We are a channel with only 2000 or so subscribers. We were ranking in the #1 when we only had less than 1,000 subscribers too. For evidence, you can see we rank for keywords such as "PUBG Dacia" "VRChat Scooby Doo" "PUBG VSS" "High Skill" and more. We do this via two ways:

- Use VidIQ Pro to search for a keyword that has a decent amount of search volume each month with the lowest competition.
- Use Morning Fame to structure my title, description and tags to make sure it's prime to target one keyword.
- Create my video, making sure I say the keyword at least three times in the video, clear enough that YouTube's automatic CC engine picks up the words.
- Post the video & have a few fake accounts watch the video through the VPN, like, comment & ensure their comment contains the specific keyword.
- Paying for GENUINE views. Meaning we pay to reach the top of a certain subreddit for views within the first 48 hours of a video release.
- Using the VOXX VPN extension logging into a vpn. Going to YouTube. Search the keyword my video is specifically targeting. Filter to "newest first". Click my video. Give it 100% retention. (This counts as a view from that keyword. Repeat roughly 20+ times within the first 48 hours of video release.)

You WILL drop down the search results after roughly a month when you video dies down and bigger channels take their place again.

Evidence: