How to Start a Successful Excel Tutorial Channel in 6 Steps
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Zack Saadioui
8/11/2025
So You Want to Start an Excel Tutorial Channel? Here’s How to Actually Succeed
Hey everyone! So, you've got some serious Excel skills & you're thinking about sharing that knowledge with the world through a YouTube channel. That's an awesome idea. Honestly, the demand for Excel tutorials is HUGE & it’s not going anywhere. From students to seasoned professionals, pretty much everyone needs to use Excel at some point, & let's be real, it can be pretty intimidating.
But here’s the thing: starting a channel is easy. Starting a successful one? That takes a bit more planning & a dash of insider knowledge. I've spent a lot of time looking into what separates the channels that get millions of views from the ones that fizzle out. Turns out, it's not just about knowing your VLOOKUPs from your pivot tables.
This guide is going to be your step-by-step playbook. We're going to cover everything from finding your unique angle to making your first dollar. Think of me as your friend who’s already gone down this rabbit hole & is here to give you the real scoop.
Step 1: Find Your Niche (Seriously, Don't Skip This)
Okay, I know. Every guide says to "find your niche." It sounds like a cliché, but for a topic as broad as Excel, it's CRITICAL. There are thousands of Excel channels out there. You can't just be "the Excel guy" or "the Excel gal." You need to be "the Excel person for..." something specific.
Think about it this way: instead of "Excel for everyone," what about:
Excel for Small Business Owners: Focusing on inventory management, payroll templates, & expense tracking.
Excel for Data Analysts: Diving deep into Power Query, advanced charting, & data cleaning techniques.
Excel for Students: Covering topics like creating grade books, project management timelines, & basic formulas for assignments.
Excel for Marketers: Teaching how to build marketing dashboards, analyze campaign data, & create reports.
Why is this so important? Because it's way easier to get noticed in a smaller pond. When you focus on a sub-niche, you're not competing with the massive channels head-on. You're creating content for a specific group of people who are actively searching for solutions to their problems. They'll feel like you're talking directly to them, which builds a much stronger connection.
How to find your niche:
What's your background? Are you an accountant? A project manager? A scientist? Use your professional experience to your advantage.
What do you enjoy? Do you love making beautiful, interactive dashboards? Or are you a VBA scripting wizard who loves to automate everything? Lean into what you're passionate about. It'll show in your videos.
What are people asking? Spend some time on Reddit (like the r/excel subreddit), Quora, & other forums. What are the common questions & frustrations people have? That's your content goldmine right there.
Step 2: Plan Your Content - What to Actually Teach
Once you've got your niche, it's time to brainstorm video ideas. The key here is to think like a viewer. What problems are they trying to solve? What are they typing into the YouTube search bar?
Here are some proven video formats for Excel tutorials:
Beginner's Guides: These are ALWAYS in demand. Think "Excel for Absolute Beginners - Full Course" or "The 10 Formulas Everyone Should Know." A comprehensive beginner's course can be a cornerstone of your channel.
Problem/Solution Videos: These are super specific & highly searchable. "How to Fix the #VALUE! Error," "How to Create a Drop-Down List in Excel," or "How to Use VLOOKUP to Compare Two Sheets." These are the videos that people will find when they're in a moment of need.
"Top 5" or "Top 10" Lists: People love lists. "5 Mind-Blowing Excel Features You're Not Using," "Top 10 Keyboard Shortcuts to Save You Hours." These titles are catchy & promise a lot of value in a short amount of time.
Project-Based Tutorials: Walk viewers through a real-world project from start to finish. For example, building a personal budget tracker, creating an interactive sales dashboard, or making an inventory management system. This is a fantastic way to show the practical application of different Excel features.
New Feature Breakdowns: Excel is always being updated, especially with Microsoft 365. When a new feature like Python in Excel or new functions like
1
TRIMRANGE
are released, be one of the first to create a clear, concise tutorial on it.
Pro Tip: Don't just make a random collection of videos. Try to organize your content into playlists. This keeps people on your channel longer & shows them you have a deep understanding of a particular topic. For example, you could have playlists for "Excel Formulas," "Pivot Tables," & "Data Visualization."
Step 3: Gearing Up - What You Actually Need
Okay, let's talk about equipment. You might be thinking you need a fancy studio & expensive gear. You don't. Honestly, for an Excel tutorial channel, the most important things are a clear screen recording & a crisp microphone.
The Bare Essentials:
A Decent Computer: This one's a no-brainer. You need a computer that can run Excel smoothly while also recording your screen.
Excel License: This is a sneaky one people forget. To legally monetize your videos, you can't use a "Home and Student" version of Office. You'll need a business license, like one of the Microsoft 365 Business plans.
Screen Recording Software: There are great free options out there. OBS Studio is a fantastic, powerful, & FREE tool that a lot of big YouTubers use. It can feel a little intimidating at first, but there are tons of tutorials on how to set it up for screen recording. Other options include Camtasia (paid, but very user-friendly) or even the built-in screen recorder in Windows.
A Good USB Microphone: Your audio quality is MORE important than your video quality. People will forgive slightly blurry video, but they will not tolerate scratchy, hard-to-understand audio. You can get a great USB mic like the Blue Yeti or the Audio-Technica AT2020 for around $100. It's the single best investment you can make for your channel.
That's it. You don't need a camera to start. Faceless YouTube channels are incredibly popular, especially in the tutorial space. The focus is on your screen & your voice.
Step 4: Setting Up Your Channel for Success
Before you upload your first video, take a little time to make your channel look professional. It builds trust & tells viewers you're serious about what you're doing.
Channel Name: Pick something clear & memorable. It could be your name (like Kevin Stratvert) or something more brand-focused (like Excel Campus).
Channel Art & Profile Picture: Create a simple, clean banner & logo. You can use a free tool like Canva to do this. Make it look professional but also reflect your channel's personality.
Channel Description: Tell people what your channel is about & who it's for. This is a great place to use some of those keywords related to your niche.
Create a Website or Landing Page: This is a HUGE step that many new creators skip. Having your own space online, even a simple one-page website, is invaluable. It's a place where you can send your audience that you OWN. You can use it to build an email list, offer downloadable templates, or even sell your own courses down the line.
Here's where a tool like Arsturn can be a game-changer. Imagine someone lands on your website after watching one of your videos. They might have more questions. Instead of letting them click away, you can have a custom AI chatbot built with Arsturn greet them. It can be trained on all your content, your FAQs, & information about your services. So, it can instantly answer questions like "Which video explains XLOOKUP?" or "Do you have a template for a project budget?" This keeps visitors engaged & makes your brand look incredibly professional & helpful 24/7. It's a pretty cool way to provide instant support & capture potential leads for future courses or consulting.
Step 5: Marketing & Getting Your First Viewers
Okay, you've made a great video. How do you get people to watch it? You can't just hit "publish" & hope for the best.
YouTube SEO is Your Best Friend: YouTube is the world's second-largest search engine. Treat it like one.
Titles: Your titles need to be searchable. Think about what someone would type into Google or YouTube. "How to..." & list-style titles work great.
Descriptions: Write a detailed description for every video. Use keywords related to your topic. You can also include timestamps to help viewers navigate your video.
Tags: Use relevant tags to help YouTube understand what your video is about. Think of both broad tags (e.g., "Excel") & specific tags (e.g., "Excel conditional formatting").
Eye-Catching Thumbnails: Your thumbnail is like a mini-movie poster. It's what makes people decide to click on your video over someone else's. Keep them bright, clear, & consistent. Use large, easy-to-read text.
Promote Outside of YouTube: Don't just rely on the YouTube algorithm.
Reddit & Quora: Find relevant questions on these platforms & provide a genuinely helpful answer. Then, you can subtly link to your video as a further resource.
LinkedIn: If your niche is professional, LinkedIn can be a great place to share your tutorials.
Build an Email List: This is a long-term strategy, but it's pure gold. Encourage viewers to sign up for your email list (maybe offer a free template as an incentive). This gives you a direct line of communication with your most dedicated fans.
Step 6: Monetizing Your Channel - The Many Ways to Make Money
Everyone thinks about YouTube AdSense, but honestly, that's just the tip of the iceberg, especially for a niche channel. It takes a LOT of views to make significant money from ads. The real money is in other revenue streams.
YouTube Partner Program (AdSense): This is the obvious one. You need 1,000 subscribers & 4,000 hours of watch time to qualify. It's a great milestone to aim for, but don't make it your only goal.
Affiliate Marketing: This is a HUGE opportunity for Excel channels. You can become an affiliate for:
Online Courses: Platforms like Coursera or Udemy have affiliate programs. You can recommend a comprehensive Excel course & get a commission if someone signs up through your link.
Software & Tools: Do you use a specific microphone, screen recorder, or other tool? You can often find affiliate programs for them.
Books: Recommend your favorite Excel books on Amazon.
Selling Your Own Digital Products: This is where you can build a real business. Because you've built trust with your audience, they'll be happy to buy products from you.
Excel Templates: This is a no-brainer. Create high-quality, pre-built templates for things like budgets, project plans, or invoices & sell them on your website.
E-books or Mini-Courses: Package your knowledge into a more structured format. A $20 e-book on "The Ultimate Guide to Pivot Tables" can be a fantastic source of passive income.
Consulting or Freelancing: As you build your reputation as an Excel expert, people will start reaching out for one-on-one help. You can offer your services to build custom spreadsheets or automate tasks for businesses.
The key is to create multiple income streams. Don't rely on just one.
Putting It All Together
Starting a successful Excel tutorial channel is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time to find your voice, build an audience, & see results. But the opportunity is massive. You're not just creating videos; you're building a brand & a business around your skills.