Creating a successful YouTube channel is a huge undertaking. That’s why many people give up a few months in. And even those who stick with it for a few years often feel stuck and clueless about how to grow their channels.

Here are two examples of YouTubers who are feeling stuck:

In the YouTube Facebook groups I’m in, these questions seem to be more the norm than the exception.

But what can you do if you’re in this situation yourself?

One thing you could do is search for YouTube advice in forums, blogs and directly on YouTube. However, most of the YouTube advice out there is pretty vague, or written by people who aren’t qualified to give advice (that’s why I always try to stick to my personal experiences on this blog).

Another option is to get a professional consultation. In the last few years, quite a few companies have popped up that are specialized in YouTube consulting.

The problem: Those are expensive.

I’m talking $500 per hour to several thousand dollars per month.

And while that might be a valid option for a profitable business, as a small YouTuber, you might not be able to afford that (I couldn’t!).

That’s where “30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel” by Tim Schmoyer comes in.

What’s that?

“30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel” is an eBook that was written with the purpose of helping YouTubers of all sizes build a better, more successful YouTube channel. It is a step-by-step guide and contains 30 chapters (plus 9 bonus chapters) that will give you detailed information on what to do every day to raise your channel to the next level.

Who’s the author?

If you have looked for YouTube advice before, you might know Tim Schmoyer already. On his channel Video Creators he publishes multiple videos a week that cover everything related to growing your YouTube channel.

Here’s one of his videos (he has over 700!):

While watching videos like this can certainly give you ideas for your channel, you might benefit from a more systematic and in-depth approach. And that’s exactly what you’ll find in Tim’s book.

The content

What the book is about

30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel is basically a step-by-step approach to improving your YouTube channel. The book is divided into 30 chapters (and 9 bonus chapters) that each cover a different YouTube marketing topic, for example YouTube collabs or playlists. Then, Tim tells you how to make the most out of this specific aspect.

While you’re going through the book, you are learning how to build a better brand, communicate your image better and attract the right kind of subscribers. You also learn how you can promote yourself and be found more often in the YouTube search engine - all stuff that you need to know when you want to build a successful channel.

When Tim Schmoyer named his eBook “30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel” he wasn’t kidding. This book is 100% focused on helping you build your channel and become a more successful YouTuber.

What the book ISN’T about

Having said that, I should mention what this book isn’t about: Producing videos.

If you’re mainly looking for a guide to improve your video lighting, learn some slick editing techniques or want to know how to upgrade your YouTube equipment, this isn’t the book for you.

Instead, 30 Days focuses on everything that comes before and after you’ve produced a new video: YouTube marketing.

Actionable

My favorite thing about 30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel is that every chapter is highly actionable. In fact, every chapter is followed by a list of tasks that need to be executed to complete the chapter. Of course, you can skip the tasks (it’s a book after all), but what would be the point of that?

Here’s an example of such a task from the chapter “Playlists”:

“First of all, let’s ensure that the metadata for all your playlists is up-to-date and optimized both for reach and retention. Optimize the titles and descriptions of each of your playlists, especially the playlists that are displayed on the front of your channel. Give them titles that are especially descriptive and enticing for new viewers. Also, consider updating some of them to be a series playlist, too, if you don’t already have some of the playlist’s videos in other playlists.”

Resources

Each task section is followed by a number of links to different articles about the respective topic. This is great when you want to dive deeper into a topic and don’t know where to start.

Bonus Chapters

One thing I want to mention is that, while the book title refers to “30 days” there are actually 9 bonus chapters in this book that focus on the topic of audience development. That was definitely a nice surprise and gave me the feeling that Tim really wanted to pump this book full of information.

Can you really do everything in 30 days?

While the book is called “30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel”, it might take longer than 30 days to get through it - and that’s okay. In fact, I see this book more like a workbook that you can apply continuously over a few months, and that you even can come back to one or two years later.

Since your channel and your idea of your channel grows with you, there’ll be always something to work at.I could imagine, though, that getting through this book in 30 days would be a fun challenge (maybe even a fun challenge to vlog about!).

Why not just use free advice?

When it comes to advice, lots of people are skeptical about investing money. You can find advice on any topic for free on the internet, and even YouTube itself offers countless training videos in its YouTube Creator Academy.

While free advice is great, it is usually harder to implement. Free articles and videos don’t give you a whole system that will help you create change.

30 Days might just be an eBook, but it is constructed like a course: When you go through it and just complete each task step-by-step, you will have a significantly better channel at the end.

There’s also a hidden cost to free advice: Time. I don’t mean the time you need to read and implement new information - that will always be required. I mean the time you spend searching for better tutorials, articles and videos and weeding through a lot of lower qualitycontent. This is time you could spend actually improving your channel!

The price

At $29.95, this book comes at a relatively high price compared to eBooks of comparable length. I can see how this could be a deal breaker for many younger people who are already struggling with buying basic video equipment.

The question is: Is YouTube really the thing you want to do? If it is, 30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel can help you with that. If you’re not so sure, or if you have other priorities right now (like buying video equipment), maybe you don’t need this book right now.

I personally think buying 30 Days was a great investment. Basically, if anything in this book helps you make more than $30 in the long term, spending the money was worth it. And if you use the information in this book to grow your channel substantially, you might be able to make hundreds or thousands of additional dollars.

FAQ

Q: Who is this book for?

Tim says on his website that this book is for absolute newbies as well as YouTube veterans. I agree with that for the most part, but I would say that it is probably most helpful for YouTubers with a subscriber count of less than 100,000.

Q: What’s the book format?

The book comes in a PDF format that can opened by any type of computer, tablet or phone.

Q: How long is the book?

It is 137 pages long (but it might also depend on the reader you’re using).

90 day guarantee

If you’re not sure whether 30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel is right for you, it might be good to know that there is a 90 day money back guarantee. That is enough time to work through the book three times or take 3 days to complete each chapter - and still get your money back if you feel that the information didn’t help you.

Want to have a look inside?

On Tim’s website you can download the first three chapters of the book for free. That’s perfect for getting a better impression!

Still have questions?

Let me know in the comments or shoot me an email at anna@whyvideoisgreat.com!

Have you bought this eBook? I’d love to hear your opinion in the comments!