As you know, I was thoroughly irked this week, seeing unattractive comments about me and my research.
Then, once I stopped saying rude things to my computer monitor and calmed down, I decided to take action.
First, I posted a couple of YouTube videos, trying to correct apparent misunderstandings.
After that, I hired a team to see whether it’s worth my time to make YouTube a priority… but I’ll talk about that in a moment.
Anyway, about the videos…
For years, there’s been a curious, online fascination with my surname. (This has never made sense to me. Per Forebears, Broome is the 23,815th most common surname in the world, and 62% of Broomes are in the U.S.A.)
In case you’re as interested in quirks and oddities as I am, I stumbled onto this list of 100+ least-common surnames. My favorite might be “Bytheseashore.” (Seriously. It’s a surname. I would love to see the comments it attracts.)
So anyway, in case it might bring clarity, I created a YouTube video, sharing some details about the my surname. (Admittedly, this might be an absolute snooze for most people.)
I’m pleased that I managed to keep this video under one minute. As a genealogy enthusiast, it’s far too easy for me to go on and on (and on) about the Broomes and related families.
In addition to the obsession with my name, even more people seem to think I’m a newcomer to the Mandela Effect. Some suggest that I’m a usurper.
Really, as soon as I’d posted my four-part audiobook recordings at YouTube, one person actually said, “she came along and took ownership.” And then others followed with similar accusations.
Umm… wow.
So, in case it will do any good — admittedly unlikely — I created a YouTube Short video addressing that, too.
Meanwhile, musing about the general YouTube dilemma, I’d decided to ask some professionals whether I could create more videos on my two main topics – ghost hunting and the Mandela Effect – and get adequate traction with either channel.
I’m still in blink-blink mode, looking at their report.
Apparently, every month, an average of 930 people search on YouTube for “Fiona Broome.” Just my name. Nothing else with it. (Is there another Fiona Broome they’re looking for…?)
But – and this is what really astonishes me – the competition for that keyword is pretty steep.
So, at this point, unless the YouTube algorithm is being indulgent, neither of my YouTube channels is likely to be on the first page of results.
Even one that’s “FionaBroome.” (That’s the actual URL/name of my ghost hunting YouTube channel.)
And then there’s “Mandela Effect.” YouTube receives over 73,000 searches for that phrase, every month.
I have zero chance of ranking well for that phrase, too.
However, the team did find a couple of YouTube niches where I might be able to shine.
I’ll consider them as we’re packing for our next cross-country trip.
They might be on my to-do list for 2024.
Google has become aggressively hostile to mandela effect,in fact all entities connected with google have become frustatingly annoying. Be it google search or youtube or even goople maps,can’t say about gmail but the message is clear. Comply or keep off. X on the other hand has been neutral,but you have quit there. Can’t say much about Meta.
Vivek, I agree. I’m glad that X has been neutral about the Mandela Effect. Personally, I had to leave because the tone of posts and comments seemed to shift dramatically and abruptly.
I’m not impressed with Meta, in general, but my Facebook Page has been useful. I should probably make time to create a mailing list, but even that feels too much like I’m adding to the annoying din (and tyranny) of the Internet.
So, for now, I rely upon friends like you to share anything I’m working on that seems useful, or relevant to others’ interests. Thanks!
YouTube search sucks balls…in the bad way. There have been plenty of times that I knew that there were videos that were on YouTube and were obviously relevant to my search that just weren’t showing up in the search.
Hey, Fiona, I wanted to let you know about a movie that I saw being advertised called “The Shift.” It is about a dude who has the ability to shift people into other realities. I thought that you might be interested in it because of the subject matter. Check it out.
https://www.angel.com/movies/the-shift