How To Grow On YouTube As An Expert w/ Vishaal Virani | Youtube Health

Vishaal Virani: [00:00:00] There is a gap there, a gap in terms of information, which the doctors are then, I say doctors, there's nurses, psychologists, pharmacists, all sorts of different healthcare professionals on the platform. They are trying to plug that gap. And actually...

Amardeep Parmar: And we're live. Today we have with us Vishaal Virani, who's the head of UK Health at YouTube. If you're joining us for the first time, we're the BAE HQ and we're all about helping British Asians succeed. This lab podcast was focusing on a particular topic. And for this episode, it's about how experts can start and grow on YouTube.

Amardeep Parmar: So this is something that Vishaal is very passionate about. So Vishal, why is this the topic you picked? Why is this so important to you? 

Vishaal Virani: Well, I mean, this is what I've been living and breathing for the last couple of years. Pleasure to be with you today. Um, so we are growing a community of what we call clinician creators on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: So healthcare professionals who have so much expertise that they are sharing [00:01:00] with their patients one to one on a daily basis, and then taking that expertise To YouTube so that they can provide that same information that so those same insights at scale to the entire YouTube viewership within the UK, but also globally, and the reality is there is a massive dearth of that expert health content out there, and I would say it's probably similar for other topics as well, where you have anyone and everyone can talk about 

Vishaal Virani: health, can talk about a particular health condition, but there are very few people who are properly qualified. And so what we're trying to do is bring those really qualified folks out of their shell, get them onto the platform, get them creating content, figuring out which topics to focus on, helping them to become more engaging with the audiences.

Vishaal Virani: And,and so, you know, that that's something that I think has a lot of value for them as individuals, but also for the audiences.

Amardeep Parmar:  And like you said, because I think traditionally, I [00:02:00] think back in the day before on YouTube is the people are willing to be silliest or have say the biggest personalities, they're going to do the best.

Amardeep Parmar: But like you said, sometimes this can create content where it's not actually as useful for the listeners as it should be the watchers. It should be. And even from like a personal perspective, it's really great to know that comes out, you should be doing that because I want the information I watch on YouTube to be relevant and be by experts.

Amardeep Parmar: Right. And like you said, a lot of experts, you said about them coming out of their shell and I see it now quite often where a lot of experts, maybe they think like, Oh, I know what I'm talking about, but I'm not that kind of person who would get on YouTube. I'm not that kind of gravitas. And with the people you work with, what's that kind of common journey, right?

Amardeep Parmar: Is it people who really want to go on YouTube or is it more almost the thing of a mission based ideal? It's like, they know that there should be. their message should be out there and they can help a lot of people. Where does the average person come from? The average expert, [00:03:00] what's their motivations? 

Vishaal Virani: So I would say there's probably in the, in the health field specifically, from what I've seen, there's a couple of motivations.

Vishaal Virani: One is definitely the point you made about having an impact, being able to share the information that they have, that they know with others at scale. And so, you know, that is addressing a problem that they see day to day in their clinics where they only get the sort of 10 minutes, 15 minutes with their patient.

Vishaal Virani: They can't possibly cover everything about that topic. So then typically what a doctor will do will be like, well, here's a link to the NHS website or here's a leaflet. Go away and read that. Or if they were feeling very generous, they might say, okay, Oh, why don't you book another appointment with me? But hey, when you, when you call the receptionist and try and do that, you realize it's going to be two months before you're seeing that doctor again.

Vishaal Virani: So, you know, there is, there is a gap there, a gap in terms of information, which the doctors are then, I say doctors, there's nurses, psychologists, pharmacists, all sorts of different healthcare professionals on the platform. They are trying to plug that gap. And actually, I think it also, a lot of doctors and [00:04:00] healthcare professionals get into the, the, the business of, of healthcare because they want to help

Vishaal Virani: people. And so they can now do this at scale. So I think that motivates them, but it's also a creative outlet. So, you know, you don't get to be that creative in medicine. Yeah. The guidelines are the guidelines. You've got your protocols. If this medicine has been approved, then you use it. Otherwise you don't, you don't go off piece.

Vishaal Virani: Whereas when you're on YouTube, obviously that the advice that giving the kind of health care expertise is very much strictly adhering to the guidelines, but the manner in which you deliver it. So the formats you might use animations, you might use a voiceover approach. You might go for a short where there's lots of different visuals popping up on the screen.

Vishaal Virani: You might have, um, a fully silent video with music, uh, playing and you're kind of dancing the, uh, the advice. And there's all sorts of different things that are out there that the health are experimenting with on the platform, and I think that sense of creativity that they get being on the platform for them is very exciting.

Vishaal Virani: It breaks up the day job. Um, but but, you know, ultimately, [00:05:00] we get into this more later. There is, of course, massive value their presence on YouTube. Does ultimately lead to some incredible opportunities off platform for them. And so as they get bigger and bigger on YouTube, I think that then becomes more of a motivating factor for them.

Vishaal Virani: It's like, okay, now that I've built my brand, but my presence on YouTube, what, what can, how can I leverage that? 

Amardeep Parmar: Let's say somebody listening right now is thinking about like, I want to start on YouTube. I'm an expert in a specific area. I can, I know that I can add value, but 

Amardeep Parmar: they're scared of getting that first video out there.

Amardeep Parmar: What would you advise them? Like, how do you think is the best idea for people to just get started and just get the reps in there at the beginning?

Vishaal Virani: Yeah, so, so, you know, I think there's a, there's a couple of things I'll say. First is you really need to figure out, probably there's three things. First is you need to figure out why you're doing it.

Vishaal Virani: Just like anything else in life, you're starting a business. You're gonna go and take a new job, uh, start a family, whatever it is, there has to be a rationale for why you are doing it. Um, and, and so, you know, listing out the two or three, I wouldn't have loads of objectives, but maybe the one, two, or three objectives you have for being [00:06:00] on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: Um, the things that will motivate you or keep sustain you on those really difficult days when you've just spent three, four hours creating, editing a video, upload it, and one week later, two people see that. Um, you know, so you really need to nail that down from the start. I think the second thing is you really need to figure out what your niche is going to be.

Vishaal Virani: Uh, what's your angle? What are you going to talk about? What's your, and what we always talk about is your, your spiky, um, your, your kind of, you know, what's your spiky area, the area where you are just so good and sharp that you stand out from everyone else basically. Um, and so you then want to double down on that because there is a lot of content on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: There are a lot of creators out there. Um, and so you want to, you want to sort of figure out exactly what you are an expert in and can deliver really high quality content on. And then the third thing is just get out there and start experimenting. So the, the beauty of it is. If it's not very good, no one's going to watch it.

Vishaal Virani: So it doesn't really [00:07:00] matter either way. When it starts getting good, then people will watch it. And then you're like, Oh, it's getting good. People are watching it. And then you do more and more and you get even better and better. So actually it's a, it's a really nice kind of welcoming environment that way.

Vishaal Virani: Um, uh, the, the reality is people are not out to get you when you make your first video. They don't even have a clue that you exist on the platform. So I think you have an opportunity with your first five, 10, 15 videos. to really sort of experiment with the lighting, with the audio, uh, with the type of room that you're doing this in, the exact formats of content that you're going with.

Vishaal Virani: So definitely it's a real opportunity, which you don't get in other walks of life always to just put some stuff out there and see what sticks, what doesn't, and you're not going to be causing any harm either way. There are a lot of resources on the YouTube website that you can, so you can have a look at.

Vishaal Virani: Uh, I think if you type in like YouTube creators, there's a lot, there's a creator website, then I will tell you a couple of channels, which are really useful. So there's a channel called creator insider, and then there's also, I believe a channel called YouTube creators. So both of those are really [00:08:00] good channels run by YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: And, and so, you know, and the other thing is that you could just start connecting with other creators. Um, a lot of them make their information available via the about page. You can just reach out to them. The thing you realize is that as a YouTube creator, it's quite a lonely existence. So when people reach out to you, and they're like, well, can we chat?

Vishaal Virani: I'm also working on a topic, on a similar topic or similar channel ideas. Let's, let's meet up and discuss. And, and, you know, people will be like, oh my God, this is exciting. Because unlike when you're into football or you're into, um, you know, uh, music, you get to meet people at the concert, you get to meet people at, at, um, at a match.

Vishaal Virani: It just doesn't happen with the YouTube, uh, uh, but with the YouTube creator world. So yeah, just reach out to people as well. You know, that would be my advice for getting started. 

Amardeep Parmar: And what's, let's say some people got started and the first few videos haven't done so well. And. They're like, gosh, like you said, there's those hard days of like, why am I even bothering?

Amardeep Parmar: Should I continue? What are some of the mistakes you see people often make in those early days? They maybe get somewhat down the wrong path. And [00:09:00] if they correct those, then obviously it doesn't necessarily lead to instant results, but it just gives them a better opportunity to potentially get there.

Amardeep Parmar: Viewership or the audience that they're hoping for.

Vishaal Virani: There are some real fundamentals that you do need to get right. And I know I said you can experiment with things like lighting and audio, and it's true, but very quickly, you need to learn, um, uh, you know, what, what works. So lighting is critical, actually.

Vishaal Virani: Uh, it doesn't take a lot. So I'm not talking about lots of expensive resources here. I am talking about having, uh, the light in the right place. So, you know, if you need, um, if you've got a room with really nice natural light. That is your perfect solution. If not figure out a room where you can put some, um, put some simple ring lights in as needed, then I think audio is critical as well.

Vishaal Virani: Uh, you can buy a 10, 15 pound microphone, plug it into your phone and you are good to go. You could even use your phone to be honest. Um, but, but, you know, microphone audio, I think is really useful. Ironically video, the actual filming [00:10:00] equipment's less important. The vast majority of people when they're getting started will use their phone.

Vishaal Virani: And actually you'll see some really big YouTubers who are still using their phone. The benefit of the phone is it's always with you so you can create content on the go. Um, and actually that's some of the most compelling content where people are like, Oh my God, something really interesting has just happened.

Vishaal Virani: And I want to tell you guys about it. Um, so I would say that the informal style works really well on YouTube. People are not necessarily looking for that polished production quality, TV quality, um, finished. They're looking for someone relatable. Who is saying that, you know, this is just what's on my mind, and I felt like I needed to sit down and tell you guys.

Vishaal Virani: So, uh, so, you know, you get the lighting right, get the audio right, use your own, use your phone camera to start with, if you like. Um, and then it's little things like framing, make sure the framing's good, you know, so make sure that you are in the middle of the screen. Uh, then the other things I will say is, um, that thinking about the background music, if you're going to have that's really important.

Vishaal Virani: So on shorts, we've got a huge library of music that you can use license [00:11:00] free and so we've sort of covered all the licensing requirements for that. And so, you know, that is one thing to think about. What is trending music right now? So there's that. And then think about the visuals as well. How do you make the whole make the video pop?

Vishaal Virani: So you have a really nice intro screen. You have some, some some visual elements that reinforce the key points that you're making. I think that's important. And then the last thing I will say is really pay attention to, uh, the data. So there's a wealth of data you get in the, uh, in your YouTube studio. So you can look at the, um, exact points in which different people are dropping off from your videos.

Vishaal Virani: So you can, and then you can see the click through rate on your thumbnails. So if it's not working, try a slightly different thumbnail design. You can see how people are reaching your content. If there's certain search terms that they're using, uh, that are clearly very popular and driving people to your content, you can see all the comments that people are leaving on your videos.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and so all of these things together, as well as a wealth of other data that you'll see in your backend, we'll start to paint a picture of what's working, what isn't, but ultimately you probably need a critical mass of 20, 30 videos [00:12:00] before you can start digging into the data because you need to see these few videos worked, but these didn't.

Vishaal Virani: And so experimenting with different formats is really important on shorts. How can I not mention shorts? I mean, I guess everyone's talking about shorts and tick tock, et cetera, these days, but it is a really good way to get started because there are even lower barriers to entry. You can literally use your phone end to end for everything on your phone via the YouTube app.

Vishaal Virani: You can create so many nice green screens, so many visuals, uh, put layer on the music and very quickly create quite a compelling video as a short. Uh, so that's a really good way to start. And then you can move on to longer form content afterwards. 

Amardeep Parmar: It's interesting that, as you said, because obviously, like, I've now made hundreds of YouTube videos, but it'd be interesting to see if you looked at the channel, if you're like, oh, have you done that bad?

Amardeep Parmar: Have you done that bad? Like, what amateur? So it's always interesting to see because there's always levels you can learn. And say, for example, the thumbnails is that we're changing our thumbnail style pretty, pretty soon. So what happens, I think sometimes people don't realize, but they, I think sometimes people their content over people ahead of them.

Amardeep Parmar: But for example, where I [00:13:00] am is that I'm resource strained. So I might not be doing things in the optimum way, even though I know better, just because I don't have the time or the energy to do that right now. And I think that's one of the things I always tell people to be careful about. It's like, look at what other people are doing.

Amardeep Parmar: But don't think that they're doing things in a certain way. And that's why it's working. And you're trying to understand the logic behind it. Like what? Okay. A few channels are doing it this way. Why is that as well? Because sometimes you'll see like different podcast channels, for example, that have similar kind of thumbnails.

Amardeep Parmar: So it's like, what's the psychology behind that? Why, why are they all doing that? And let's say for health content, right. And being an expert in that area is once you've got that little bit of a massive audience, Well, even like beginning mass of an audience, right? Do you find a lot of people in their health space or like, I guess, other experts, they're initially using their clients or their customers or in patients in terms of health or how do they get that neutral traction?

Amardeep Parmar: Is it they put it into the void and hope for the best or where are they getting that initial [00:14:00] user base from? 

Vishaal Virani: Yeah. Yeah. And so just before I address that, um, Um, uh, we're going to do another podcast where I'm going to mark, I'm going to mark your channel. We're going to see, see what's going on on your just your point that you made about imitation.

Vishaal Virani: It's a really good point because actually so many of the most successful YouTubers out there have basically iterated on what is already working. So still with pride in a way now, put your own spin on it for sure. But there is a lot of value to seeing what is already working on the platform. There's such a wealth of data just by searching different videos.

Vishaal Virani: You know, once you figured out your niche, you say, okay, who's already in my niche? Cause someone will be right here. You can't just, just like when you're starting your new product, somebody's going to be somebody.. 

Amardeep Parmar: That only person makes videos about this, this, this, and this, 

Vishaal Virani: right? Yeah. I mean, I'd be impressed, you know, let me know if you think you're the only one.

Vishaal Virani: But, but look what other people are doing and, and, and yeah, absolutely test it out. And, you know, we've got this, uh, AB testing or for thumbnails feature coming out soon, which will be really helpful. You know, you're talking about how you're going to be updating your thumbnails. So I [00:15:00] think that, uh, I think that, that there are ways and means of doing a lot of experimentation on the platform and using the data to drive, uh, uh, you know, the decision making that, uh, for yourself.

Vishaal Virani: So in terms of how people get started in that traction. So to be honest, I don't, it's not like other things where you should necessarily tell a few people. To follow you, to start with because helps you gain traction because ultimately you're then just in this vacuum where those people are not going to be very engaged because what they're going to do is they're going to have subscribed to you to your channel.

Vishaal Virani: They're going to watch one or two videos. It's clear. They're not going to have very high retention because they're probably just like, Oh, let me take the box. This guy said I need to have my friends. I need to click on the video and go watch it for a bit. And that's it. Job done because they're not actually interested in that topic and YouTube will pick up on those signals.

Vishaal Virani: You know, we'll see what the percentage retention rate is on a particular video. I'll be like, Oh, that's not very good. We're not going to continue to suggest this in the algorithm. And so I would actually say almost don't need to tell anyone that you've started a YouTube channel, put it out there and assuming it's a topic people are interested in the, you know, the, the world of [00:16:00] YouTube viewers.

Vishaal Virani: We'll find it because they will search for it. So depending on for a lot of experts who are talking about educational content, your search traffic will come. Your traffic will come from search. It will be coming from people entering a particular query, and then you appearing near the top of the search results.

Vishaal Virani: And so the title of your video ends up being really important. But then making sure that the actual video relates very closely to the title. Now, there are other approaches where people are doing more lifestyle content. They're doing vlogging content day in the life where really they want people to follow them.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and every single one of their videos via subscriptions and therefore on the homepage. Uh, their channel, their content will appear regularly now with experts. There may be certain expert topics where people want to keep coming back to you for more and more, but there may well be cases where actually there's only one or two of your videos that are relevant to any one or two people.

Vishaal Virani: And then there's a different one or two people who find the other videos interesting. So I wouldn't worry so much about saying, Oh, my God, I need to build a community very quickly. [00:17:00] Um, it let it take time. Make sure that you are, you are seeing people coming through to your content from search, because then at least you know that you are dial, you're dialed into the types of things people are looking for, uh, on the platform.

Amardeep Parmar: Hey everyone, I hope you're enjoying this episode so far. The BaE HQ has a podcast, but we're so much more than that. So if you wanna find out about all the events we've got going on, all the different ways you can meet each other as well as resources to help you build the business of your dreams. Then check out the link in the show notes, sign up to our newsletter, where you get a weekly roundup, which we like to call the Bae Letter, that will keep you in the loop.

Amardeep Parmar: If you want to help us out, the best thing you can possibly do is sign up to our newsletter and share it with your friends. So that's enough from me now, let's get back to the show. 

Amardeep Parmar: Yeah, because it's interesting, like you said there, where I think for a long time people considered the number of followers as a a major metric, right?

Amardeep Parmar: But what you're saying there is if somebody's only ever interested in one or two of your videos, then they're unlikely to actually follow you. All your traffic is actually coming from search [00:18:00] and you see it sometimes you actually see like channels with hundreds of thousands, millions of subscribers, but the views of the average video isn't very high.

Amardeep Parmar: And it almost looks worse, right? It's like, why did none of your people care about this? And I guess there's a challenge for people, especially later on when they try to do pivots. It's interesting, like you said, they're like, what? So if you're starting out on YouTube, the real thing you want to be looking out for is that search.

Amardeep Parmar: It's like, Oh, if you're an expert and you're doing educational content, as opposed to vlogging and lifestyle. Obviously one part of that is the title. But let's say you're doing a topic about like how to, I'm trying to think of a good topic related to health here.

Vishaal Virani: No, I was going to say how to, how to check your breasts for, for symptoms, signs of breast cancer.. 

Amardeep Parmar: Yeah And let's say there's already a hundred videos that's on that topic already. And how do you then? If you want to create content around the area, how do you make your video stand out? Or how do you potentially increase the likelihood people click on your video? So obviously you've got the thumbnail and the title, but if there's already [00:19:00] other content there, like if people, experts are worried about saturation, how do they, how do you like enter an industry with maybe there's already quite a few creators?

Vishaal Virani: Yeah, so herein lies a challenge because realistically there's a, there's, there's a very limited shop window that you have for yourself, uh, to be discovered. And really it is; Title thumbnail and then your channel name. It's your little channel icon. So if people are able to see that in the search results, then fine.

Vishaal Virani: It's those signals. Um, and so, you know, it becomes; those things become really important. But then also making sure that when people do click on that video, that that the content is true to the title and the thumbnail is important because that will then maximize the retention on that video and the signals that you should be really using.

Vishaal Virani: Around the likes of watch time. It's less about the number of views. Um, and so watch time is critical. So, so making a video, which is then compelling from start to end is, is, is the real challenge and knowing when to end, you don't [00:20:00] have to prolong the video for longer than it needs to be. Um, so yeah, I would say you've got that limited real estate in terms of title, thumbnail, your channel name, your little icon when, when it comes up in search results.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and, and then it's, um, you know, You know, there's, there's a, so if you can identify some topic areas that you can serialize, that will then help you, uh, get differentiated. I would say collaborations where you are bringing interesting people to your videos can differentiate you again. Um. And, and so, you know, I think that those are a couple of areas that, uh, that, that can be, that can be helpful in terms of differentiation, but it is a challenge.

Vishaal Virani: There is a lot of competition out there on the platform, less so in some of those expert areas. That's why, you know, when we go back to that context of as an expert, why should you get onto YouTube? Because actually there's some topics that are really, really underserved. There's more than enough comedy content, football content, entertainment content, to last a lifetime, music content, etc.[00:21:00] 

Vishaal Virani: But when you really niche down into astrophysics, into, like, the treatments of breast cancer, um, into, um, you know, Um, they're very like woodworking, et cetera, all those different sort of things where you can, where you really need the expertise, the qualifications, um, there is less content available. And so there's a real opportunity there for people to sort of differentiate themselves relatively easily.

Amardeep Parmar: So if we do this almost  as a live workshop now, right? So this video is going up on YouTube. The title I'm thinking my head is how to start and grow, um, on YouTube as an expert or something along those lines. Right: Now, the challenges for a kind of podcast episode like this is that at the beginning, you can even do kind of a short thing at the beginning, which is kind of a highlight from this episode.

Amardeep Parmar: What I did here is I went straight into like. And we're live. Here's who we have. So straight away mentioning you're obviously your head of UK health at YouTube. So somebody clicking on this knows you've got credibility and [00:22:00] how do you get that retention for this kind of video? Like how would you, if I was going to change this to try and really optimize for search, what would I do differently or how would that work?

Vishaal Virani: Yeah. So I would say, um, you would want a really catchy title that people are going to be intrigued by, feel like they're going to learn something from. And, um, are somewhat shocked by or surprised by. Um, so, you know, you could do something like why YouTube is desperate for experts or, you know, YouTube, YouTube experts, YouTube needs you or something along those lines.

Vishaal Virani: Um, so, so then you are also calling out a, you're also having a bit of a niche in the title. You know, as you were saying before, with your pod, with podcast, they can sometimes be about such a range of different topics. So interview with Vishaal Virani would be, you know, an example of a terrible title. Um, so you really [00:23:00] want to niche down.

Vishaal Virani: And, uh, and, and so that would be one thing. So people are clicking on it because they want to learn about that. Then you're, you know, you're absolutely right with the actual intro getting straight into it saying there are a lack of experts sharing their content, sharing their insights and knowledge on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: And I've got, um, you know, someone on the inside who's going to help us understand what you can do as an expert to get on YouTube. That sort of like, lay it out really from, from the first second, exactly what people are going to get from this video. Um, and therefore you've hooked them in, they've heard that and they're like, Ah, so this is, this is actually exactly what the title and thumbnail were talking about.

Vishaal Virani: Versus, oh, you know, So BAE HQ, welcome, et cetera. Now, pros and cons because as you are then developing a following and you have subscribers and you have people who've become familiar with your nice intros, with the lilt of your voice as at the start and uh, and, and you know, that sort of thing, then maybe they quite [00:24:00] like that familiar.

Vishaal Virani: So, so, you know, I'm not saying there's the be all and end all, but it depends if you are then as an expert, let's say, creating a video, which, you know, not everyone will want to click on. But people who are learning about specific topic will want to click on. And you think you want to get straight to the point.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and I think that you then want to hit them with the most ,most interesting point first. So it's like, you know, um, what can you, what can you as an expert do on YouTube? So as opposed to the, you know, what is the problem? There's so there's, you know, there's so many, uh, there's so many topics where there isn't really an expert or whatever on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: That's all fine. But really what people want to know is what can you do as an expert to get yourself onto the platform? What are the nitty gritty tips? So, um, that's one thing. And then I would say that you would want to chapter it. So you'd want to say, well, here are the four or five questions that I think are really being answered in this video.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and I'm going to split that into sections. So therefore people can literally jump and then, you know, put that in the description, each one. So be, be aware that people may not watching your whole video. They're jumping to X question or Y question. And actually you can see in your attention curves, uh, which, [00:25:00] where the peaks are and they will sometimes correlate with certain questions that clearly are most interesting that you might say, Oh, this third question that we focused on seemed to be most interesting for the viewers.

Vishaal Virani: Now we're going to double down on that. And the next interviews only going to talk about the third question with another expert, um, or I'm going to create a couple of shorts based on clips from that third question, uh, the answer to the third question. So I would do some things like that. Um, I would, uh, so yeah, I think that, and in terms of the thumbnail, I would do something like, you know, X big, big, big, um, big writing saying expert question mark, YouTube needs you or whatever.

Vishaal Virani: But if you've already done that in the title, say, um, So something like, you know, here's YouTube in a room and then here's all the experts outside the room. It's like, you know, we need you in this room type of a thing. So, you know, something complementary to the title, but not exactly the same as the title.

Vishaal Virani: If it's purely like mirroring, that's not interesting, viewers not learning anything new. I would do... [00:26:00] Um, big bold contrast in terms of the colors on the thumbnail as well. I would do big icons, big, big, uh, writing, um, and, uh, maybe put your someone's face on it. A face can sometimes help if it's relevant. Um, but not always.

Vishaal Virani: You can put your logo on there because if people have started to become familiar with your logo, you can put that as in one of the corners. Um, so yeah, those are some of the things that I would maybe think about doing. Now, having said that, I don't, I've never created a YouTube video actually in my life, funnily enough.

Vishaal Virani: I spend my life talking to creators, so I'm absorbing secondhand what they're telling me, and, uh, and whatnot. But yeah, these are the things that could work, you know. Don't blame me if it doesn't go viral, Amar, now, but, uh, but I, but I try. 

Amardeep Parmar: So let me do, let me redo the introduction now, right? This is the last thing before you, we jump off.

Amardeep Parmar: So let me try and keep a straight face, first of all. 

Amardeep Parmar: So what you just said there was how we want to put the viewers in straight away, right? So everyone thinks that YouTube is now, [00:27:00] okay, let's go again. So again, people watching this live, right? Lots of people think YouTube is just about comedians and cat videos, but YouTube is really focusing on experts and how to get them involved.

Amardeep Parmar: So if you're an expert, I'm talking to the guy who run YouTube health in the UK about what you can do in order to grow your channel and grow your audience in a successful way. There's something along those lines, right? Obviously, that was just the day, but that would be a more compelling opening, you think, as opposed to..

Vishaal Virani: and then I would just, I would just weave in the need there as well.

Vishaal Virani: Like, people are searching, people are people are searching for a range of different topics. They are not finding the answers from experts. There's all sorts of people on YouTube creating content on XYZ, but where are the experts? The viewers are crying out for some more expertise, some more authoritativeness, and higher quality insights to address some of the search queries that they're entering.

Vishaal Virani: Something like that, but yeah, yeah, like kind of big bang start. Say, why should you be listening to this? But, but, you know, at the same [00:28:00] time, consistency is important, right? Because you see some of the vloggers out there and they like to have their thing, like, my name's X and today we're going to talk about Y and, you know, there's that familiarity that people have.

Vishaal Virani: So, you know, the beauty about it is it's all about experimenting, isn't it? Now, what you told me at the front, at the top of the episode is that with the likes of YouTube, and you're absolutely right, podcast discovery is not based on subscription to channels as, as much as it is searching for a particular topic, so in order to play into that, you might want to go down this road.

Vishaal Virani: But hey, you might say that actually still have a good following on Apple, et cetera, where people like the BAE HQ and they are familiar with it. And so they're happy to listen whoever's on, um, in which case you can go with the standard info, right? So it's kind of pros and cons in a way. 

Amardeep Parmar: And also, I guess what we could do is we can have different instructions on the podcast version and the YouTube version, right?

Amardeep Parmar: The YouTube version could have this more hook, or like, this is what's happening, whereas the podcast could be more, could people subscribe to the podcast. They can have the familiar thing and they don't have that at the beginning that I just said. [00:29:00] So yeah, I've got myself homework out of this episode, which doesn't usually happen.

Amardeep Parmar: So I think people obviously watching this channel, if you subscribe to us, which obviously you should subscribe to us on YouTube, then you can hopefully see that transition. You'll be able to see the impact of this conversation, what it's had on the channel, and you can see the experimentation live and you can see me making the mistakes as opposed to you having to make mistakes.

Amardeep Parmar: Which is always more fun. So, thank you so much today for coming on Vishaal, and I've learned a lot myself. Who are three British Asians that you'd love to shout out, that you think people should be paying attention to? 

Vishaal Virani: In keeping with the theme of kind of health creators, I am gonna go with a few people doing some fantastic stuff on YouTube.

Vishaal Virani: You've got Dr Karan Rajan, who's dispelling so many myths that are out there in, um, in, in the media about medical topics. You've got Dr Asmae Chowdhury. who has got a fantastic channel, but is also just such a brilliant community builder out there to help everyone who's getting started on YouTube. And then you've also got Lavinia Mehta, who's got some fantastic [00:30:00] fitness content on her channel as well.

Vishaal Virani: So yeah, they're doing some great things. 

Amardeep Parmar: So thanks so much for coming on. If people want to learn more about you and what you're up to, where should they go to? Where do you want to send them?

Vishaal Virani: Um, health. youtube. If you wanted to know anything about YouTube health, there's all sorts of information on there.

Vishaal Virani: And then I'm always happy to chat to people who want to learn more about getting on to YouTube, um, getting into the big tech world, whatever it might be that you want help with, you can catch me on LinkedIn as well. 

Amardeep Parmar: Finally, as well, is there anything that you need help with? Anything that people may reach out to you to help with?

Vishaal Virani: I need more experts creating high quality health,Uh, not help any content on YouTube. I mean, my, my thing is health, but honestly, we do genuinely need more experts on YouTube, and so I'd love for you guys all to think about starting a channel, think about the value that it could bring to the respective businesses you're running or the respective careers that you're embarking upon.

Vishaal Virani: Um, and I think you'll find it a really enjoyable journey, but, uh, but also really valuable for the viewers out there who, who, who are looking for more experts. Uh, [00:31:00] contact. 

Amardeep Parmar:  So again, thanks so much for coming on. Take care. 

Vishaal Virani: Take care. Thanks, Amar. Thanks. 

Amardeep Parmar: Hello. Hello everyone. Thank you so much for listening. It means a huge amount to us and we don't think you realize how important you are because if you subscribe to our YouTube channel, if you leave us a five star review, it makes a world of difference. And if you believe in what we're trying to do here. To inspire, connect and guide the next generation British Asians.

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