This week HC Durham were lucky enough to interview Katherine Baker, a second-year law student who also runs a successful YouTube channel, BeautyByKat08. You can check out her channel here!
When and why did you start your YouTube channel?
I started my YouTube channel back in October 2013 as a creative outlet to express myself and to engage with individuals from all around the world. I was initially inspired after meeting Jack Harries, JacksGap on YouTube, at a meet up where he told me just what an amazing thing starting a YouTube channel was. So I jumped in and started my own – BeautyByKat08 – and have never looked back since.
Do you have any advice for aspiring bloggers or vloggers so they can stand out from the competition?
The main piece of advice that I have for aspiring bloggers/vloggers is that it is going to be hard – most of us look very similar to begin with – so one thing that would make you stand out from the crowd is commitment. A lot will quit after a few months or years when they do not see progress in subscriber count or view count, but persistence always pays off and if you try hard, you will always succeed in the end. The second piece of advice is to be friendly to your competition – not try to outdo them! Networking is key in the YouTube community so make sure that you engage with other YouTubers on Instagram, Twitter and in the YouTube comments to make friends, and so that others will see your comment, look at your channel and subscribe – that is a great way to gain a subscriber base.
Do you find it hard balancing your degree and YouTube channel?
I find balancing hard in times of stress – such as in exam time – when I always feel that I should be revising rather than doing an extracurricular activity. That is why I tend to pre-film a lot of videos over Easter so that I will not have to film another video until exams are over. In the year, I would compare making YouTube videos to any other extra-curricular activity like playing football or hockey, just that you are free to do it whenever you want. Because it is something that I enjoy doing, I will always make sure to leave time for it every day.
Any cool opportunities or perks?
Getting paid to try out clothing/makeup/skincare is always pretty exciting. I get products I love for free, and I get paid to talk about them too! But mainly I feel that my YouTube channel has provided me with the opportunity to meet individuals from all around the world who I have become incredibly close to. The ability to interact internationally on a daily basis still fascinates me, and seeing that people from 202 different countries have watched my videos, both baffles and amazes me.
What’s your favourite video you’ve ever done?
This is a hard question because I like a few of my videos for different reasons. I put a lot of effort into the “DIY Starbucks Drinks & Treats for Fall/ Autumn!” video so I really like how that turned out. And then I liked my artsy sunday afternoon routine video because it was so different to my other videos! Plus it was filmed just after exams so I was very happy!
Favourite high-street store/beauty brand?
Anthropologie must be my favourite store – the mugs and bowls in that shop are to die for! I also adore Free People which is part of the same company, but sadly their largest stores are only in the US.
Favourite places to go in Durham?
I love the hot chocolates in Chapters more than anything else in my life. Flat White Kitchen is quite good too when it isn’t too busy.
Any plans for the summer holidays yet?
I have four weeks of legal internships in London from the end of June so I will be completing those and then hopefully having a summer holiday with my family in a hot country – preferably somewhere like Dubai!