YouTubing in English as a foreigner?!

Hunhura

Hunhura

Well-Known Member
Hey!

I guess there are obviously some creators that came from non-English-speaking countries but work in this field of YouTube.

So here are some questions I'd discuss with you;D
Any of your thoughts would be very helpful for the whole community to understand how the people's psychology works when it comes to meeting and watching foreign creators!

Do you think that a YouTuber who hasn't any experience speaking English can be a success on the English-speaking YouTube? Or do you think they have a worse chance to achieve it? (This question isn't about hard work (which makes everything possible), it's about the start point!)

What do you think, what serious problems can they meet when posting videos in English?

What matters to you when you watch a foreign creator and what usually makes you stop watching their videos?

Does their location matter to you? (E.g. Would you prefer to watch a Norwegian creator or a Pakistani one?)

Also, what methods would you recommend a foreign creator to get discovered within the English-speaking segment of YouTube?

Do you try to avoid them or you think they're exotic and unique creators which bring the difference to the community?

Do you think that YouTubing in English can make them lose their singularity, the unique characteristics?

What did Sweden's PewDiePie do in order to join the community? How did the success influence his unique style and content quality? Has he became similar to native-English creators from the US and why?

Ofc we can discuss any other foreign YouTubers:D

I guess that would be helpful for many members of YTtalk who feel unsure because of their native language which isn't mainstream! Xd
Thank you!

Disclaimer: Everything depends, but this thread is about the whole subcommunity of foreign YouTubers without discussing only a certain channel.
 
Foreign english-speaker here ( I'm italian)! I think that being non-native english speaker can be a boost somehow because of the accent ( a lot of people are fond of foreign accents). But of course everything depends on the level of english you have because you actually need to be understandable by your audience ( some mistakes can happen so don't worry, I think that they add some good flavour to the whole).
In the end yeah that can be a trait of originality by itself but you need to accompany that with good content and entertainment level!
 
I agree with everything @Winger94 has said. The crucial point is if you are proficient enough to speak English fluently or nearly fluently: It matters a lot if people can understand you. If they can understand you then your accent can become an added value. If they can't, they will miss the most important part of your video and they will stop watching. However in my opinion, concerning the chance to succeed, if you speak near fluently there isn't that much that separates you from native English speaking Youtubers in that respect. I think someone with an accent has about as big a chance to succeed as a native speaker. Also in order to be successful a lot of the standard methods apply: first and foremost, make good original and unique content; do good with SEO, etc etc.

Personally I don't care where anyone comes from, I am subscribed to Youtubers all over the world and I am from the Netherlands myself.
 
I'm Dutch and I film in English, but due to a couple of reasons: I've lived in multiple countries, so it doesn't make sense for me to talk in the one particular language, while I might be living in another country next year. English is pretty universal. Also, English can get you to reach a wider audience and I like to focus on the world (as I'm moving a lot around as well).
I think one has to think quite hard if he wants to speak in English in his videos. Having an accent is not that big a problem, but your English knowledge is very important. If you don't know enough words or if you can't express yourself well in English, don't do it. You're holding yourself back to what you could be. I'm doing English, as I've lived in the USA and I'm now doing an English master in Poland, so I feel comfortable enough to use the language.
 
Yeah, even if i know english good enough ( hearing the opinion from my friends) I sometimes tend to stutter a little, even if I'm reducing that thing. I think that the stutter is only partially caused by talking in a foreign language, it has also something to do with speaking in front of the camera. But an odd thing is that I prefer using english more than italian because I thought about doing also some italian videos but I will feel more embarrassed using my own language xD.
 
Winger94 said:
Yeah, even if i know english good enough ( hearing the opinion from my friends) I sometimes tend to stutter a little, even if I'm reducing that thing. I think that the stutter is only partially caused by talking in a foreign language, it has also something to do with speaking in front of the camera. But an odd thing is that I prefer using english more than italian because I thought about doing also some italian videos but I will feel more embarrassed using my own language xD.
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Haha, I feel the same, Winter94! If I would do it in Dutch now, it would be very strange and also unfair to others as well. I also stutter, but I stutter in any language possible. I have these blanks that I'm talking and suddenly don't remember what I was talking about and where I was going in the conversation. Luckily, you can cut those out in the final version :D
 
Well if you speak english fluently i guess yeah you should,in order to get discovered within the english speaking segment of youtube you should get involved within english speaking communties and do collabs with english speaking youtubers i guess
 
Winger94 said:
Yeah, even if i know english good enough ( hearing the opinion from my friends) I sometimes tend to stutter a little, even if I'm reducing that thing. I think that the stutter is only partially caused by talking in a foreign language, it has also something to do with speaking in front of the camera. But an odd thing is that I prefer using english more than italian because I thought about doing also some italian videos but I will feel more embarrassed using my own language xD.
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Exactly the same feeling!! It sounds strange but I feel way more confident speaking English, generally, foreign languages as for me, plus I can't pronounce one sound in my native lang xDD

Thanks everyone for your replies, you've helped a lot :D
 
I'm a Filipino but all of the videos posted in the channel are spoken in English. There are times that we have issues in grammar and comprehension as English is only a second language in the Philippines which the local language, Filipino, is dominant. The only thing why we must only speak English in all videos is because our arcade gaming videos capture worldwide market. Maybe some of my Filipino friends/colleagues may comment in videos saying "english spokening dollar" or "nosebleed" as our channel grows. It can be embarassing to look at the comments saying that words but to be honest, our grammar is the top consideration when it comes to channel improvements.
 
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