you to create your videos. Bring out your personality – people want to see who you are, not an imitation of other people. Also, your aim is to make a point about something – not start an entirely new television show. Keep your videos short – about five minutes or less will do, because not everyone has the time or concentration span to watch long clips. If you’ve got a lot to say, go slightly longer. Oh, and have a subscribe link at the end of your videos.

Obviously not everyone has a studio to do their vlogs in, but the more popular your vlog becomes, the more you will be able to invest in better camera equipment and lighting.

Blogging is so artistic because it gives you the freedom to write whatever you want, and keep people intrigued with what you have to say. A reading culture is needed in a country like Namibia and if the publishing world is not ready for you just yet, why not create a blog and talk about your daily life?

Ideas may be hard to come by, but just like vlogging, there’s a lot to say about what’s happening around the world. Figure out who your audience is. Are you looking to inspire children? Or do you feel that your target is more the upper class crowd? The more you understand who you’re writing for, the better your blog content will be.

Not sure how to get people who subscribe? Create an email list which consists of people you can send your updated blog to every time you come out with something new – much like a newsletter. And perhaps you’ll get recommended more to other people and the list will grow longer than ever before.

Even if you start out writing for yourself, there’s always someone who’s going to read your blog. So treat them as your friend and engage with them if you can. Give your blog time to grow, though. You can’t get 500 people reading in a day on your first try.

And most importantly, don’t forget to stay consistent in what you do! The moment your interest dies, so will your subscribers.

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