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The 5-Stages of YouTube Success | Think Media Podcast | YouTubeToText
YouTube Transcript: The 5-Stages of YouTube Success
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Summary
Core Theme
This content outlines a five-stage framework for YouTube creators to understand their current position, identify necessary skill development, and navigate the identity shifts required for growth, ultimately aiming to build a sustainable business beyond just content creation.
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If you're watching this, you are in one
of five stages of YouTube. Most channels
stall because they don't know which
stage they're in or what it takes to
move up. Your identity actually shifts
once you press record. Even if it got
zero views, you actually became a
different person that doesn't just
consume content, but now you're actually
a creator. You might be good at content
and even great at getting views. But
there's a lot of people we see that
actually have big views, but small bank
accounts because they're stuck at this
stage. They might be getting viral
videos, but they're like, "How does the
financial thing work?" It's because they
actually need to move to stage four.
>> Stay with us cuz after watching this
video, you'll know exactly what it takes
to get to that next level. Sean, could
you break down this brand new framework
you've put together for serious creators
this year?
>> We'll cover all five stages, but let's
actually zoom out a little bit and talk
about why this is important. One of the
things we've learned from coaching so
many different creators is that there's
places they get stuck on the journey.
And so in each of these stages, we're
going to identify the fact that in order
to move forward and get more views, get
more subscribers. You've got to develop
new skills. And there's specific skills
for each stage. You shouldn't be working
on level five skills when you're at
level one. So you want to dial in what
is the most important technical or
strategic skill I need right now. Other
things you need is like systems or
habits or maybe team eventually. But
also, this is I think the more important
thing, every single stage comes with an
identity shift. you cannot think the
same that you thought at stage one as
you're thinking at stage three. So it
actually includes some mindset shifts
and then I would also encourage
individuals that this will work for
creators to think about whether is their
stage or business owners and we'll
explain that as we go and stage number
one Nathan is the creator stage. This is
when you stop just consuming content and
you just take the leap to press record.
you've actually posted your first video
online. Now, we'll also talk about the
economic milestones at all of these, but
before we go into creator, I think it's
important to say that there's probably a
stage zero. You're not even on the map
when you're still dabbling on the
sidelines. And I want to acknowledge
people that it's not if you're at stage
one, that's not an insignificant stage.
That's major because most people are
just still consuming information, maybe
making their plan, which is all good.
You've been watching YouTube education
content for a while, but your identity
actually shifts once you press record.
It's a big deal. You've posted your
first video. You've published your first video.
video.
>> Even if it got zero views, you actually
became a different person that doesn't
just consume content, but now you're
actually a creator.
>> This is huge. If you are in this stage
right here, right now kicking off this
new year, would you let us know? Drop a
comment. Let us know if you are at the
creator stage. Sean, what is something
in this stage? Like what's the main
point of focus when you're in this first stage?
stage?
>> Yeah, so the main action focus here is
just starting like starting messy,
starting before you're ready, and uploading.
uploading.
>> Um, at this stage, you're counting
uploads and not views. Um, you might
even have 5, 10, or 50 videos, but
there's no income yet. At stage one,
you've you haven't made your first
dollar yet. And in a way, you're kind of
learning on the fly.
>> You have moved. You're not just
watching, you're creating. And I think a
key phrase here is you are counting
uploads and not views.
>> You're just entering into your identity
as a creator. You're you of course want
to grow, but you're not measuring your
success by views or by money. You're
embracing just the art form itself.
You're learning new competencies.
>> You're making mistakes. You edit for a
while. You forget to save your file.
I've been there. You filmed for a while.
No, like you shoot four videos. I've
done this. I've batched and I didn't
turn my shotgun microphone on.
>> No, I was at all four.
>> Maybe not four. I did the first one and
then and then I tried to play it back
and then but you know, we've done that.
I was like 33 minutes. There's no audio.
Well, you know, shoot it again. And I
think you know, all this editing
software should have autosaves, but for
all the years I spent on Adobe Premiere,
there's been times when I've been like,
well, 35 minutes editing down the drain.
Like there's just a lot of pain you
might experience when you start creating
content. But I think that's okay. And so
a reflection question here could be
like, what's holding me back from
pressing record? If you're actually at
stage zero, like you haven't posted yet,
>> why not? And
>> to make a decision today to shift your
identity and become a creator, not just
a consumer.
>> Oh, that's so powerful. after you have
become a creator. I love how you also
brought out like the pain of of starting
cuz it's exciting and that's actually a
celebration to go from zero to one is a
massive win. When you get into phase two
here, stage two is momentum maker. How
do you know you've arrived here?
>> Okay, so you know you are a momentum
maker when you've had a few breakout
videos. You felt the momentum. Now
what's a breakout video? Maybe you were
getting seven views. You were getting 77
views. breakout video. It's like, dude,
I got 550 views on a video or you're
like, I got 5,000, 50,000,
>> and you're feeling the growth of your
channel momentum. You've been learning
new skills and consistency and new
habits. And you know, we have a
sevenstep VRA framework. Our entire
company is is structured to help people
go through these stages, whether you uh
join Video Ranking Academy or you want
to do coaching with us. And so, you're
starting to work the seven Rs. you're
starting to like understand the system
of YouTube growth. Um, and you're seeing
some blips on your analytics. You're
like, "Dude, I got a one out of 10." Um,
and here's a big key. The benchmark
financially is you've earned at least $1
online. And that's a big deal. >> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> I mean, some people think, "Oh, you only
earned a dollar from your YouTube
channel. You're making way more money at
your job." But when you go from zero to
one, not just uploads, you go from zero to$1,
to$1,
that's an identity shift. like, "Wait a
minute, I can make money from home on
the internet just uploading videos." And
as we speak about how you're shifting
your mindset, you know, you're not just
doing random uploads anymore. You're
starting to switch to dialing in rhythms
and systems
>> and you're feeling momentum. Maybe you
haven't cracked the code. You're like,
"Man, it feels like I got lucky a couple times,
times,
>> but I'm starting to see some of the
patterns." That's why the word is
momentum. Momentum maker. You got a
dollar and maybe a few more dollars. And
so a good reflection question for this
stage is what skills or routines do I
need to build consistency for the next level?
level?
>> What like how do I double down in skill
building professionalize in a little
bit? It's not that I'm just posting
random uploads anymore and I became a
creator. It's not that I have a couple
breakout videos. What skills now do I
need to actually advance to stage three?
>> This is powerful. So, at this stage, you
kind of know you're here. I love that
benchmark of first dollar. So, like
benchmark for stage one at a creator.
Did you post the video? Congrats, you
made it. Like, welcome to the club
iteration, things to come. Right. But
here in Momentum Maker, you've made a
dollar. Yep. Is that like easy way to
phrase that?
>> It's a easy way to put it. Yep.
>> Love it. Okay. So, stage three is called
content pro. I'm excited to talk about
this one. What's the difference between
momentum maker content pro? What starts
to set someone apart here? So you know
you are a content pro because the
consistency has started to compound. Um
now you you get video packaging. You're
pretty good at titles, thumbnails,
hooks. Your click-through rate and watch
time are improving. You're starting to
understand viewer psychology. Like you
you sort of get how YouTube works.
You're also like when we say content
pro, this actually doesn't mean that
you're really skilled at operating your
camera. Your video still might look kind
of janky. M
>> but the content is good. So maybe your
ability to communicate, get your ideas
across, if you're live streaming, video
podcasting, doesn't matter. The way you
deliver your message, like I think about
Michael Zuber, who's been on the podcast
a couple times. He does a show called
Daily Financial News. He's like, I still
don't understand the tech. He's uploaded
thousands of videos. I still don't
really understand the tech, but he
figured out his format. He's figured out
how to communicate. He's figured out his
show. He's built a multiple six-figure
business. So he's moved beyond this. but
he's become a pro at content even though
he's not super skilled at cameras. It
might include that, but that's why it's
about psychology. It's about you're in
the rhythms. You you you at least in
your niche know how to attract people,
engage viewers, and hold attention. And
I would say the benchmark here is you
have some consistent revenue, probably
mostly from YouTube and affiliates. Um,
and then if we're on the business owner
track, then you've also started to
really get some leads and you've
generated some conversions and sales
from your YouTube channel. And by the
way, we actually have a free assessment
that people could take. It only takes a
couple minutes at mycreatorquiz.com.
So, if you're listening to this, you can
click the link in the show notes or go
to that totally free and it'll help you
dial in some of these details to figure
out where you're at and give you a few
tips of how to get to the next level.
So, to do that free assessment and
really dial in your uh where you're at
on the five stages of YouTube success,
that's at mycreatorquiz.com.
Let's go. As I look at this stage, I I
think this is one that people might be
anxious to cruise through because I'm
just thinking like there's there's a lot
going on here. You know, you go from
creator to momentum maker, lot of wins,
lot of celebrations. And look, like it
can take a little bit, I understand, to
go from posting your first video to
making your first dollar. like some time
can go through there, but I actually
don't I don't think that's as long. Like
I actually think you can get to that
benchmark fairly quickly, especially if
you have the right strategy in place and
you like know where you are and where
you're going. When you get to Content
Pro, though, I feel like there's a lot
more that you need to try to understand
cuz it's not your first time around the
block with YouTube. It's kind of like,
if you will, your fourth or fifth or
sixth. And so I think the temptation
that someone could face is to kind of
keep doing what they were doing in the
previous stage. Yeah. So, what does
someone need to do here to truly just
become a content pro? Like, what's the
thing that someone would need to avoid?
>> I think the way I'd answer the question
is all of these stages is the pursuit of
mastery, but this is where you're really
thinking about mastery.
>> You know, momentum maker, you you've had
a few breakout videos, but now it's
about like really getting pro.
>> And so, I think this is about
sharpening. When we say content pro,
it's sharpening how you communicate,
sharpening how you present, sharpening
uh the mastery of packaging. So, at
every level, anybody listening to this
wants to learn the details, but you're
starting to think about all those
fundamentals of YouTube. You're
mastering pack packaging. You're
mastering communication. And then as we
get ready to go to the next level, the
question for going to the next level is
actually now what is the bigger business
I'm in? because a lot of people they
have some revenue at this stage and on
the creator side you have maybe some
YouTube and affiliates but you haven't
diversified your income and we teach
people how to make big money even with a
small channel. So at this stage you
might be good at content and even great
at getting views but there's a lot of
people we see that actually have big
views but small bank accounts because
they're stuck at this stage. So, it
could be, you know, again, maybe you're
just posting, but there's individuals
where like they might be getting viral
videos, but they're like, "How does the
financial thing work?" It's because they
actually need to move to stage four.
>> And stage four is business builder. So,
let's break this down. How do you know
you've arrived here?
>> So, you know you've arrived here, uh,
again, the two different categories. If
you're a content creator, meaning or a
business owner, business owner, you want
leads uh, and sales from your channel. A
content creator, you might also want
that. But, uh, a content creator, maybe
you're doing crowdfunding and you're
building up enough of a fan base. So, if
you're a content creator, you're
shifting from I make videos and you're
shifting from I'm a YouTuber. Sometimes
Uber drivers like what do you do? I'm
like, I'm a YouTuber because I actually
think it might stop the conversation
like, oh, okay, that's weird. I'm not
down yet.
>> You know, like what does that even mean?
But it's actually like I make videos.
I'm a YouTuber to like I'm building a
real business.
I'm actually YouTube is kind of like a
marketing channel. Yes, it's my main
content engine, but I'm building a real
business. And if you're a business
owner, you already have a business, but
at this point, the mindset shift is I'm
scaling my internal media company. So,
I'm not just like maybe creating some
social media posts and YouTube videos
around my business. This is the content
arm of my business. I'm I'm doing an
internal media company that I'm going to
probably hire around and I'm creating a
growth engine for my core business. I am
realizing that investing in YouTube,
investing in organic content can
actually be a massive growth engine for
my business. I'm not dabbling. the same
way, you know, I talked to a real estate
professional, super wealthy, lot of
money, and would flip houses and would,
you know, buy real estate, flip these
houses, and then he was doing content
with us, some of our coaching, and he
said, "Yeah, you know, I'm trying to get
everything done." And it's a business
owner with money was not his main issue.
He's like, "Yeah, I just don't have
enough time to edit videos every week."
I was like, "Bro, why are you editing
your own videos?" He's like, "What do
you mean?" And he's like, I go, "Do you
go like bust up and install sheetrock at
your houses that you're flipping and
whatnot?" Yeah. I was like, "You might,
but like you you're a real estate
investor. You're outsourcing to
contractors." He's like, "That's right.
That's a good point." So, it's also
internal media company. I I just talked
to a very successful uh guy that was um
from California at a creator event this
week, business owner doing YouTube on
the side. He's like, "Yeah, I edit all
my own videos." Now, maybe that's a
passion and that's why there's two
different categories, but the business
owner and the content creator at this
stage, the identity shift is like, wait,
I'm more CEO. I'm at least more like
manager operator and that's the skill
set I'm leveling up to as opposed to I'm
just a solo content creator that's
grinding. You may or may not hire a
team, but here's how you know you're at
this stage. You have started delegating.
virtual assistant, accountant or CPA.
You just understand you can't do all the
things editor. You're also reinvesting
profits into growth. You understood that
there's some money coming in, but man, I
got to scale it to the next level. Maybe
there's some um standard operating
procedures, systems you're forming. And
so, again, I'm no longer a content
creator. I'm a business builder. And
here's the financial benchmark. You're
earning high five figures to six figures
or more. So, you're a business builder.
You're making, you know, 60, 70, 80k a
year, you're making 150 uh uh, you know,
or 400k a year. And, you know, for
listeners, of course, if that was
personal income, that's great. But
business owners know like, yeah, your
your business might be doing 650k a year
and your takehome's 188.
>> You know, you might be doing a million a
year and your takehome's 66. Like,
running a business can be uh, you know,
very interesting. But revenue is
starting to build and you have clarified
what business you're actually in. Are
you coaching? Are you using business for
leads to do real estate? Are you trying
to build a really core audience on
Patreon so you have f funding? And
you're scaling this beyond just YouTube
ad revenue. You're no longer just
creating a few videos for views. You're
thinking like a real entrepreneur.
>> Oh, so powerful. I I'm excited about
this last stage. page. I mean, these are
all pretty cool. Um, but I I would love
to hear about creator CEO. And first
off, that's just a cool title. Like, I
think I think that's pretty baller.
Like, who doesn't want to be a creator
CEO? But this is that fifth and final
stage. So, let's break this down. I
mean, how does someone know that they've
made it here? This is quite a title.
>> So, this is interesting. Like, I would
say this is a checklist for how to know
if you're a creator CEO. You've defined
your core values and you've began
shaping your culture. So, where I've
seen some individuals that are hiring me
for one-on-one coaching and they're
like, "Yeah, I got a video editor, but
some guys quit and this guy over here
and it's kind of disorganized and I'm,
you know, things are kind of chaotic.
I'm working with a couple people. Things
are going well. Money's coming in." But
you need to define your core values and
you're thinking about company culture.
>> That's a crazy mindset. When you're a
solo creator, there is no cult.
>> You are the culture, but you you're
you're scaling bigger. the business is
starting to work for you, not just
through you. You're starting to remove
yourself as a bottleneck. You still
might be the primary face and creating
all the content, but you're creating
leverage at this point. So, you're
hiring a team, contractors or employees.
You're actually leading some people or
in some cases, the best hire is
understanding that like Dan Martell was
on the podcast and on his org chart at
Dan Martell Media, he's talent and he
actually hired a CEO. So he he's like,
"I just want to actually be the face."
But if someone's going to run this thing
and for a lot of content creators, they
might need the self-awareness to say, "I
don't have a CEO skill set." Yet, they
still by title, but you're still the
owner of the thing. You started the
thing. And so it might not actually be
CEO. You have an operator. Like you've
you've thought about like an integrator
or an operator. That is that's usually
the gap because you're like, I don't
want to manage. If I got to follow up
with the editor and all this stuff, I'm
trying to just create content. I'm sort
of stressed out. You probably need one
person that's sort of like that bridge
to helping you build a team and hire a
team. At this point, there's some
back-end infrastructure. You've had
maybe some funnels, operations,
finances. You have a couple offers.
You're delegating production.
And financially, if you're at six
figures, you could be here up to seven
figures or eight and beyond it. But you
have a real sustainable diversified
operation, whether it's lean or large.
That's not really the point. Um but a
reflection question would be what do I
need to delegate or systematize to buy
back my time and scale my business? And
again what is interesting is
in business, you know, we recently had
uh Skyler from Rise of Kings on the
podcast and he said technically if
you're actually the owner of a business,
the point is not to work in the business.
business.
>> Like if if everything's built on you,
you don't really have a business yet.
You might have a highpaying job.
>> Huh. The thing that's interesting about
creator CEO is like chances are maybe
you're still like working super hard,
but perhaps your identity is talent, but
it's still your responsibility to figure
out stop being in the business and start
leading the business and hiring for your
weaknesses. As well as if you're going
to go to this level, and I would
encourage people, this isn't a level
that necessarily everyone has to go to.
I think they should inspire to be here,
but it's kind of a self-awareness thing
like how big of a thing do you want to build?
build?
>> Yeah. Sometimes they say in um
entrepreneurship, stay small, keep it all.
all. >> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> Because if you have a smaller thing, six
figures, you know, 200k a year, VA,
software, expenses, taxes, some other
stuff, you might have like a, you know,
nice solid income. And there's
individuals, you grow a multi-million
dollar business with a lot of
complexity, and you have a small five
figureure income by the time it's all
done because of of going to that next
level. So this could be a self-awareness
thing. However, everyone would benefit
by understanding all five stages,
increasing their skill sets. But as we
kind of recap, I would think about, you
know, again, you don't really need to be
thinking too much about becoming a
creator CEO if you haven't earned your
first dollar online yet.
>> That's right.
>> So it's kind of like it's like you want
to actually hit the checkpoints for each
stage. And a couple things, that's why
we've got a free assessment to help
people at mycreatorquiz.com.
So you just fill that out quick, figure
out where you where you're at and then
get that clarity on the exact skills you
should work on at that stage so you can
graduate because you build up on these
things. And then I would also challenge
individuals that
dream big. You're capable of a lot more
than you think you are capable of. You
know, back by my primary skill from my
background was actually video editing.
I've been editing video since 2003. So
I've been editing video for 22 years.
And I got really good at it. And
actually what I realized as now I look
back and and we've defined these stages
is I had to shift my identity and at one
point delegate even my primary greatest skill
skill
>> when I stepped out and hired my first
editor. And I remember I had a lot of
limiting beliefs like one, okay, nobody
can ever edit as good as me. And I
remember I hired this guy Jay as a
contractor. I met him at a meetup.com
event in Vegas. And I remember he edited
the first Think Media video and I was
actually like sweating bullets the night
before. I was like laying in bed and I
was like, "Dude, tomorrow I'm going to
upload a video I didn't edit myself." Oh
man, people are going to tear me apart
in the comments. They're going to be
like, "How dare Sean sell out.
Clearly the editing quality has
changed." And I had a level of ego and
pride even that was like,
>> "You know what? I'm the I'm a great
editor." which arguably I was, but was
super funny was how many comments do you
think that I got that identified that
somebody different
>> who edited this video
>> edited the video that I
>> I mean that's probably zero there's
nobody Yeah. Right.
>> It's like in a way so I was like I kind
of was overestimating in a way even my
own importance
>> and the other thing was it was also very
hard for me to believe
even 10 years ago I was like I don't
know how to hire a team. I don't know
how to manage infrastructure. I don't
know how to get to those next stages,
but I committed to continue to learn and
I comm committed to continue to grow.
And I really do believe everything is
figure outable, especially if you have a
path and you work at the right skills at
the right time. I remember I bought a
book on delegating. There's like this
Brian Tracy book called How to Delegate.
It was like, cool, that's a good clear.
>> We'll start there.
>> That's one of the skills I need. And and
I struggled with it for a while. But by
knowing the thing you're you're attacking,
attacking,
>> the biggest mistake 99% of people
listening to this are making right now
is they're studying too many things,
watching too many different individuals
online, and trying to grow a hundred
different skills when really you need to
focus on like the one or two things that
will get you to the next stage, get
enough money for it, and then shift to
the next thing. And so I think the
second opportunity is for anyone
listening to this that wants to go
faster, we've divi designed our whole
company to just help people graduate
through the stages. So whether that's um
if you want to be a part of video
ranking academy, we'll put info about
that. It's like our core program. It's a
do-it-yourself program or we have a
coaching program that walks people
through these stages. You could just
apply and and it costs no money to
apply. We only work with people that's a
good fit for. We have group coaching,
one-on-one coaching. You could go to viralvideocoach.com
viralvideocoach.com
and, you know, navigate these stages on
your own or let us lock arms with you
and we will help you get fierce clarity
on the stage you're at and then help you
move to that next stage. So, your next
step is to head to mycreatorquiz.com,
drop in all of your information so we
can get the best answer of the stage
that you're in so you know where you are
and where you're trying to go this year
on YouTube. And hey, stay close to the
podcast. This is the Think Media podcast.
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