YouTube requires significant time and attention to be successful, so the hosts decided to deprioritize it and focus on simplicity and building trust with their audience through other platforms.
Treating writing and monetizing as separate skills is crucial, and practicing making money as a writer through various avenues like email sequences, transcriptions, and writing landing pages can lead to future paid work.
Deep dives
Understanding the challenges of building an audience on YouTube
The hosts discuss their experience with YouTube and their decision to deprioritize it as a platform. They found that while YouTube has potential, it requires significant time and attention in order to be successful. They questioned if it was the best use of their efforts and decided to focus on simplicity and building trust with their audience through other platforms.
Exploring the goal of building trust through YouTube
The hosts initially started making YouTube videos as a way to build trust with their audience and provide another avenue for people to get to know them. However, they realized that using YouTube as a primary distribution engine required much more work and resources compared to platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn. They decided to continue using YouTube but to deprioritize it and focus more on their podcast as a primary platform.
Turning writing skills into monetizable opportunities
The hosts emphasize the importance of treating writing and monetizing writing as separate skills. They highlight the need to practice making money as a writer and explore various avenues for monetization, such as writing email sequences, transcribing podcasts, summarizing content, writing landing pages, and more. They encourage individuals to provide value upfront, even if it means working for free initially, as it builds trust and opens up opportunities for future paid work.
Advice for college students looking to build an audience on Twitter
The hosts suggest that college students focus on building skills and learning rather than solely trying to build an audience. They recommend engaging in curation, where students can curate insights and knowledge from experts in fields they are interested in. By creating content that crystallizes their learnings and curates valuable insights, students can attract attention from both the experts they curate and potential opportunities for internships or collaborations.
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In this episode, Ship 30 for 30 Captains Dickie Bush and Nicolas Cole talk about lucrative writing side hustles, YouTube plans for the future, and beginner audience-building strategies for college students.