Want to create video titles fast and efficiently? Like many things in life (and on YouTube), the best solution is to get outside help — and not just from another human. These days, artificial intelligence can write YouTube titles.

So, how does it work? Step one is learning how to use a YouTube title generator. These smart assistants will analyze any keyword, suggest a few video titles, and let you choose the best one for your content.

. So depending on your video's topic, you'll see power phrases like "the truth about," the secret to," and other curiosity drivers that make people click.

As a quick example, let's explore the AI Title Generator from vidIQ. We'll show you how to use it and pick the best name for your YouTube video!

Are you wondering what a title generator looks like, especially one powered by AI? The good news is that they're simple and intuitive. The one from vidIQ has two sections: one for typing your video's keyword or main idea and another for browsing title suggestions.

" in the title section. Here are the AI titles we got in return:

"The Science of Meme Creation: How to Take a Normal Photo and Turn it into an Internet Hit"

"10 Things You Should Know About Making Internet Memes"

"Meme Master: How to Create Viral Internet Memes"

"How to Create Internet Memes: The Ultimate Guide"

A list of YouTube video ideas created by an AI Title Generator

As you can see, the generator offers up some good titles for YouTube videos. You won't have to do much writing or brainstorming, if any.

, this generator appears as you upload or customize videos on YouTube.

Now that you've seen the title generator (and how it works), here's how to use it.

1. Type Your Video's Main Idea/Keyword into the Generator

The first step is simple: What's your YouTube video about? You'll use that information to type the best keyword or main idea into the title generator.

An arrow points to the title section of the AI Title Generator, which is located below the "Details" header

The generator does the thinking for you, so there's no need to add fancy titles — just the basic video concept.

But if you don't know what to type, you might have to do some keyword research. 

Use this guide to discover the best keywords

 for your video, then return to this article for the next step.

The next step is the easiest! When you've picked a main idea or keyword, click 

The "Get AI Title recommendations" button is below the title field on the generator

3. Choose the Most Accurate, Engaging Title

Next up, you'll see five titles for your video. You can only choose one, so look for a title that describes your video accurately. After that, make sure it's engaging enough to drive clicks.

What do we mean by engaging? Let's look at our meme example one more time, where the generator offered these titles:

These are great ideas, but you'll likely want to see more. You can do that by hitting the 

Above the current title suggestions, you can click refresh to generate more titles

Now we have a completely different list. Compared with the first batch, the new titles seem to evoke more desire and curiosity — the last two in particular:

"How to Create Internet Memes That Make You Rich"

"The Truth About Meme Creation: The Step-by-Step Guide You've Been Waiting For"

Remember to hit refresh to see more options and get the best YouTube titles!

When you've settled on a video title, click 

Click the "Use" button on the right side of any title to use it.

How to Edit AI Video Titles to Perfection

Artificial intelligence is smart, but it doesn't know everything. Make sure your title is a good fit, isn't too long, and stands out from the rest.

Include relevant YouTube keywords (near the front).

Use words that spark desire, emotion, and curiosity

Use words your audience can recognize/understand.

Make the title match your YouTube thumbnail.

You'll be unstoppable if you follow the tips in this article. Having an alluring title leads to all sorts of YouTube goodness, like extra clicks, views, and hopefully, subscribers!

Pair your AI-generated titles with fresh content ideas from our 

A woman typing on a laptop with a pencil tucked between her fingers

Hands typing on laptop keyboard with pencil, books in background on wooden desk

Take a break from writing YouTube titles. With the power of AI, you can input a few keywords and let technology do the "writing" for you.

How to Write Better YouTube Titles with AI Suggestions

Many people want to become a successful YouTuber, but it's harder than it looks. You need a variety of skills to create good content, such as scripting, storytelling, and video editing. And if you want people to click on your videos in the first place, you'll need even more skills — thumbnail creation and title writing, to name a few.

First, learn the right YouTube skills. You don't need to know 

 about content creation, but you should have a good mix of hard and soft skills. You should understand how to ideate video concepts while using digital software to bring those stories to life.

Ready to get started? Here are the top skills you need to be a YouTuber.

You don't often hear "technical" and "YouTuber" in the same sentence. Most people think of words like "influencer" or "trendsetter," but technology is involved no matter what you're doing on YouTube.

This section will share skills needed to master the technical side, from channel analytics to video editing.

1. Researching (for Keywords & Trending Topics)

If you're serious about growing, you'll do keyword research to understand what people type to find your videos. That could be any collection of words depending on your niche — "homemade cat food," "best chocolate chip cookies," "how to get dual citizenship," or something else. You can make videos matching those queries if you know 

But all keywords aren't created equal. Some are highly searched on YouTube (which is fantastic) but difficult to rank for in YouTube search.

The phrase "Marvel movies" is a good example. If you use vidIQ's 

, you'll notice the term is searched over 100,000 times monthly. It's also one of the most competitive topics on YouTube and hard to get views for.

The vidIQ keyword score for the phrase marvel movies, which is 38 due to high competition

Read this guide to find the right keywords for your channel and get more views.

SEO stands for search engine optimization. On YouTube, it's the process of placing relevant keywords in video titles and descriptions to help the algorithm understand what your video is about.

 understands your video, it can display it on search pages or recommend it to more people, which leads to more views.

For example, we often use the keyphrase "small channels" on YouTube. Our viewers are primarily new creators, so that phrasing helps our videos stand out to the right audience.

A vidIQ video that has "small channels" in the title and currently has 311,000 views on YouTube

Producing a video can get pretty technical, even for down-to-Earth YouTube. Depending on the videos you make, you might have to learn any of these skills:

Sound design (buying the right microphone, reducing wind noises outside, etc.)

Set design (creating an appealing backdrop for your videos)

Lighting (understanding how to light your space)

Video quality (buying the right camera and accessories to get stellar footage)

A laptop, camera, and lenses sitting on a table

Some creators go the easy route. They film in natural light (near a window) and stay indoors to avoid noise pollution. Some even turn their smartphones into portable mics.

We've also seen creators shooting on an iPhone, so your equipment truly depends on the content you're making.

When editing videos, you'll spend a lot of time deleting scenes that don't move the story forward. After that, you can do the fun stuff: adding special effects, music, text, transitions, and sound effects.

Video editing is pretty technical because it involves learning new software. You might edit using Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, or even iMovie. Some software is easier to understand than others, but you're still dabbling in technology!

5. Graphic Design (for Creating Thumbnails)

Before anyone watches a video, they look at the thumbnail to see how enticing it is.

They might read some text on the image that better explains the video. Or maybe they'll look at symbols reinforcing the main idea — puppies, a tennis racquet, a character from Minecraft, or anything relevant. These visual cues help people decide if they should click or not.

Fortunately, you don't have to be a graphic designer to make good YouTube thumbnails. You only need to know the basics of design, like using the right colors and incorporating negative space to simplify your images.

Here's an example from the vidIQ channel. We paired this thumbnail with a video about a new service becoming a potential YouTube competitor. But you probably knew that just by glancing at the image!

A simple YouTube thumbnail with a man positioned between two icons and short text in the bottom left corner.

here's how to make click-worthy thumbnails on YouTube.

YouTube does an excellent job recommending videos to viewers, but extra promotion always helps.

For example, you could start a Facebook page for your channel and share content there. You could chop longer YouTube videos into Instagram Reels and TikToks. If you really want to stand out, you can share helpful videos from your channel in online forums (as long as they solve problems for that community).

And if you need more convincing, know that YouTube 

 you to share your videos off-platform. Learn more in 

, where YouTube's director of product management explains why extra promotion is good for small creators.

Growing a YouTube channel is much easier when you know what's working and what's not. The YouTube Studio has all the information you need, including the basics like views, watch time, and subscribers gained.

YouTube studio dashboard with views, watch time, and subscribers

There's a lot to explore in the YouTube Studio, so we recommend learning these first:

Click-through rate: The percentage of people who click your video after seeing the thumbnail.

: How much of your video people manage to watch.

Traffic from YouTube suggestions: The traffic you get from YouTube recommending your videos to viewers.

Subscribers gained: The number of subscribers you earn from each video.

Engagement: The number of comments, likes, and shares on your videos.

New vs. returning viewers: The amount of new and repeat viewers on your channel.

YouTube Channel Analytics - The 6 Most Important Video Metrics

Of course, YouTubers do more than film, upload, and track their views. A lot happens in between, so you'll need soft skills to grow your audience too. That includes storytelling, collaboration, and the discipline to grow from zero.

Here's a closer look at the skills you need.

Of all the things you can do on YouTube, networking with other creators is severely underrated. But don't let that stop you. 

 get more views and subscribers as they work together to share similar audiences on YouTube.

Two YouTubers smiling and looking at each other while filming a video

Just imagine it. You make videos about a specific topic, and another person creates videos within the same niche. While they're posting makeup tutorials (for example), your content is about building a wardrobe and styling nice outfits. There's a good chance both of your subscribers are interested in beauty overall, from makeup to fashion.

So why not collaborate? If everything goes well, you'll gain new "fashion" viewers who are also interested in makeup. It's an instant win.

Many see creativity as a rare stroke of genius or a brief moment of inspiration. But it's more common than that. The ability to be creative is a full-blown skill, and you can strengthen it daily by 

The good news is that every idea doesn't have to come from your brain. You'll find inspiration in several corners of the internet, including.

6 Places to Find Trending Topics for YouTube Videos

Once you have the basis for an idea, put your creative spin on it. These seven tips will help you get started!

Communication is everything when you have a YouTube channel. At a basic level, you should learn how to speak clearly and confidently when recording videos.

A man holding the camera in selfie position

. Spend some time watching your favorite YouTubers or gain inspiration from channels in your niche. You'll learn so much just by observing how other people structure their videos from start to finish.

If that's not enough, this storytelling format always works:

Cliffhanger (where you suggest another video from your channel)

Every YouTube channel starts at zero subscribers. So if no one's watching your videos, understand that 

All you have to focus on in the beginning is creating good content. As your audience grows, YouTube will start recommending those older videos to your loyal viewers.

So, for now, just crank up the work ethic. Tell your viewers how many videos you'll post each week and stick to that number. Nothing beats a dependable, entertaining YouTube channel!

As you grow your channel, remember to bond with loyal viewers.

Here are a few ways to strengthen the creator-viewer relationship:

Post engaging polls on the YouTube Community tab.

Start a Channel Membership for loyal fans.

The best way to build a community is by being genuine, authentic, and transparent. So always be yourself and let viewers see the real you.

It's easy to get discouraged as a new YouTuber, especially when learning to create videos and get subscribers. There will be times when you feel like giving up and quitting, but just remember that everyone has to start somewhere. Even the biggest creators like MrBeast had to work really hard to get millions of subscribers and views.

That's why we saved the best YouTube skill for last: 

. Because if you don't believe in yourself, it doesn't matter how well you can film, edit, or tell a story. No one gets to see that if you give up.

To sum it all up, you need several skills to create fascinating YouTube videos.

Female beauty influencer creating a YouTube video

Woman recording beauty vlog showing lipstick on camera from yellow couch with makeup products

You need a variety of skills to become a YouTube success, so here are 13 things every successful YouTuber knows how to do.

13 Skills You Need to Become a Successful YouTuber


There's no shortage of options when looking for places to create and post videos online.

But even with the advent of TikTok, Instagram Reels, and other video-based apps, we recommend 

. It's the best place to build a loyal audience, and as we've seen many times, you can get views and make money long after you post. It's also easy to chop YouTube videos into TikToks, Reels, or other short-form content.

But if you need more convincing, here are nine smart reasons to create a YouTube channel in 2023.

1. The YouTube Algorithm Promotes Videos Regardless of Channel Size

The algorithm's number one job is to recommend videos to viewers. Fortunately, it doesn't do that by looking at a channel's views and subscribers. Instead, the algorithm looks for signals of satisfaction on individual videos: a high click-through rate, average view duration, level of engagement, and more.

What the YouTube Algorithm Likes to See on Creators' Videos

If the YouTube algorithm sees those positive signals (among others), it's more likely to suggest your content to viewers.

So, don't worry. Starting a YouTube channel is brilliant, no matter how many subscribers you gain. We've seen creators with small channels get thousands of views, and you can do it too!

, who has 887 subscribers. Even with a small audience, they got more than 50,000 views on the video below.

2. YouTube Videos Have a Longer Shelf Life

If you want your videos to age well, post them on YouTube. It's one of the top search engines on the internet (alongside Google), so you have plenty of opportunities to get views on your content — sometimes years later.

How does this work, exactly? Start by making 

 a part of your YouTube strategy. Look at your niche and identify topics that never go out of style or constantly need explaining. How to change a flat tire. Pumpkin pie recipes for Thanksgiving. Tips for negotiating a raise at work.

For example, we posted a video about how to apply for YouTube monetization in 2020. Two years later, we still get thousands of monthly views from that content.

YouTube Studio dashboard showing 13,311 views in the last 90 days for an older video

It's even featured as a video answer when you Google "how to get monetized on YouTube."

Google search results showing vidIQ's "How to Get Monetized on YouTube" video

Have you seen the YouTube Studio lately? It tells you everything you need to know about your views, subscribers, and your channel's overall growth.

YouTube Studio dashboard showing views, watch time, subscribers, and more

It's best to study how each video performs. You can take a look at the following:

Traffic sources (YouTube search vs. recommended videos)

Encouraging viewers to watch past the 30-second mark is our biggest hurdle on the vidIQ channel. To improve this, we look at the 

 graph for each upload. When views fall, we go to that timestamp in the video, rewatch the clips, and brainstorm ways to be more entertaining next time.

Audience retention graph showing viewership dip after the first 30 seconds of a video

Got a TikTok channel? How about an Instagram? If you're a YouTube creator, you can easily cut down your longer videos to create short-form content for other platforms.

Remember the audience retention graph we just mentioned? Instead of using it to see timestamps where viewers stopped watching a video, you can do the opposite and see the most popular or replayed clips.

Audience retention graph showing a popular segment of a video

If you see bumps in the graph, those areas represent scenes people find more interesting than others. Try turning those popular clips into a TikTok, Instagram Reel, or YouTube Short.

We know the YouTube app is prevalent on smartphones. But you can also watch on iPads, laptops, desktops, and, most importantly, 

If you enjoy watching the YouTube TV app, ask yourself this question: When was the last time you loaded TikTok or Instagram on a TV? When you want to reach more people, YouTube is the way to go.

6. YouTube Has Great Monetization Features

, you can enable ads across your content. You'll make money when viewers watch or click on those ads, so imagine how the revenue snowballs as you monetize more videos.

Before you apply for the YPP, make sure you've reached one of these milestones on your channel:

Get 1,000 YouTube subscribers plus 10 million public YouTube Shorts views within 90 days.

You'll recollect 55% of all ad revenue for regular videos. YouTube Shorts revenue is slightly lower at 45%, but still worth a try.

7. You Can Share Product Links Under YouTube Videos

Did you know you can put as many links as you want under your YouTube videos? They're super easy to paste into the description section. And once there, viewers can click them to buy a physical or digital product you've created.

But if you're not that advanced yet, don't worry. Many creators who don't sell a product of their own make money by helping other companies do the same thing. At that point, you'll become an "affiliate" of the company and get a unique affiliate link to share with your audience. If viewers click on your affiliate link (and buy something from the company), you'll get a small commission from the sale.

A list of affiliate links in the description of a YouTube video

This wouldn't work on TikTok because you can't add clickable links to video descriptions. So don't take this opportunity for granted on YouTube!

8. YouTube Has a Copyright System to Reduce Theft

YouTube's copyright system is far from perfect, but it does a lot to protect videos from outright theft.

For example, if someone uploads your video to their channel, YouTube recognizes you as the content owner. You'll be notified about the situation and asked what actions you want to take, if any.

What's the Difference Between a Copyright Claim and a Copyright Strike?

9. You Can Become an Expert and Build a Community

We all love short, snappy videos, but there's something to be said about the credibility of long-form content. The viewer gets to see you more often, hear your thoughts in better detail, and get more information from you over time. It's the perfect situation for creators who want to become experts and thought leaders — something that's harder to do on TikTok or Instagram.

Now that you know the benefits, it's time to start creating. You have all the knowledge you need (and hopefully the confidence) to know that YouTube is the best place for video creators in 2023.

For more details on the topic, watch our video about all the reasons to have a YouTube channel.

Here's a quick guide to help you start your channel, find your niche, and build an audience that loves your content.

A YouTube graph showing increasing views over time

YouTube growth graph with "Start Now" text and green arrow pointing upward.

Are you debating whether to start a YouTube channel or another video page in 2023? Get unstuck with 9 smart reasons to pick YouTube over any other platform.

9 Smart Reasons to Start a YouTube Channel in 2023

Going viral is the worst thing that can happen to a small YouTube creator.

If you're wondering why anyone would say that out loud (or write it), we get it. It sounds wrong. After all, what's so bad about 

For new creators, the real danger is becoming obsessed with unrealistic expectations. Going viral is hard to do, which means it's nearly impossible to repeat.

Chasing that high without a deep understanding of YouTube could send anyone down a dark, twisted path — and here's why.

1. Viral Views Don't Always Come From Your 'Real' Audience

 When you join YouTube to chase viral trends, you ignore your core audience.

We made this mistake a few years ago on the vidIQ channel. Two creators were in a tight race to have the most-subscribed YouTube channel (PewDiePie and T-Series), and the topic was trending off the charts. We wanted some of that buzz for ourselves, so we made videos about the subject to attract more viewers.

Things didn't go according to plan. We gained many subscribers, but they didn't stick around to watch videos about our main topic: YouTube education. New viewers showed up for the drama, and when the trend was over, they abandoned our channel.

Meanwhile, loyal viewers begged us to bring back our old videos.

Video comment where a small creator asks vidIQ to stop covering the PewDiePie vs T-Series topic

So, take it from us: If your core audience doesn't care about a trend, neither should you.

2. Sometimes, Going Viral Comes with Criticism

Before you go viral, few people know who you are and what you're about. They don't know your deeply-held opinions, personal values, and controversial takes on hot topics.

All of that changes when you gain a little fame. More people pay attention and chime in with their opinions, good or bad. Thousands of people could say you make inspiring videos to change the world, and thousands could you make "terrible" content they don't want to see.

If the feedback is mostly negative, that can destroy a small creator who's still finding their voice and core audience. On top of that, it's just tough to bounce back after being mocked online.

There's no denying the emotional high that comes with going viral. It appeals to our deepest human desires, like the need to be seen, understood, and appreciated.

But feeling like the king or queen of social media is addictive. If you're not careful, you could make any video on any topic just to feel the power of going viral.

Beneath one of our videos, gaming creator 

 described what it's like to go viral as a small creator — and it wasn't fun.

"This has happened to me," they say. "I've got two videos that hit over a million that got kind of 

So you've just started a YouTube channel, and the thought crosses your mind: How do I go viral? Here's why doing that too soon could hurt your channel.

Lydia Sweatt

Posts Written By Lydia Sweatt

How to Write Better YouTube Titles with AI Suggestions

13 Skills You Need to Become a Successful YouTuber

9 Smart Reasons to Start a YouTube Channel in 2023

Why Chasing Viral YouTube Videos Is Overrated [for Small Creators]

How to Find or Change Your YouTube Handle

5 Secrets You Didn’t Know About the YouTube Algorithm

The Creator Feed Podcast: Why Learning the Creator Economy Is Worth it

How to Write a YouTube Video Script That Keeps Viewers Watching

How to Make Money on TikTok as a Creator [Step by Step]

A Simple Trick to Make Viewers Watch Multiple YouTube Videos

YouTube Intros: 8 Ways to Hook Viewers In the First 8 Seconds

4 YouTube Updates That Will Help You Get Monetized Faster

Meet Tim Schmoyer, Your New YouTube Coach at vidIQ