Medicine, architecture, or engineering used to be everyone’s career goal, but lately everyone wants a taste of that sweet YouTube coin.

Before you jump right in, here are some things you might want to consider to maximize your chances of success.

Create an Identity
People in this community know what they are looking for and it’s more straightforward than you think. It may sound interesting to be a YouTuber who plans weddings and does karate while cooking hotdogs on the side, but let’s be real, having more than one interest means doubling the effort to build up your image. Before putting up your channel, figure out what your specialty is and branch out from there. If you decide to be a travel vlogger, you can post videos like going around the Philippines on a certain budget or listing the top five places to visit beyond the metro.

Figure out who your audience is
Aside from the casual conversations you will be having with your camera (which might get you a few judging glances which you’ll learn to get used to), know who you are speaking to beyond your camera lens. Who is your audience? Are they in the same age bracket as you? With an audience in mind, you can easily figure out what content will work best for you and your viewers. It will also help you figure out what time and day would be best to upload your videos to gain more views and watchtime. If you plan on targeting students, you can post videos in the afternoon or on weekends because this is normally the time they would get home from school or when they’re hanging out at home, but with a much older audience, you can post at a later time since they have a more flexible schedule.

Identify a trend—before it’s trending
Unless you’re Matt Groening of “The Simpsons,” it might seem impossible to know what the next big thing could be, but it’s actually more attainable than you think. Here’s a little secret: if you want to know what will trend in the future, you have to figure out what has already trended in the past. Trippy–but it makes sense.

Most trends just recur—and these are the three types of trends to watch out for:

The first are recurring holiday trends, which are also one of the easiest to spot. Since Christmas is nearing, you can search what has trended during previous Christmases and see if it can work again this time around. The same goes with any other holiday, all you have to do is take a trip down memory lane. The second recurring trend would be those that happen at no specific time of the year, like in 2016 when skits and lip-sync battles flooded the YouTube feed. Take note if you think this could still be a thing in the future. Though these types of recurring trends are easy to find, you have to make sure they’re still relevant to your audience. Just because a trend was once a big hit doesn’t mean it will be popular now. The last type of recurring trend needs a lot more research and digging. These are the trends that were ahead of their time: They didn’t get a lot of attention back then, but years later they could become a big hit. Turtlenecks used to be workwear but are now a fashion staple. In the YouTube industry, if you manage to catch these trends and post before the rest it will up the ante for your channel for sure.

Make a smart equipment investment
Aside from conceptualizing what content to release, another important factor is having quality equipment. With good equipment, you can greatly affect your audiences’ interest in the content you put out. Apart from having a proper camera and microphone, each type of YouTuber, depending on their genre, has unique equipment to invest in. YouTubers who are always on-the-go and vlogging need a stabilizer, while those who do ASMR would find a noise-canceling mic more useful.

Buying heavy-duty equipment might leave a pretty big dent on your wallet but good equipment is a must-have, especially in this type of market, where people look for good visuals and audio. Since vlogging is nothing new, there are loads of bigger and more established vloggers who already have their own space and their mini vlogging setup. It may seem intimidating, but as a newbie, it’s not a sin to record on your phone for the meantime. You don’t have to worry about investing right away in expensive equipment. Instead, you can invest in gadgets that can provide almost the same quality as professional cameras. OPPO recently released the Reno2 series which is said to have been designed to cater to the needs of vloggers who are always on the go. Users can expect powerful stability and video recording features all packed in the latest OPPO Reno2 series.

Reno2 series takes lead in smartphone videography
A common problem when using smartphones is that it tends to make videos look amateur. A good reco is to get a smartphone that can handle drastic changes in the environment and have steady af stabilizers. The new OPPO Reno2 has a 48MP quad camera with a 20x zoom capacity, great for outdoor filming, which is a first in smartphone technology and overall pretty neat. It also has an ultra steady option that gives you smooth transitions and is great for beginners who are still trying to get the hang of things. Lastly, OPPO has also integrated SOLOOP, a smart video editing app that can quickly stitch up your videos and allow you to share your perfectly captured moments instantly.

If any up-and-comers want to check them out, the Reno2 and the Reno2 F are now officially available in all OPPO stores nationwide. On Nov. 16, they’ll be dropping a new color option for the Reno2F – Nebula Green.