The name of your YouTube channel makes an important statement about you, the content you’re creating, your brand, and your business. That’s why it’s important to invest some time in choosing a channel name that exemplifies who you are and what you’re putting out into the world.
Choosing a channel name for YouTube might seem like an easy task compared to the actual video production process, but you’d be surprised by how tough it can be.
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Maybe you already have tons of ideas for YouTube channel names, or maybe you’re drawing a complete blank. Either way, this guide can help you choose the perfect name to start and grow your YouTube channel.
We’ll run through the process of how to pick your channel name in 6 simple steps, so let’s get to it!
6 Steps for Picking Channel Names for YouTube
Even though the task of how to choose a YouTube channel name isn’t something to take lightly, it’s possible to simplify things with a simple 6-step process. Here’s exactly what that process looks like:
- Step 1: List the Content that Your Channel is About
- Step 2: Get Clear on Your End Goal
- Step 3: List Existing Channel Names that You Like
- Step 4: List All the Words that Describe Your Topic
- Step 5: Add in Words that Describe Your Approach
- Step 6: Choose Your Name!
Step 1: List the Content that Your Channel is About
With Step #1, it’s time to put your list-making skills to work. Sit down and list out everything that your brand is about. This list can include key points to questions like:
- What topics does your channel cover?
- What’s the industry focus of your channel?
- How broad/focused is the content you’re creating?
- What’s the general style of the content you create?
Let’s look at Primal Video as an example. For us, we create tutorials and how-to videos to help our viewers learn the ins and outs of video marketing and video creation. Our content is comprehensive and focused, but we also like to have fun with it. This is what we’re all about.
For you, the focus might be on vlogging, or maybe you’re creating product reviews for consumers. There’s a wide array of YouTube content out there, so just try to get some clarity on what yours is all about.
Step 2: Get Clear on Your End Goal
Step #2 is all about focusing on your goals. In other words, it’s time to get clear on the ultimate end goal for your YouTube channel.
Answering questions like the ones above is the best way to clarify the channel’s end goal(s).
Let’s say you plan on selling the channel down the road. Even though using your own name is generally a great starting point, it can make it difficult to sell or expand the business later on, so it may not be the best route to take if selling/expanding is your end goal.
Step 3: List Existing Channel Names that You Like
Now that you’ve gotten clear on your channel’s focus and your goals, the next step in finding a good YouTube name is to start considering the names of existing channels that relate to your topic.
This is a great way to get some ideas, and even though we’re not saying to straight-up copy the names you currently like, you can at least get a better idea of what others are doing.
As you start looking around at other channel names, try to get specific about exactly why you like a certain name. Explore the answers to questions like:
- What do you like about it?
- Does any specific wording stand out?
- Is the name descriptive enough to describe the type of channel it is?
- Is it clear what the channel is about?
- Is the style something you like?
Step 4: List All the Words that Describe Your Topic
Moving on to Step #4, it’s time to get back to those list-making skills! This time, you’ll be making a list of words that describe your channel’s topic, ideally in a Google or Excel spreadsheet.
Even if you don’t consider yourself a wordsmith, there are plenty of tools and resources available to help you with this step. Feel free to use a thesaurus or Google search function to get a better idea of the language used by your audience.
This is the perfect time to use Google for YouTube channel names suggestions that pop up based on a search for a specific word or phrase. Take Primal Video as an example. Here are some of the words on our list to describe the topic of our channel:
If you already know that you’ll be building a personal brand and plan to use your name as your YouTube username, you can obviously skip this step – there’s no need to brainstorm around your own name!
Step 5: Add in Words that Describe Your Approach
You’ve already got one list of words based on your channel topic from the previous step. Next, it’s time to create another list, but this time, it should focus on your overall approach.
By “approach”, we mean the general goals you have for your channel. Let’s say you plan on providing viewers with a fast, easy approach to digital marketing. In this case, the words ‘fast’ and ‘easy’ should definitely be included in this list because those are essential to your approach.
Pro Tip: Consider Your Topic Words as You Create This List
For this list, try to add words that you know will pair well with the words from your previous list relating to your channel’s topic.
As you can see from our list below, the word ‘Video’ is the first item on the Related Words list, and we felt that ‘Primal’ – which you can see on our list of Approach Words – paired really well with ‘video’. And that’s how the channel name ‘Primal Video’ was born!
Step 6: Choose Your Name!
There are a few things that still need to be done to officially choose your channel name. The first is to start combining words from your two lists to get title ideas that make sense based on your topic and approach.
As you create your combinations, consider whether or not it’s important to have a title that makes the topic instantly recognizable to your audience.
The other option is to use a title that doesn’t offer a lot of clarity about the channel and is more general. The benefit of taking this route is that you’ll have more flexibility with what you add to the channel later on.
More YouTube Channel Name Tips
Before you can officially lock down a name, there are a few more things to keep in mind:
- Use words that are easy to say/spell to keep things simple for your audience.
- Check if the title you’re interested in is already being used! Search YouTube, other social media platforms, website domains, and check your channel name ideas with a site called Namecheck.com to see if a name is already taken or available.
- Don’t procrastinate on selecting your name – you can always change it later if you need to. Primal Video originally started as Video Editing Coach but was changed shortly after since we’re focused on so much more than just video editing.
If you want to change your YouTube Channel name later on, check out our step-by-step tutorial to see exactly how to do it.
Now You’re Ready to Start Your Channel With the Perfect Name!
There you have it – the complete guide to picking the right name for your YouTube channel!
Following these 6 simple steps can make the process so much easier as you browse through your YouTube channel name ideas and attempt to pick the right one.
And for more helpful insight on creating YouTube videos, check out the Primal Video YouTube Ranking Guide. Through this guide you’ll learn about the latest tools and strategies for improving video rankings on both YouTube and Google – and it’s completely free!
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