11 YouTube Collab Video Ideas for 2023
I love it when my favorite Youtuber teams up with another content creator to bring something different to the table.
Disclaimer: Some of the links within this blog post are affiliate links, which means if you end up clicking through and making a purchase, I will earn a commission at no extra cost to you
While some viewers aren’t fond of the promotional videos of brand sponsorship, others prefer more honest and relevant shoutouts.
More than the viewers, bloggers themselves benefit greatly from YouTube collab video ideas and I am all in for that!
Why YouTube Collab Videos Are Great
Think like this: your favorite Youtuber uploads a video that you’re surely going to watch. In their video, they do a 5-minute Qand A session with another Youtuber, that you know the names of but never got on to watching their videos.
If you find the new content creator interesting, you might as well subscribe to their channel. This is primarily what YouTube collab video ideas do.
They bring together audiences of different content creators under one video. Not only does this increase audience engagement and reach for both the Youtubers, but it also helps them achieve a good relationship with other creators through collab videos.
As we already know you will only be a successful Youtuber and earn enough if you are visible. The wizard Youtuber has checked the right boxes to come to where they now have tactics and ideas of their own.
This is also true for every content creator on YouTube. When a blogger decides to make a joint effort video, they are exposed to numerous such ideas.
This enhances their creative mind and encourages them to think beyond boxes of their own, in terms of video ideas and work methods.
Whether it’s a themed video, in video shoutouts, or multiple-part series, YouTube lets you come together with other content creators, friends, and brands. Here are a few effective YouTube collab video ideas.
YouTube Collab Ideas with Friends
One of the more fun and simpler ways to create a YouTube collab video is to come together with another friend or content creator.
As long as you and your friend both contribute equal ideas and efforts to the making of the content, the process never gets complicated. If you’re having to do everything, that’d be a different story, just like a college group project. Remember those?
So, first things first. If you are a Youtuber looking for content creators or friends to collab with, do your research. Watch their videos. The collab video must-have elements of both your and your friend’s personality and niches, of course.
Here are a few ways you could make a collab video with a friend:
1. Host Each Other’s Videos
One of the more popular ways to join hands with a friend or co content creator is by hosting each other’s video. This isn’t as complicated as it sounds.
This simply means, you and your friend create a video that is relevant to both your channels, whatever your respective niches may be. Once the video work is done, you and your friend can publish the videos on each other’s channels at the same time.
What’s great about hosting videos is, they can be made almost on the go without much-added effort.
If a travel blogger who is successful meets with another blogger of the same niche while filming the videos, planned or unplanned, they can include each other’s clips in their videos.
This is especially helpful if bug Youtubers use their platform to shout out to the rising creators in need of more visibility.
2. Themed Video Collab
Sometimes you’ll notice two food bloggers visiting the same trending restaurant, mostly together, to review the food in that place. These are part of a themed video collab idea, where a Youtuber and their creator friend tags to create content based on the same theme.
These themes could be anything: a product review, a simple cooking-the-same-dinner video, or visiting the same haunted place to see who gets more frightened out of the video. Moreover, these videos work best with friends who can visit you and shoot in-person videos.
Of course, the two YouTubers in action give direct and indirect shoutouts to each other through the video. More often, the YouTuber and his friend will upload the same video on their channels, or if one is more popular than the other, they’d decide on who’s the channel to upload.
3. 2 Or 3-Part Series
If you follow the popular Youtuber, Nice Peter, you’d know what 2 part or multiple-part series looks like. One of his most famed videos with 128 million views currently is part of his famous collab series with other content creators about famous rap battles of History.
Throughout the many videos in the series, he acted out the videos with YouTubers like Zach Sherwin, Epic Wolf, and Alex Farnham from Mockstars.
Other than this, you and your friend can create a 2-part series, with a theme of storytelling in them. This would keep the viewers on edge to watch the next video in the series. One great idea is to upload part 1 in your channel and another part in your friend’s channel.
4. How-to Tutorial
When it comes to tutorials, two people creating a video to explain to their views how a certain process works or how you can perform a certain task is a favorite way of collaborating with other creators.
An example of such a how-to collab video is when two bike niche Youtubers get together to teach their views on how to clean the bike brakes. The two Youtubers can meet at the shooting spot, share their ideas and methods of cleaning the brake.
For the cleaning part, one Youtuber can show the views on how to wash the brake while the other demonstrates how to oil and maintain them.
YouTube Collab Ideas with Brands
While content creators make millions by collaborating in brands, brands churn out a great profit through these Youtubers. This is because all Youtubers have a community, including loyal fans and admirers.
Advertising brands on their channels promotes the brand as well as the creator. Customers of the brand turn to these YouTubers when they need to hear about what’s good in the store.
How do you collab with brands? Here are a few ideas:
5. Product Review
Product reviews are a part of brand sponsorship and are deemed to be the best way for Youtubers to earn oodles of cash. This could include an in-depth review of a product sent by the brand. It could be clothing, makeup, utensils, or even gadgets.
There is no limit to which brands you can collab with, despite being from any industry of bloggers. Here’s an example of Kieran Brown’s simple video on his collaboration with Adidas.
“How to use” product reviews can also be part of brand partnerships for content.
Working with brands has its perks. If you do it right, the deal is usually long-term and gets you in contact with other brands as well.
6. List and One Brand Videos
Viewers don’t always want a fact-listed review of a product they are planning to invest in. Sometimes, they look up to the Youtuber to understand why they endorse a particular brand.
One such way to build more trust and honesty through brand promotion is by explaining to your audience what you love about the product.
Make a list, perhaps. Put it on the video title, even better. “10 reasons I use EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid EarPods for gaming”, is also a very product-specific brand collab idea for content.
One brand look is a welcome and popular video collab content that is supposed to be standard among beauty bloggers. Videos like “full face of one brand makeup”, from beauty gurus like Manny Mua are a good example of creative promotion.
7. Store Haul
Sometimes a brand offers credits to the Youtuber so they can make a store haul video. For people who follow fashion and beauty bloggers, hauls are one of the more popular content viewers enjoy.
In videos like these, the Youtuber visits a store and buys everything from one brand.
Sounds simple? Well, the sponsors make sure they include all products they want to advertise through the blogger, all in one video. Of course, the video is followed by a review of each product for further promotion.
Long Distance Collab Ideas
Youtubers come from all corners of the world. While they have entirely different time zones to adjust, it’s not always possible to physically meet, greet, and create videos even if you have great YouTube collab video ideas. Here are few long-distance content ideas:
8. Challenge Videos
One of the best ways to create joining videos with another Youtuber, without being present in the same location, is undoubtedly the widespread challenge videos you can find on the platform.
Why are these so popular among YouTubers and their viewers? It’s the flexibility of creating and enjoying these videos.
Irrespective of what niche you’re part of, a challenge video is a sure shot successful in terms of collaborations. Few such challenge collabs have gone extremely viral over the web, creating name, fame, and money for the creator of the challenge.
Jared Dine’s music challenge is one successful example. Or you would probably remember the famous ASL ice bucket challenge, where Bill Gates participated after being nominated by Mark Zuckerberg for the challenge.
Well, that started as Youtuber challenges others to perform the same stint. You might have (hopefully you haven’t) even tried the viral Hot Pepper Challenge.
Although the food niche has been on the loops with the most viral challenges, gaming and makeup videos such as the blindfold makeup challenge got Kylie Jenner and her friend on the game.
Related: 111 Popular YouTube Challenges to Do (and Go Viral)!
9. Q/A Sessions
One way YouTubers don’t have to be physically present to team up with others is with a question-and-answer session. The idea of such videos is pretty simple. Each YouTuber, it can be two or many, will record themselves answer one or a few questions.
Why such videos are popular has to do with the involvement of multiple YouTubers in one video. That’s right. It’s not limited to you and one other blogger.
With each of the bloggers presenting their perspectives and ideas in their own way, views are exposed to meaty content even in a 15-minute video.
10. In Video Shout Out/Interactions
From the Supper BunnyHop channel, here’s an example of a video shout-out collab video idea, where the host channel briefly gives a shout-out to the Dark Souls community.
These collabs especially help content creators who are struggling with exposure and audience engagement.
However, you’ll have to keep in mind that the shout-out shouldn’t be absolutely irrelevant. The more organic it is, the higher the rate of success in collaboration.
The purpose of such a collaboration is to simply bring about awareness among your own viewers about the other channel.
Many YouTubers, find a hassle-free and subtle way of giving shouts out to their friends. They do this through casual social media interactions, comments, and story mentions on their Facebook or Instagram stories.
This works well for both the YouTubers involved while keeping the idea of creating awareness of what it is. It’s easy to overdo and annoy your own fans while promoting other bloggers.
11. Live Meetups
What do you do when your friend lives continents apart and you two can’t hang out in one place? You still meet…through a video call.
Youtubers, in doing things they do regularly, have turned video chats and live meet-ups into the content itself. And why not? This is a great way to bring about two Youtubers in long-distance collab video while having both the fanbases and viewers interact through live chat.
This increases viewership, allowing one to collaborate with YouTubers across the globe while being in the comfort of their usual spaces.
Final Thoughts
YouTubers have been teaming up and shaking hands to bring to their audience the best of internet content. Brands, viewers, and content creators themselves love to seam ideas to create something new.
The growth of such videos in the platform has given birth to the best of YouTube collab video ideas, all full of fun, ingenuity, and originality. Some have even gone viral, and have stayed in talks to date.