Welcome back to the series on becoming a voice of influence and impact in the 21st century
in a digital world that we live in and in the last two episodes, we covered the opportunity
why for why I believe this is a very, very important thing for Christians to be involved
in because there's just so much opportunity for impact and bearing fruit in this business.
We are treating it like a business as we talked about in the previous episodes as well.
So if you haven't watched those episodes, make sure to go check them out.
But in this last and final episode of the series, we're going to be talking about creating
your first video and then using the data and feedback from that video to create an infinite
loop that allows you to constantly improve with each video.
So after you watch this, you won't need my help anymore because you will have the data
and you will have your process for learning and improvement that will carry you on into
the years in the future and allow you to be a sustainable, influential voice on YouTube.
In order to get data, we have to create our first video.
There is no use in just analyzing everyone else's stuff and getting it stuck in analysis
paralysis.
We want to execute.
So think of this as an experiment, okay?
You are not, this is not the end all and be all.
If this fails, which most likely it's not going to be the best thing you've ever made,
that's okay.
You want to go into this with the mindset of this does not have to be perfect.
I'm just going to turn on the camera, I'm going to make this video and I'm going to
publish it because you need data and feedback to actually make your next video better and
your own data and owning that is so much more valuable than trying to go look at someone
else's performance or copy them or anything like that.
So I'd encourage you, don't get stuck in analysis of paralysis in this project.
Come up with an idea that you think that you would enjoy and that is going to perform fairly
well and give it your all with the mindset of an experimentalist, someone who is just
going for it and excited to see the results.
How do we create our first video?
Well, we want to put first things first.
Seven habits of highly effective people, we're going to put the first thing first,
which is the title and the thumbnail.
Your video cannot be seen on YouTube unless it's a short, which is a whole other thing,
but your video cannot be seen on YouTube if you don't have a good title and thumbnail
because if the video doesn't click, they're not going to watch.
If you put all this effort into making what you believe is the best video ever, but the
idea, the title and the thumbnail wasn't good enough to get the viewer to even come
there in the first place, then you just wasted a lot of time and energy, to be honest.
I've done that a lot in ways that are probably bigger failures than you'd expect.
So if you just get this wrong, don't worry about it, just keep trying.
The goal is to just put a video out.
We want to make a great title and a great thumbnail based on our recon and research,
the videos that we've captured.
I put the videos in an Excel sheet of my own so I can look at them and see what does
have traffic and momentum behind it.
I can see the patterns in the thumbnails, I can see the patterns in the titles.
So for instance, when I found a video through that process, which was a Spider-Man Stunts
in Real Life video, I went and made a Marvel Stunts in Real Life video, tweaked it a little
bit and made it my own, and I really replicated the thumbnail format and just made it better
and more for my audience.
So you're going to want to find what works, take that thumbnail format, keep it simple.
Your video and idea and execution should be simple, easy to understand, and easy to share.
So once we've made our title and thumbnail, remember, the simpler the better, we are going
to go into making the hook for the video.
All YouTube cares about is getting your viewer to click, to watch, and to end the video feeling
satisfied with a satisfying experience.
So we've got them to click with the thumbnail, how do we get them to watch the whole video?
The cool thing is YouTube gives us a tool called audience retention, and there is a
graph that allows us to see where the audience has fallen off, where maybe there was a disconnect
and they decided to click off.
But the crazy thing is that most of that clicking off, most of the audience leaving happens
within the first 30 seconds of your video.
If I really want to put my effort towards an area where it's going to make the most
impact, I'm going to focus on what we call the hook.
So they've just clicked on the video, they saw the title and thumbnail, they're expecting,
based on the title and thumbnail, to receive something similar to that.
Our goal is to affirm that title and thumbnail, so if I were to say we're trying Marvel Stunts
in real life, if we're a cooking channel and we're making beef wellington, then I'm going
to say, in this video, we're going to be learning how to make Gordon Ramsay's beef.
And then I might show a quick sneak peek of what it's going to look like at the end.
And that would be a fairly good hook.
How can we enhance our video?
How can we make it so that it's not just this boring, 10 minute long episode of us making
a Beef Wellington?
Well, we can add great storytelling techniques.
Everything in life for the most part is story.
The story that we tell ourselves about what's happened in the past, the story about ourselves
in the present really depict who we're going to become, etc.
Humans live through story and that's why obviously Jesus is the greatest story ever told.
God knows how we communicate and that's why he made a whole entire book that is filled
with epic stories.
So we're going to use our God-given gift as humans made in his image of storytelling.
We're all creative enough to do this.
It's something that can be learned as well.
The coolest thing is that it can be done in your own exact way.
So don't be afraid to go crazy on this.
Be authentic.
But I'm going to give you a couple tidbits that are going to help you create an effective
story.
And these are really, truly the two things that I used to get 26 million views on a video
that really was pretty simple.
All I did was these two things.
Number one is I followed a story structure.
The simplest story structure that you can follow.
There's a three-act story structure, but what I like to do is keep it simple.
I like to say hook, set up, and climax.
We obviously covered our hook.
We want to make sure that we're delivering on the thumbnail to the viewer and hooking
their interest in, maybe even with some conflict, which we're going to get to in a second.
But the setup is saying we're going to cook a beef wellington and then the climax is here's
the beef wellington.
Now, you're like, okay, well, what happens in between that?
How do I keep my viewer engaged?
Not just engaged, but really give them a satisfying experience.
Well, us as humans, we can all relate to conflict resolution and having to get over obstacles.
So the climax, you can almost think about as the goal of the video.
What I'm going to do though, is I'm going to try to introduce what I can to really show
the process and the journey and the ups and downs of creating that beef wellington.
So we're going to use what's called the but and therefore method.
So for example, I'm going to make a beef wellington.
And in order to do that, here are the ingredients I need to, I'm going to wrap the beef wellington
in bread.
I don't even know how to make a beef wellington.
Then I'm going to put it in the oven and I'm going to turn the oven to 400 degrees or whatever.
And then I'm going to cook it and I'm going to bring it out of the oven and voila, the
beef wellington.
So now that might be good for someone who wants to learn how to cook a beef wellington,
but maybe we can both teach them how to cook a beef wellington and get them to connect
with us in a deeper way because that's how we're going to really truly make an impact
is by forming a relationship with our viewer.
The way that I'm going to do that is using the but therefore method.
I'm going to put but and therefore in between these beats instead and watch how engaging
the story gets.
Today, we're going to be making a beef wellington, but I don't really know how to make one.
So therefore I've hired an instructor to help me out.
However, he's going to be judging me at the end of this video.
So I got to make sure whatever he teaches me, once he leaves me on my own, I'm able
to do by myself.
Then they go through the teaching.
But now that I've learned everything, I'm now on my own.
And therefore I'm going to have to use whatever I just learned to see if I can really truly
make the best beef wellington possible and make this guy stoked.
Maybe he's Gordon Ramsey or something.
Who knows?
I'm going to start cutting the beef wellington.
I'm going to start wrapping it in bread.
However, I forgot the yeast.
So that means I'm going to have to start over.
As you can tell, this story is a bit more engaging because it's even much more relatable.
We all go through struggles in life.
There's been so many times where even I'm trying to make food if I forget an ingredient
and we all have that dag nabbit feeling when that happens.
The cool thing about humans is we enjoy sharing our hardships and sharing our triumphs.
And that's all a story is, is a goal with obstacles in between achieving that goal and
then transformation that happens.
So what's the transformation?
I have now learned how to cook a beef wellington.
Bada bing, bada boom.
And that's how you can make really any story more interesting is if you just follow those
two structures, which is the hook, the setup, and the climax.
And then you put obstacles in between that goal using the button therefore method.
You'll have a great story in a really simple way.
And remember, we're trying to keep this simple because complexity again is the enemy of execution.
And truly that's all you need to make your first video.
If you can find an idea that works like we learned how to do in the last episode, if
we can take the principles from that idea and the patterns.
and really be able to identify those patterns
and apply them to our idea,
then we can create a successful video that will get clicks.
And then in order to actually get them to watch
all the way through,
we're gonna use those storytelling methods to our advantage
to not only just occupy our viewer
or exploit them for their time,
we're gonna provide value to them.
We're gonna engage with them.
And a lot of people are really just coming to YouTube
because they want connection and entertainment.
So being able to give that to your viewer,
to your audience,
give them an opportunity to connect with you
in a deeper way is truly how we impact the next generation.
It's not by teaching them how to make a beef wellington,
it's by forming a personal relationship with them,
whether that's through whatever type of content
you're making.
If you're remodeling homes,
if you're making entertainment content,
if you're doing travel content,
the best way to impact your viewer
is by putting yourself in their shoes,
connecting with them,
being authentic with them,
showing them your struggles throughout the process
and letting them form that parasocial relationship with you
that allows you to really speak into their lives
when it counts in a positive way.
Now, the question is, how do we actually keep this up?
If we want to impact our viewer,
we wanna form a long-term relationship with them.
We wanna form a business that provides
what they're looking for,
just like a business would for a customer
in a way that's sustainable and predictable
and continuously improving.
The coolest thing about YouTube
is that it gives us the opportunity
to look back on our videos,
see what went well, what went wrong.
We can look into the comments,
but we're gonna do that through data and analysis.
And if there's one more very important thing
that I can pass on to you guys,
which I'm sure a lot of you have heard of,
is a feedback loop.
We're just gonna repeat this process over and over again,
where we're gonna plan,
just like we learned in episode two,
and we're going to execute,
just like we learned how to come up
with that content strategy and that video idea
and execute upon it.
We're gonna analyze the results of that,
and then we're going to adjust.
Now, if you're a little confused on,
well, what about the camera?
What about all these different things?
The truth is, the equipment doesn't really matter as much
as the connection with the viewer.
Most of us have a device in our pocket
that literally does everything it needs to do.
You don't need to buy a new camera.
You don't need to buy a fancy mic.
You don't even need to buy lighting or anything like that.
You can just pull this out
and really start making an impact on your viewers
and impacting the world in a way
that you're passionate about,
that you can connect with other people through that passion
and share the gospel through it,
inevitably bearing fruit for the kingdom
and for your family as well on earth,
and it's just a really awesome experience.
But the truth is, as long as you just keep
the principle of planning, executing, analyzing,
and adjusting and keep that mindset of an experimenter,
even when you grow and things get a little more serious,
then that's what's going to allow you
to continually improve your videos,
serve your audience, and take ownership over the results
rather than being slave to the YouTube algorithm
or anything like that.
You're gonna leverage it for what you want to create
and the impact that you wanna make.
So hopefully this series was helpful.
Really appreciate you sticking around and learning this,
and what I would encourage you to do
is don't just listen to this.
Go apply it, go try it, and give it your best
and have a ton of fun doing it.
Thank you so much for your time,
and I hope that you can make an impact on YouTube
or really anywhere else, whether it's business,
social media, and the like.
So thanks for watching.
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