Ever since its inception, there has always been this question on everyone’s mind. ‘What if I am creating something and don’t want to reveal my identity?’ It seems like an impossible task for most but it isn't anymore! There are many ways that you can create content online without being identified. In fact, we came across one such way while researching for our latest article. Here's how you can go anonymous on YouTube.
For those who aren't familiar with what a YouTuber (or vlogger) is, here's a quick definition from Merriam-Webster - "a person whose principal occupation or business involves presenting views via Internet videos." In other words, someone who creates and uploads videos regularly so that they could get paid by advertisers.
YouTube is where millions of creators share their thoughts, ideas and opinions every day through short form episodic series called clips. Some of these clips can turn into full length movies and even TV shows. But let's stick to just talking about the regular ones for now.
The number of channels on YouTube keeps growing each year because of the sheer popularity of the platform. According to TubeMogul, there were more than 2 billion hours watched on the site in 2018 alone. That means there are over 21 million active accounts uploading new footage all the time. And out of them only 3% decided to use their real names when signing up.
Now you might think why should anyone care whether you use your real name or not. Well, the truth is that using your real name gives you a sense of credibility. It also allows brands to track your behavior and target ads at you accordingly. This makes it easier for companies to advertise products on YouTube.
But what if you're working under the table and you don't want any brand associating yourself with your work? Or maybe you are making content specifically targeted towards children and you'd rather keep your anonymity intact. Whatever the case may be, rest assured that it's possible to hide behind the screen and still earn money from your followers.
So, before you start planning out your plan to become a YouTuber, read further to know how you can stay anonymous...
There are plenty of examples of famous personalities who managed to maintain privacy despite having popular social media platforms associated with them. Take Kim Kardashian West, for instance. She started racking up fans after posting her first selfie back in 2007. Since then she has come a long way and today, she is one of the highest grossing celebrities in Hollywood. However, none of us knows anything about Kim besides what appears on Instagram and Snapchat. Same goes for Taylor Swift too. The singer began gaining attention back in 2006 with 'Tim McGraw'. Her music career took off once again in 2014 thanks to 'Red' album which was recorded mostly live. Though Red reached No.1 position in different countries around the world, we never knew much about the woman behind the voice until last year.
These artists are far ahead of us in terms of maintaining privacy but they paved the path for others to follow suit. Nowadays, you will find lots of influencers hiding behind masks/face coverings to protect themselves against COVID-19 pandemic. If you've noticed Elon Musk's recent tweets, he is wearing a mask as well. So is Bill Gates. They both feel safer and secure knowing that no one outside their homes could identify them easily. Similarly, other high profile figures like Madonna, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey etc. wear protective masks whenever they step out in public places.
And yes, you guessed right. We are going to talk about Pewdiepie later in the article. His popularity soared to unimaginable heights in 2017 after releasing his song titled ''Plane Crash'' featuring Ray William Johnson and Wiz Khalifa among others. He became known as the King of Memes worldwide. Later, he announced that he won't release his next project till 2021 due to lockdown caused by COVID-19 pandemic. After several months, he went viral again and released another single named ''Baby Yoda''. Although he revealed his identity eventually, he did take some creative measures to remain anonymous during the period.
Some big stars choose to avoid publicity altogether and prefer keeping things private. One such celebrity is Miley Cyrus. In 2015, the former Disney starlet made headlines for her controversial performance at Coachella festival. A few days later, reports emerged stating that she had left Los Angeles for New York City. Many speculated that she moved away to escape paparazzi chasing her everywhere. Others said that she wanted to be free and enjoy herself without worrying about photographers snapping pictures of her 24/7. However, Cyrus finally appeared on Ellen DeGeneres Show two years later to give an explanation for leaving LA.
"I didn't leave L.A., I got kicked out," she told Ellen. "That's probably better explained [in] writing. Just cause I'm trying to sort everything out myself doesn't mean I don't need anybody else's support and help."
Another example of a YouTuber staying anonymous is PewDiePie. As mentioned earlier, he wore a mask throughout 2020 and kept himself incognito. Even though he unveiled his identity in January 2021, it wasn't till September that he uploaded a clip in order to announce his return. Fans couldn't wait for him to appear on Season 4 of Felix & Paul Studios, which premiered in July. To add fuel to fire, he teased them twice in May and August respectively.
PewDiePie was already hugely popular before he disappeared. With his absence, people wondered if he really existed. Thankfully, he delivered a great comeback season and broke records along the way.
It's worth mentioning here that although some YouTubers keep their identities hidden, it does happen sometimes for various reasons. These include safety concerns, political beliefs, mental health issues, family problems and even financial struggles.
If you decide to unmask yourself, ensure that you consider all factors related to your decision carefully.
Creating compelling content takes skill and experience. Also, you must possess talent in order to draw viewers in. But apart from that, you need to learn how to craft an engaging story line, tell a tale effectively and build rapport with audiences.
One thing that YouTubers often forget is the importance of visuals. People love watching visual aids because it helps them relate to stories better and grasp concepts faster. Therefore, it becomes essential to incorporate interesting images, GIFs and memes into your narrative. Also, try adding background score and sound effects to enhance the overall aesthetics of your videos.
You can refer to other YouTubers who successfully created an audience base without revealing their true identities. Then put together unique elements of theirs to come up with your own style. For instance, Justin Bieber shares glimpses of his everyday life and travels to inspire his fans. Meanwhile, Lilly Singh tells funny anecdotes and teaches people self-confidence and positivity.
Apart from drawing inspiration from established YouTubers, you can research on trending topics and copy existing formats. For instance, TikTok users are obsessed with seeing reactions from strangers as soon as they receive messages or comments on their posts. Hence, TikTok creator Niki Nishimura shared a link to a website on Twitter where people can send text messages anonymously.
Once you have gathered enough information, brainstorm ideas and come up with original storylines that appeal to your niche group. Once you are done with that, you can practice shooting videos by following a script or simply winging it. Keep practicing until you master the art of storytelling.
After you finish recording your masterpiece, post it on YouTube and ask subscribers to comment on it. It'll help you improve your skills and gain valuable feedback. Remember, quality comes before quantity. Don't rush through editing your videos. Spend ample amount of time polishing them up.
To recapitulate, becoming a YouTuber requires patience, perseverance and determination. If you are serious about pursuing a dream, you cannot afford to quit halfway through. At times, you might encounter difficulties and hurdles. Yet, sticking to your goal and learning from mistakes are vital traits that separate winners from losers.
If you've spent any time online at all, then there's no doubt that you've encountered someone who has posted an animated video to Facebook or Twitter.
But what if I told you they didn't show their face? They had just made millions from posting something so simple and yet it was working for them! That's because most of us are used to seeing our friends' smiling faces when we visit social media sites, but what happens when you post something yourself or share content created by others and don't reveal anything about yourself? It can feel uncomfortable, right? But how does this affect your success? And could you even pull off doing such a thing? We're going to explore both sides of the question now...
Most people think that making money through platforms like YouTube means having lots of subscribers. However, while those certainly help, they're not entirely necessary. In fact, many popular channels started with only one subscriber. This goes to prove that while more subscribers may mean better numbers, especially over long periods of time, anyone can create a winning formula on YouTube regardless of size. There are countless examples of big-name celebrities (such as PewDiePie) earning thousands per year despite only having a few hundred subscribers. On top of this, smaller channels often outperform larger ones thanks to their ability to focus on niche topics, which tend to attract more viewers. So whether you're looking to earn $5,000 or $50k+ a month, there are ways to achieve these goals regardless of your current follower count.
So, firstly, let's start by defining "success" here. Success isn't necessarily based solely upon earnings -- after all, how much money you earn doesn't matter unless you enjoy what you're doing enough to keep up with it. If you want to use income as a gauge of success, you'll probably find yourself disappointed pretty quickly, since it will depend heavily on factors outside of your control. Instead, consider other things such as: your level of fulfillment, the amount of personal growth experienced during your journey, and your overall happiness. After all, nobody wants to spend their lives chasing money alone.
One way to ensure you stay focused on achieving true success is to ask yourself questions like:
What am I passionate about sharing with my audience? How can I best communicate this message/topic? Can I effectively convey my knowledge and experience via text/voice/videos?
Once you know your goal, it becomes easier to set actionable steps towards reaching each stage. To give you an example, if your goal is to build a thriving business providing high quality products and services, then you might need to learn everything you can about marketing, sales, customer service, etc., before being able to offer paid coaching. Similarly, if your goal is to grow your following organically by building relationships with fans, then you should understand your target market, brand identity, product development process, etc. These areas will likely require different skill sets depending on your interests, and it's important to identify where your strengths lie early on. The good news is that once you discover your talents, you can leverage them to succeed without putting on a mask.
You also shouldn't worry too much about competitors watching your progress closely. While competition does exist, you won't always see evidence of it until later stages of your career. Even if you do encounter direct competition, remember there are plenty of niches out there that aren't saturated. Plus, you can take advantage of tools like Google Trends to watch emerging trends within your industry and develop strategies accordingly.
Now that we've established that you can reach financial success without exposing your face, it raises another interesting issue relating to privacy concerns. Most people assume that hiding your face makes you less vulnerable to harassment or stalking. However, as noted earlier, the reality is far more complex than that. As soon as someone posts a public profile picture of themselves, they become open to potential threats, attacks, and general abuse. When you add the anonymity of the internet into the mix, it's easy for cybercriminals to exploit vulnerabilities using various methods ranging from phishing scams to malware infections. Faceless videos allow you to avoid these issues altogether.
However, there's still the possibility that people will recognize you as the person behind the screen. Sure, we live in a day and age where everyone seems to recognize famous faces everywhere we go, but the chances of strangers recognizing you are slim compared to regular users simply due to the nature of the platform itself. Think of it like this: there are literally hundreds of hours worth of footage uploaded to YouTube every minute, meaning that almost everybody featured has been edited down to look similar to stock photos. Then again, if you choose to include a headshot of yourself alongside your clips, then your followers will definitely notice a difference between you and the rest of the crowd.
Of course, if you really wanted to hide your identity, you could try covering your webcam lens with tape. Or you could buy a cheap USB web camera instead. Alternatively, there are apps available to blur certain parts of your computer screen. Finally, if you're worried about your voice changing over time, you could record yourself speaking beforehand and then upload it. All of these options work well, although none of them are foolproof against dedicated stalkers.
As a final note, it's worth mentioning that there are legal risks involved when uploading unedited footage onto platforms like YouTube. First, copyright infringement laws apply and you risk getting sued for distributing unauthorized material. Secondly, there's the possibility of violating user agreements, potentially resulting in account suspension. Therefore, we recommend avoiding taking these kinds of risks whenever possible.
With all of this information fresh in mind, we'd love to hear your thoughts on the topic. Do you agree with the notion that you can achieve great results on YouTube without revealing your own face? Why or why not? Let us know your opinions in the comments below.
Are you one of those who want to become a famous YouTuber but are afraid of being identified by yourself or others? Do you think it's impossible for someone like you because they can't show their face while creating content and videos. Well, there's a way out! And that's through opening up anonymous accounts on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc. But how will these help you build a career on YouTube?
Here we'll discuss everything related to making YouTube channels without exposing real identities, including ways to monetize them, tips on building audience members, etc. So let’s start with this question - Can you create a success story on YouTube without showing your face?
Yes... absolutely! This sounds crazy at first glance, but believe me when I say that you can take advantage of all the advantages of having a personal account (ease of use) and also enjoy anonymity benefits from using different usernames/identities. The best part is that you can even open multiple profiles on various social networks that allow for more than one username.
One example could be a combination of two random words picked by you. Another option would be to create a profile based on a name you love. You can easily find many other ideas online. Just search "create fake Facebook profile" or something similar in Google Search engine.
However, keep in mind that there may be restrictions imposed upon users regarding which websites they're allowed to access using different names. If so, check whether the website allows it before proceeding further.
A good solution here would be to use a virtual private network (VPN). VPN basically reroutes your internet browsing traffic via servers located outside your country. As a result, whenever you browse any site anonymously, its content won't reveal anything about your actual location. Of course, you should know that most popular social networks block sites running proxies due to security concerns.
Another thing worth mentioning is that since you're using a proxy server, your IP address remains hidden too. That means no one knows what information about you it might disclose, unless they manage to trace back your activity to your physical location.
Nowadays, almost every major social networking service offers support for third-party apps and plugins. One great example is Proxy Guide plugin [No Longer Available] for Firefox browser. It lets you change user agent string, thus letting you appear as another person or device on specific web pages.
This feature makes it possible to hide your true identity behind an alias, i.e. to set up several alternative accounts under aliases. In addition, it has additional features for anonymizing your data, e.g., hiding your current time zone. On top of that, it provides settings for blocking scripts and cookies, changing DNS requests, modifying HTTP headers, etc. All that helps protect your privacy.
To sum things up, yes, you can definitely succeed on YouTube without showing your face. However, you need to follow certain rules, guidelines, terms & conditions, and pay attention to details. Also bear in mind that not everyone finds comfort in using new identities. Some prefer sticking to well-known personalities' recognizable photos instead of trying to imitate them.
How do you get the motivational video on YouTube without showing the face?
If you've decided to go ahead and create a brand new YouTube account, then chances are high that you'd be interested in posting inspirational quotes, affirmations, mantras, speeches, music, funny clips, memes, jokes, riddles, etc. Basically, anything that relates to motivation, inspiration, self-help, wellness, happiness, growth, achievement, success, peace, health, prosperity, wisdom, gratitude, faith, etc.
The only problem here is that uploading footage of yourself isn't always easy. Maybe you haven't tried yet, maybe you simply didn't come across an idea suitable enough. Or maybe you just feel uncomfortable doing so. Let's leave aside the fact that you probably wouldn't look very professional either.
For starters, it's better to focus on writing rather than shooting videos. Your material can also include audio files, audios, podcasts, voice notes, transcripts of phone calls, recorded conversations, etc. They can be used both as standalone recordings and combined into one long clip.
In case you decide to shoot your own footage, remember to take care of lighting, background noise, ambient sound levels, camera angles, frame composition, image stabilization, etc. Make sure you practice beforehand, especially during the editing process. Then again, you can try incorporating a selfie shot into your project. After all, nothing beats authenticity!
Finally, you can add animated graphics featuring logos, emojis, cartoons, icons, illustrations, clip art, stickers, frames, backgrounds, etc. These elements can give your posts a polished appearance, attract viewers' attention, convey messages, enhance credibility, etc.
It goes without saying that you shouldn't forget to record yourself talking over the footage. Otherwise, your message won't seem genuine enough.
As mentioned above, YouTube doesn't require anyone to register an account in order to view videos. Therefore, if you have a creative talent and desire to produce original content, why not consider turning your hobby into a business? Why limit yourself to watching other people's work? Nowadays, producing a quality video takes much less effort than spending countless hours scrolling through endless cat videos on YouTube.
There are plenty of opportunities for budding YouTubers. First off, you can post informative articles, share interesting facts, talk about trending topics, explain complex matters in simple language, present useful guides, review products, tell stories, narrate events, report news, interview experts, describe hobbies, showcase crafts and DIY projects, etc.
Secondly, you can cover local events, live concerts, festivals, sporting matches, conferences, exhibitions, weddings, graduations, birthdays, anniversaries, christenings, funerals, parades, carnivals, picnics, holidays, parties, etc. Thirdly, you can upload short films, documentaries, animations, commercials, trailers, infomericals, sketches, shorts, compilations, fan fiction, etc. Finally, you can publish tutorials, reviews, lists, quizzes, polls, opinions, interviews, columns, blogs, vlogs, product comparisons, opinion pieces, etc.
Just pick the niche you wish to explore and stick to it. Moreover, you can promote affiliate links within each individual video and earn commissions when potential customers click on them. To maximize earnings, optimize ad placement, increase conversions, improve ROI, etc.
Also note that today it's easier than ever to reach thousands of targeted followers, engage with fans, expand your sphere of influence, grow your community, boost sales, generate leads, sell products, etc. thanks to numerous free marketing tools available online.
So now you see that there are various options for monetization. All you need is a plan, a vision, lots of creativity, passion, patience, persistence, determination, dedication, willpower, luck, timing, market research, experience, expertise, skill, knowledge, intuition, drive, energy, enthusiasm, commitment, courage, confidence, optimism, flexibility, resilience, etc.
Yes, indeed they do. There are many types of revenue streams associated with launching a YouTube channel. Most notable among them is AdSense advertising program, where advertisers display relevant ads alongside your uploaded content. Each viewer clicks on a displayed link, which results in a small commission payment going directly to you.
Of course, not all creators rely solely on AdSense income. Here's a quick list of other sources of revenue:
YouTube Partner Program - Allows you to receive direct payments from brands promoting their products on your channel. Partnerships usually last between 12 months and three years depending on the type of partnership agreement signed.
Affiliate Marketing - Offering promotional services for companies whose products you endorse, you gain commissions after referring buyers to their official sellers.
Sponsored Reviews - Companies offering cash incentives encourage creators to provide positive feedback about their products.
Merchandising Products Sold Through Videos - Sell items made specifically for YouTube through your videos.
Videos Embedded Within Other Content - Offer snippets of your videos embedded within larger publications, TV shows, games, books, newspapers, magazines, brochures, billboards, advertisements, presentations, newsletters, emails, letters, flyers, posters, banners, signs, corporate reports, press releases, etc.
These methods typically involve collaboration with businesses and organizations. Thus, you don't necessarily need to spend weeks searching for clients—the right ones will approach you themselves. Plus, you can test and refine your pitches until you land deals with desirable partners.
Keep in mind that once you begin working professionally, you'll need to learn how to handle contracts, negotiations, legal issues, intellectual property rights, copyright infringement, licensing agreements, etc.
Just follow our battle-tested guidelines and rake in the profits.