Remember that person screaming "˜LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!' on YouTube?  Nobody was sure if it was a dude or a chick for ages, but it became one of the most viewed and talked about videos ever on YouTube. Just take a look at the amount of views it got and the volume spin-off videos seen in the screenshot below.

Why? Simply because the whole Britney issue was really 'hot' at that time, after she gave herself a haircut and was battling in court over her kids. Millions of people were searching for "˜Britney' on YouTube. This is where you have to get them - the search bar.

When you're contemplating how to make an unforgettable YouTube video that will explode all over the internet, you have to think about what people will enjoy and more importantly, what they search for.

Open up a tabloid newspaper to see what's happening or get a group of friends together to see if you can think of a video that will have people in fits of laughter, outraged or grossed out. It has to be something edgy. Those ten minute mini-dramas that were hot when YouTube first came out in 2005 are long gone.

how to make youtube videos

In order for your video to be a success it has to be under two minutes so it can bounce quickly around offices, schools and anywhere people have access to computers. Keeping it short and sweet also stops people getting bored and as a result, clicking out of your video.

Keeping it small will also help you because time is of the essence meaning you have to get the finished product live before the trending topic fizzles out.

Take for example that fateful day when Twitter went down due to hacker attacks. People immediately went on Google and searched for answers. Any video about Twitter got huge views that day and still are because it's a very hot topic. Other hot topics where YouTube views went through the roof were the Iranian Elections, Swine Flu and Chinese suppression. By making a video about something popular you're allowing the video to do its own publicity in the search engines.

how to make youtube videos

So now you know what kind of thing you should make your YouTube video about; trending topics. However, that's only half the battle. Now you must actually make the video.

I'd suggest first getting a good quality camera. Phone cameras with low quality will only get good views for things like riots, football matches and "˜on the spot' news where you wouldn't be expected to have anything else on you. But for feature videos where you're putting in serious time and effort, a good quality camera is required because it's 2009 and people want to watch good quality videos - in a few years HD will be the big thing.

Choosing what style to do your video in is also extremely important. For example, serious news topics such as the Iranian elections could be done in a mock news broadcast with outrageous reporting that's funny but not offensive. On the other hand, the whole swine flu debacle could be done in a mock '28 Days Later' or "˜Coverfield' style as though people turned to zombies or mutants when they caught it. This is funny because of how the tabloids are instilling public fear over the disease and it is a good chance for the public to have a laugh at themselves.

The number of ways in which you could make a YouTube video are endless. However, in order to have a successful one, it must be done in a way that appeals to the public. This differs from video to video depending on the subject matter and what is socially acceptable.

how to make a youtube video

Parodies, vlogs, news reports, animations and mock documentaries do very well on the web and should be focused upon if you want to make a well-known and unforgettable YouTube video. Here, in the swine flu screenshot you can see that actual news reports do very well, as well as advice as people were nervous about the symptoms and of course the inevitable - a funny song written about swine flu.

As soon as you have uploaded your video, give it a little push out there. Don't be spammy as this annoys people. One or two tweets or sending it into a few popular blogs for them to have a look can work a treat and give it the kick start it needs.

All of that said, the Internet can be a cruel platform for indie-publishing. You could make a hilarious video that should well be a superstar but it may never catch on. On the other side of that coin, how many times have you sat and stared at the screen watching what's supposed to be this "˜really cool video' and felt like you wasted five minutes of your life when it was finished? Nobody ever said life was fair.

But who knows, your video might get picked up by FOX News and be shown on national TV just like Chris Crocker. Now that's exposure!

As for tools you might need to make the video, see following posts:

- Make Professional Looking Videos with Windows Movie Maker (Part 1)

- Make Professional Looking Videos with Windows Movie Maker (Part 2)

- Top 5 Tools To Make A Home Movie Online For Free

- 5 Easy-to-use Freeware Video Converters

Have you ever made your own YouTube videos? If so, tell us about them.