Tips, Ideas, and a Pep Talk: Get your Yoga Business on YouTube 

Yoga teachers and studio owners, to make sure we can attract the crowds that love our content and offerings, we have to get creative and look for ways to get our message out. YouTube is a social media platform where anyone can start their own channel and begin uploading videos. In this article, you’ll learn how to set up your YouTube account from scratch, get a few content ideas to get started, a few guidelines to promote your content, and a short pep talk, to overcome fears and the anxiety that might come with starting a YouTube channel. 

How to Set Up your YouTube Account

Once you get to youtube.com, you have to log in using a Google email address—this can be an email ending with @gmail.com or the email address that goes with your website. Once you’re inside, you need to go to your settings, and in the 'account' tab, click 'create a new channel' (choose the 'brand account' option). There, you can type your studio name or the name you go by for all your yoga endeavors.

After clicking the 'create' button, you’ll land in your channel dashboard. There, you can take some time to add a profile picture, 'channel art' (the banner visitors see first when they get to your profile), add a description, link your other social media accounts, and add your website so people know where else to find you if they first find you through YouTube.

It’s much easier to learn how to get better at creating YouTube videos by creating them rather than thinking about it.

From there, you’re set up and ready to upload your first video. If you upload several at a time, you can already organize them on your page, adding sections like playlists you create. 

Extra resources to check out:

• The YouTube’s quick start guide is a four-step video and text series to help you set up your account. It’s very well made and quick to go through.
• How to earn money on YouTube. This article explains how earning money works in case it’s something you’re considering. An extra source of income can come in handy.
• Canva is a platform you can use to create designs for your channel (and other social media platforms!). I recommend adding your 'brand colors' in your profile once you’ve created one so you can easily have access to the three colors you use in your business.

A Few Content Ideas to Get You Started

To promote your studio

A video presentation of your studio & channel
What can visitors expect from your studio? Who are you? Why did you decide to open a studio? What are your values and beliefs? You can answer these questions in a video and post it as a 'welcome' video to help (future) students get to know you a little better.

Here are some introductory videos to inspire yourself from Sarah Beth Yoga, Yoga with Adrienne (a little old), Brea Johnson from Heart + Bones Yoga.

The behind-the-scenes of a project
If you’re still in the process of building your yoga studio, about to launch a special workshop series, or brainstorming new names for your yoga classes, share this process. This could be a mix of yourself talking, to explain the reasons behind the project, the ways you’re struggling, how you feel about it all, and so on. This will allow your students to relate to you easily.

Give a tour of your space!
This sounds basic and even too easy but if your goal is to bring new students in, take them on a virtual tour of the space you use every day for classes—it just makes sense. Show them the little things that make your studio special, like a refreshing ginger shot after a hot yoga class, a warm tea they can share in the lounge after a relaxing yin class, or the comfortable pillows they sit on when they join your fascinating anatomy and philosophy workshops.

To promote your local classes

A recording of a class you gave
Set up cameras in your usual class and just teach like you normally would. You even have the option to live stream your class if you don’t want to have to worry about uploading the video and aren’t planning on editing it. 

A talk on a topic you’re giving a workshop about
Record yourself presenting the topic, why you find it important to learn about, what it’s going to include, and so on. It’ll be the perfect video to include in your newsletter when it’s time to share the news with your students.

To promote your online offerings

Shorter yoga classes & meditations
Do you offer 20-minute-long videos (or longer)? You can simply cut some of your videos shorter so viewers get a glimpse of what they can expect from your paid offerings. Don’t forget to tell them where to go if they want the full video.

Short talks about a topic
Do you offer video series via an online membership or program? You could discuss the reasons why the topic is particularly interesting or necessary to you and invite viewers to sign up for the membership at the end.

The Marketing Aspect: Promote your Channel

Once your videos are uploaded and organized on your YouTube page, it’s time to let everyone know you’ve made them. Here are a few ideas as to how to promote your channel:

Share your videos with your email list
This article explains the reasons why and how to set up a newsletter as a yoga teacher or studio owner. To the content idea suggestions, you can add sharing the videos you create on YouTube. Since the content on your YouTube channel will be relevant to the rest of your yoga business activities, your subscribers will likely find them interesting to watch.

Put your videos on your website
For example, use your intro video on your about page. If you filmed a tour of your studio, show it on your schedule page. If you have online offers, show a meditation or yoga video your future online students can take before trying your membership or getting your paid content. You can even create a blog post to talk about your videos, like your meditation or yoga classes. The possibilities are endless!

Share clips on Instagram
Cut a clip from the beginning of a YouTube video or a part you particularly like, and share it in a one-minute video on Instagram. You can also share the clip in your Instagram stories. You can even think about sharing the bloopers. Make sure you include the link to the video in your profile so it’s easy for people to watch it.

Create pins for Pinterest
Canva, as mentioned above, has a pin format you can use to create images to upload to the platform. You can simply screenshot a part of your video, add a title and your website to the visual and you’re ready to go. You can also screenshot various poses if your video is a class to give future students a preview of what the class is about. Pinterest will help you bring traffic and viewers.

Share links on Facebook and in Facebook groups
Make sure you check Facebook groups rules before sharing your content—some groups don’t allow self-promotion. Find a question to ask the audience so they can engage with your content and react to it.

Note: at the end of your YouTube videos, if you can, have a little something you repeat every time. Let viewers know where they can find you online and in real life and what kind of information they can use in the info box below the video. Then is a good time to encourage them to share the video with people who might like or benefit from it. Finally, invite them to sign up for your emails to never miss a video. You’re doing everyone a favor by making it easy to find the resources and links they need.

A Note on Anxiety & Fear

It can be either a little scary or absolutely terrifying to have to speak or teach in front of the camera, and fortunately, it’s a skill that can be learned over time. But in the meantime, it’s easy to let negative thoughts get the best of you and even prevent you from clicking the 'upload' or 'share' button. So, instead...

Focus on creation rather than perfection.
It’s much easier to learn how to get better at creating YouTube videos by creating them rather than thinking about it. The more you create, the better you’ll become at it, and the easier it’ll be to share what you believe in and the kind of yoga you love. And even if your progress is a sign of your humanness and makes it easier for people to relate to you, you always have the option to delete the content you’re not comfortable with.

Think about the value you’re putting out into the world.
The online sphere makes it way easier for everyone to practice yoga and to reap the benefits of the practice, whether physically, mentally, and even socially through community. Use your skills, your message, and your desire to enhance people’s lives as motivators. The more you focus on your content and offerings, the easier it will be to make an impact on your students’ and customers’ lives. Remember this and have fun through the process of creation!