If you want to bring in new audiences to your channel, here are some ideas we’ve seen work many times. We’ve spent years studying channel behavior across thousands of creators, and here’s what we know: growth comes from showing up where others aren’t. Let’s go through 30 ideas to get you there. Some ideas work for many, and some are more niche. Find yours here.
1. Video Essays
If people enjoy anything, it’s hearing out others opinions on various topics be it a trend, industry news, or a personality. Video essays are picking up in popularity and if you dive deep enough, you will certainly catch interest.
People enjoy watching someone over-analyze, dive deep into the topic and draw subtle conclusions that might spark discussion in the comment section (civilized, of course).
2. Debunking Popular Myths
Since the use of AI and realistic video-montage became so popular and widespread, it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake. That gives way for many myths to appear, which can be turned into entertaining and educational content.
With how realistic some myths can be made with the help of modern instruments, it’s easy to understand why some people might believe them. However, by debunking them, you build trust with your audience and, therefore, more viewers flock to your channel.
3. Challenge Videos That are Actually Hard
What can be more fun of a YouTube video idea than running a challenge? You can unleash your creativity, because it covers all from real life challenges, to challenges in specific games.
4. Start a Mini Documentary Format
Pick a topic your niche doesn’t normally “document” and make it cinematic. A beauty creator documenting plastic packaging waste in the cosmetics industry has a potential to earn unexpected press and an environmentalist audience.
5. Watching Niche Movies
The next content idea to attract new audiences comes in the form of reaction videos. However, instead of reacting to trendy topics or current events, you could find very niche and specific movies, and react to them. Most creators tend to lean into trending topics, which is fine by itself and it does work, but if you delve into more niche topics, you get the chance to attract even more subscribers.
6. Narrate Life Stories
Everyone has failure stories and great stories of success, so why waste a perfect opportunity? Be radically transparent about what did and didn’t work, specific numbers, mistakes, regrets. It builds trust and draws in the audience because of your sincerity.
At ScaleLab, we help in video distribution to over 100 platforms. You provide the content and we do everything else. Contact us for more information!
7. Collaborative Dungeons & Dragons Campaign
Thanks to the popularity of Baldur’s Gate 3 and countless other DnD aimed channels featuring stars, popular YouTubers, or just friends - the game itself only gains traction and popularity.
Channels like Critical Role, Dimension 20, Legends of Avantis capitalize on this popularity and many other channels jump into this trend. Dungeons and dragons is a chaotic space, where your fantasy runs wild. It can create all sorts of funny situations and immersive stories that could be later re-used in Shorts.
8. Case Studies
There are a lot of interesting ‘characters’ on YouTube. A good idea would be to study what they do, maybe compile their accomplishments or shortcomings into a case study video. Sharing your thoughts and opinions is encouraged.
9. Movie Compilations
Post the favorite moments from your favorite movies! Add some funny editing for a personal touch. This idea could work for your favorite celebrity moments, or, perhaps, cartoon moments that you watch time and time again. Possibilities are endless.
10. Localize Your Old Videos
How about giving your old videos new life in different regions? Dub a mini-series you already have into a non-English language, localize the metadata, make new language-specific channels to post those videos to. That really drives new traffic to your channel.
At ScaleLab, we can help you with translation starting with the metadata and all the way to full-blown localized channels. Just contact us to learn more!
11. Would You Rather…
‘Would you rather’ video format drives traffic because people are eager to hear the opinions of others and if those opinions align with their own. You can wrap it up in funny jokes, explain the reasons for your choices and make it as entertaining as possible for the audience.
12. Talking About Your Interests, Hobbies and Hyperfixations
Another great idea to try out is to be vulnerable with your audience and share the things you love with them! You can tell them about the show, a game, a manga, or a sport you absolutely love. Be honest! Tell them everything you know and can tell about this part of yourself and see the audience interested in the very same thing flock to your channel!
13. React to Your Own Old Content
Show growth by critiquing your own past work. This brings in creators and fans who are on their own learning journey. Don’t be afraid to be a bit over-critical and don’t fear reviewing your old work. It’s certainly an experience to be able to look back at how far you’ve come.
14. Historical Animations
Historic channels gain traction overall, but the market of re-telling history is quite over-saturated. To stand out, you need to be unique in your approach. You can create little historic animations featuring your favorite parts in one or other country’s history. As long as you are respectful, it will attract viewers to your channel.
15. Feature a Different Creator Every Week
No collab needed. Just spotlight their content and explain why it works. Tag them. You’ll be surprised how many reshare. While doing so, always remember the importance of the copyright.
16. Discussing Controversial Topics (But Be Sensitive)
Discussing controversial topics might sound, well, controversial. However, if you’re respectful and detailed about it, it would instead attract a new audience to your YouTube channel.
17. Reviewing Funny Messages
Be it a funny reddit post that caught your attention or a message that made you laugh. Review it on a video, make entertaining content out of it!
18. Turn Your FAQ into Content
By extension of the previous point, remember that your DMs, comments, and emails are a goldmine. Turn every question you keep answering into its own standalone episode. Make question polls over YouTube and transform that into a separate video.
19. Create Content You’d Normally Think is “Too Advanced”
Overdeliver on depth. Our analytics show that advanced content often attracts highly engaged audiences who stick around longer. If you still feel like it would be ‘too advanced’, you can simplify some concepts.
20. Do One Live Stream a Week
Not a Q&A. Make it a game, teardown, or real-time challenge. New viewers are more likely to drop in when there’s tension or stakes.
The world of streaming is a challenging one to get into and get noticed. Fortunately, you can have ScaleLab professionals at your service. You want to stream at multiple platforms at the same time? We can help. Thinking of setting up 24/7 streams? We’ve got you covered.
21. Book Review
Do you enjoy reading once in a while? Share about the experience on your channel. It can be a good book, a bad one, or the one you learned a lot about. Who knows, it might turn into a recurring series that your audience might enjoy.
22. YouTube Advice
Fortunately or not, there are people who want to reach the same heights as you and they wonder how they should approach a YouTube channel at all. You could help them out! Compile advice that helps you into a neat video and present it.
23. Reactions
If you’re really good at something besides YouTube, react to what others are doing in that niche. It can be art, cinematography, music, gaming strategies - you name it. All that matters is - you pour your perspective and experience into it and see that subscriber count grows.
24. Fun Tutorials
Again, if you’re good at something, why not make a tutorial about it? Why not make it fun to follow while you’re at it? Add jokes, relevant memes, random explosions. Make it distinctly yours and the audience is sure to follow.
25. Start a “First Time” Series
Try something your audience might be curious about but never had the courage to do: public speaking, contacting brands, using a controversial tool. It can also be your first time expanding your channel’s niche by doing something you wouldn’t normally do. Experiment!
26. Covers to Popular Songs in Different Keys
If you’re a musical artist, make covers of popular songs from different media in a minor key. Shift the original genre into something completely opposite. Rock ballad out of that one song from ‘Frozen’? Go for it, people love seeing their favorite songs shine from a different angle!
27. Show Off Your Pets
A lot of people believe that YouTube started like all social media - with cat videos. It’s a universal thing to like. People love animals, and people love seeing YouTubers showing off their cute pets! Whether you have a dog, a cat, or maybe something exotic like a spider or a snake - if you have a pet show it.
28. Over-Analyze
If you like movies and you built an entire channel around reacting to them, why not delve deep into over-analyzing a movie? Why not make a fun review? You could make it spoiler-free or containing full spoilers (but do make sure to include a disclaimer), as long as you have fun with it, the audience is bound to love it as well.
29. Test a No-Talking Format
Go silent for a few videos: pure visuals, captions, or ASMR. It attracts entirely different global audiences, especially from non-English-speaking regions. This YouTube video idea speaks to those, whose content can be silent.
30. Run a “New Creator Spotlight” Program
Curate and feature small channels once a month. Not only does it attract new viewers from those communities: it builds goodwill in your niche.
You don’t grow a new audience by shouting louder: you grow by talking to new people in ways they understand, respect, and find useful.
Every one of these ideas has been tested: either directly by us, or through channels we’ve audited or helped scale. If you’re serious about channel expansion in 2025, this is the shift: try engineering content for the audience you haven’t met yet.
Need help implementing any of these? We’re right here.