YouTube is a whole universe.
I found an interesting article on HackerNoon about how YouTube has become the main source of information for the Vietnamese community in the US: How One Vietnamese Community Depends on YouTube for News.
In the US, there are many people from Vietnam who don’t speak English fluently. For them, local YouTube channels in Vietnamese have become their primary news source.
For example, the Sonia Ohlala channel (link) has 220,000 subscribers and averages 60,000 views per video. The channel focuses on news content.
Sonia uses three formats:
- Live streams (once a month)
- Regular video uploads (every few days)
- Community posts (thematic, once a month)
The audience is very diverse, ranging from young people to elderly viewers who actively follow the news. According to the article, the subscription preferences of this audience are:
- 32% News
- 29% Entertainment
- 12% Religion (listening to teachings)
- 5% Education
- 5% Health topics
One specific interest of the audience is local events, like the Black Lives Matter movement, which many found confusing without proper explanations.
Creators like Sonia have a direct impact on their communities. If they leave the platform, a large part of their audience will lose access to essential information.
I’m personally a big fan of YouTube because it genuinely supports creators.
Last year, I faced challenges such as ad account suspensions and technical channel issues. And you know what? I’ve never seen such friendly customer support—whether in chat, email, or community forums.
After many years as a creator, I can say that YouTube is one of the fairest and most supportive platforms out there. As we see in the article, this support goes both ways.
However, starting a YouTube channel in 2025 feels like a risky investment. There’s a high chance it won’t succeed for two main reasons:
- You might fail to find Content-Market Fit (CMF)—the right match between your content and audience.
- You might run out of energy before the channel gains traction.
Before starting, ask yourself these questions:
- Am I ready for a multi-year marathon?
- Can I spend a few hours each week creating content?
- Do I have the resources to grow other platforms alongside my channel?
The most effective strategy for reducing risks:
- Focus on a specific niche (addressing a clear need).
- Combine YouTube with other platforms:
- For English content: Use platforms like Reddit, LinkedIn, Medium, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and more.
This approach allows you to diversify your audience and reduce dependency on one platform.
