If you Google ‘how to be a beauty blogger’ or ‘how to be a YouTuber’, between 73,000 and 4,840,000 search results appear within 0.36 seconds – ironic when you consider that realistically, anyone can become a YouTuber or blogger with some wifi, any form of webcam or video camera and a Google account…

In 2014, Tesco mobile conducted a survey amongst 16-24 year olds in Britain, revealing that “30 percent were avid Youtube watchers, and 40 percent said they would rather be vloggers than lawyers, politicians or even popstars.”These results are reflective of just how YouTube and it’s most popular users have dominated the media recently.

Zoe Sugg aka ‘Zoella’ the current ‘cyberspace queen’, has seen her blog flourish since it began in 2009. After a year of blogging about Primark hauls amongst other things, she saw her blog gain 1,000 followers in just a year. Since then, ‘Zoella’ has accumulated over 5 million subscribers on her YouTube channel; has seen collaborations with Simple, Boohoo and Topshop; a Radio 1 contract; a two-book deal with Penguin and has launched her own beauty range.

As a result, the Internet has seen a surge in bloggers, vloggers and YouTubers – all hoping to cash in on the fame and fortune. Beauty gurus in particular are some of the post popular blogs and Youtube channels; behind them, a flurry of girls all hoping to become the next ‘Zoella’…

But just how easy is it to follow in Zoella’s footsteps and become a successful YouTuber?

According to YouTuber Jim Chapman ‘if you have access to a camera and the internet, anyone can make videos, but that definitely does not mean that your audience will grow to the point that it will become your job.’ 

That being said, here at Life and Style we thought we’d test the waters and try it out for ourselves! We’ve read blog post after blog post, watched video after video, and come up with a list of top advice straight from the horse’s mouth itself about what makes a successful YouTuber…

Pick Your Subject:

In her recent article for The Guardian, Sugg highlights that the joy of YouTube is the ability to choose your subject depending on how you feel; in this case we’re following in the footsteps of Zoe and the rest of the Beauty YouTube clan, but notes challenge, animal and gaming videos are also top of the popular list!

Be Yourself: 

Zoe puts her success down to her own personality and her openness on camera; “People follow me because I am just a normal person, and they can relate to me. I’ll chat about what I’ve bought and my fans feel like they’ve been shopping with me. I’m their virtual friend, and I share my life with them.”

Engage with your audience: 

Whether you have 6 viewers or 6 million; it’s important to acknowledge anyone that takes the time to watch your videos. Reply to comments, use social media, and ask for feedback in your video. “Your audience are what makes you, so you have give as much back as you can.”

Have fun! 

If you’re uncomfortable in a video then your viewers will be able to tell – as long as you follow the advice above, you should be able to create an interesting, friendly video that people will want to watch…

Make sure you check back to WNOL in December to see us attempt to become a successful Beauty YouTuber and find out just how easy it is to actually make videos…

In the meantime, if you’d like advice on how to become a YouTuber, make sure you check out Jim Chapman’s video below or head on over to his channel:

Pictures: Facebook, Sketchport