YouTube Advice from Taylor Swift?
In this Q&A issue, I answer questions about starting memberships and developing a format for your YouTube show. Plus: another tease of my new project.
Thanks to everybody who wrote after my last newsletter. The health conditions are all improving - including my vision. I did have to get another eye injection yesterday but my vision has improved all of the tests show things are moving in the right direction. Let’s get back to it.
I’ve been responding to a lot of comments and emails and that some of this advice might be relevant to a bigger audience. So I’ve expanded and clarified some of my responses and am going to share them with all of you on a regular basis.
First up:
Developing a YouTube Show Format
Laurie asks: I'm wondering (beyond trial and error) how you approach starting a new Youtube show format. I've loved reading everything you share, and I have long form podcast video stuff that's just such a blah so far. I want to look at that stuff with fresh eyes and chop it up into something more interesting for youtube, but I'm just not sure where to begin?
My advice:
Trial and error is an inescapable part of this game, but you can make life easier by start with a format that already works.
Don’t try to reinvent the whole thing. Use a proven structure and then tweak one thing. That one thing should be something that is uniquely yours.
I was reminded of this while reading There’s Nothing Like This: The Strategic Genius of Taylor Swift. Not a book about YouTube, but oddly applicable. One quote hit me hard:
That’s the move. Take something familiar and remix it just enough to make it your own.
With Hilah Cooking, we built on the classic “stand and stir” cooking show. The twist? Hilah’s personality and humor. Within the format, she could get as weird as she wanted. Everybody has seem a cooking show before, so it was all about the personality and vibe. They either loved her or bounced.
With Yoga With Adriene, again, totally conventional format. But Adriene wasn’t doing yoga in an exotic location or a luxury mansion like a lot of online yoga teachers at the time. She was a regular room that felt like a room at your friends house. Even though she was a highly experienced yoga teacher, she didn’t talk to the audience like she was an expert. She talked like a friend. She was teaching real yoga, but she was also relatable and occasionally silly. That difference was what set the channel apart.
A perfect example of this is Hot Ones. It’s literally just a celebrity interview show—one of the oldest formats in media. With one twist: the guests eat progressively hotter wings. That’s it. The hot wings drop the guest’s guard, and creates something that feels fresh without reinventing the entire structure. And over time, the show has continued to develop its own vibe and “world.” Now it’s bigger than the shows it originally emulated.
Big picture: Start with a proven format. That’s your container. Add your own spin and personality. Then keep doing it and give it a little time. You’ll find your people and they will let you know what areas to lean into.
When Is It Time to Launch Your Own “Mini-Netflix”?
Fang Wei asks (in response to this post):
“Hi Chris, when will you think it’s the right time to start your own mini-Netflix? I want to do a Qigong version of Find What Feels Good. I think at least I need 10k subscribers on YouTube.”
First off, I wouldn’t use YouTube subscriber count as the main metric for deciding when to launch a paid product. Not even close. Our YouTube channel has been very active for years, but we’ve never been able to consistently convert viewers into paid subscribers at scale.
That’s not a knock on YouTube. It’s just that most people are on YouTube to watch. They’re not in a buying mindset. Also, increasingly more people are watching YouTube on their TVs, where it’s not super easy to click a link, pull out a credit card, and start a subscription. They’re in lean back mode, or may be half-watching your show while they make dinner or do something else.
What has worked for us is email. Our email list drives almost all of our sales. It’s direct, it’s trackable, and it actually works. If you’re serious about launching your own platform, focus on building and engaging your email list before you worry about how many subscribers you have on YouTube.
If you’re just getting started, I wouldn’t recommend jumping straight into a subscription model. Instead, create a one-time product. Something simple. A themed Qigong series could be perfect. For example, “Qigong for Deep Sleep.” Keep it small and focused. Make it good. Then put it up for sale.
This does two things. One, it gives you a read on whether your audience is willing to pay for what you make. Two, it helps you gather real data—conversion rates, sales numbers, email engagement—so you can make better decisions when and if you decide to launch something bigger.
You’ll also likely grow your list in the process, which feeds the whole system.
That said, I should be honest: we launched Find What Feels Good before we were “ready.” We didn’t have everything figured out. We just had momentum and curiosity and a sense that we wanted to try something new. And it worked. But it was a risk.
So if you feel the spark, go for it. Just don’t wait for 10k YouTube subscribers to give you permission.
Keep the questions coming! Leave a comment, post in the chat or send me an e-mail.
Until next time, keep creating!
PS: As mentioned last time, I’m in the early pre-production days for a new YouTube project that is unlike anything I’ve attempted yet. This is what we’re doing instead of going on vacation this year.
First of all: It’s not a “How To” channel. It’s scripted. I have zero experience optimizing entertainment content on YouTube.
Secondly: I don’t have a business strategy for this one and no good ideas on how to monetize it. But we’re doing it anyway.
This is a big learning experience for me, and I’m super stoked about it. I’m also excited to share it with you.
This week, we are in the process of talking to actors, developing more scripts, and starting to prep our sets. Yesterday was painting. Today the production design elements start to arrive. More updates soon…
Hey Chris. I’m assuming you’re aware that Vidapp is launching a web app? I’m very curious what they’re up to. Can you tell me anything about it?
Hey Chris. I’m glad to hear your vision is improving. That must’ve been a scary situation. I’m curious about your experience using email to drive sales. Love to hear more about that. Have you written an article specifically about how you went about email marketing, your email sales funnel , discount offers, etc.? Thanks as always for your insights.