Starting Youtube: stand out from the crowd and attract new clients with Luke Priddy

With over 2 billion people using it daily, YouTube is the world's number two content search engine and the largest educational platform known to date, according to Statista. Boasting a plethora of free, high-quality videos, this service has become the go-to destination for entertainment-seekers and knowledge-seekers alike. Its impressive ability to effortlessly integrate into existing online educational frameworks makes it a great option for modern learning environments. With the right usage, YouTube can bring you an influx of new customers, an improved public image, and an increase in success!

Workee experts spoke with Luke Priddy, founder of Cloud English. Luke has been in the education industry for over 10 years. His platform has helped many people improve their English skills and gain confidence in their communication abilities.

He is also a world traveler with many interests. Along the way, he discovered effective language-learning techniques that make learning English a breeze.

Workee: At what point did you start considering content creation and Youtube? 

Luke: The process of sculpting videos piqued my interest. My primary focus became structuring knowledge and putting it into a format. Because so much is involved in the process, it simultaneously improves a wide range of skills. I fell in love with the process, and YouTube is simply a natural extension of it, where you can post this content. I started on Chinese social media before transitioning to YouTube.

Workee: Youtube is a great platform for making money from your business. How did you learn how to navigate it? Did you take courses on running a YouTube business and being a content creator, or did you learn it independently?

Luke: There are a few key factors that make a significant difference. First, you need to overcome the feeling you get when watching a video of yourself. Many people are uncomfortable seeing or hearing their own voices on video. This has nothing to do with you or your voice being bad. It's because you're not used to it, and if you dedicate at least 50 hours to it, you'll get over it. You have to push through that while remaining aware of what others are doing, what you are constantly learning from others, and making it a point not to copy them but model them. One of the most important principles for improving as a content creator, particularly on YouTube, is modeling others rather than copying them. If you see a big YouTuber doing something and get an idea, don't copy it to the letter; instead, take the concept behind what they do, apply it to your unique style, and make it your own. Always be open to new experiences. Always push yourself a little further. Never settle.

''There's always something new to try, and after a few years and a lot of videos, your videos will start to look good simply because you're always trying new things, you didn't stay comfortable where you were, and you looked at others and modeled their actions''

Workee: Great point! Everyone can implement this approach in their field. For example, we weren't the first to develop a booking system. We were probably at the end of the trail. At the same time, having all that knowledge and understanding of the concept, style, and user experience helped us develop what we currently have with Workee. We're currently a team of 10 and are competing with people who have been doing this for 5 years with hundreds of employees.

Luke: If you see yourself as the source of all ideas, you will eventually confine yourself to a box. It is important to develop your voice and unique style. Always be open to receiving inspiration and insight from others. The key is not to see yourself as the originator of all ideas but to use everyone else doing something right as your R&D department.

''Discover what works for you, make it your own, and find your voice. Then it all comes down to execution and outsourcing your ideas to everyone else in your space''.

Workee: I totally agree with you. Having your unique style is what makes people connect with you. After all, no one wants to watch the same thing repeatedly. Do you use this strategy or any other methods to attract new clients?

Luke: I tried live streaming years ago and had no idea what I was doing, but I found it an extremely useful way to connect with your audience live and create stand-alone content. I typically use a live stream as a weekly show that allows me to interact with those who follow me. Then I take clips from the show, edit them, and make videos for people who don't want to watch the show but want to learn from the content. So, I focus on YouTube while posting on other platforms, such as Facebook.

Workee: As I understand, you also collaborate with others, right?

Luke: Yes, besides everything else I've already mentioned, finding new ways to connect is industry standard. You should post on TikTok, shorts, live streaming, and others. I've tried talking with people in the same space as me, but if it's too similar to what I already do, I don't see little of an impact as opposed to finding someone who brings something new. So, if you're looking for a collaborator, look for someone who does something unique in your field and can bring something new to your channel.

Workee: That is an excellent point. Could you please provide some examples?

Luke: I interviewed Chris Lonsdale, a linguist whose TedTalk has received between 10 and 20 million views. We had a very interesting conversation. He brought a linguistic perspective. Rather than focusing on English teaching, he brought the viewpoint of someone who understands the science of language and language acquisition. Along with bringing something new, he brought some of his following with him.

''One thing I'll emphasize in all areas of connecting with learners is that if you deeply understand your audience, you can decide what content to create, how to market it, and how to distribute it. It will be all over the place if you don't know who you're talking to.''

Workee: Thank you for this example. The way Workee has done it, we've established two partnerships so far, with another on the way. We have partnered with Mercury and NorthWest to provide value for our users. So we understand what you mean by understanding users and what they need for you to contribute.

Luke: Exactly.

Workee: We've got two more questions for you. Can you share your top three content creator channels for inspiration with us and our audience?

Luke: My content is structured based on a podcast. I listen to H3, a podcast similar to others. I like how they used the right structure. They have a long-form main content piece that they repurpose into smaller pieces so well that they spread across channels and content types, which is a great model for anyone in the content space. Personally, I think that everyone in the education industry, in particular, should be inspired in some way by Mr. Beast. I don't regularly watch Mr. Beast's videos, but there is much to learn from his actions. For example, Mr. Beast has around 40 channels. He understands the significance of separating things and localization. As a result, he localized all of his content by language because he discovered that people were taking his content, dubbing it, and posting it on other channels. I get a lot of inspiration from how he runs his business organically and from everything on YouTube. He subsidizes the cost of his video with sponsors and then profits from the products he sells. I do something similar for courses but on a much smaller scale. I use YouTube concepts to promote paid courses organically. As a result, people can come and purchase courses from me. If they like the video's content, they'll like the course even more, and be more likely to pay for it because they liked it, so I use my video as a preview in that sense.

Workee: Thank you so much for providing that information. It will be extremely beneficial to both our audience and us. Finally, what are your top three advice for people reading this interview?

Luke:

1. You'll get lost in the crowd if you don't have a voice. So you can't think of yourself as just the person delivering knowledge; that's a bad place to start because anyone else delivering the same knowledge will eventually replace you. A.I. is nearing the point where it will completely replace all knowledge. So being unique and connecting with people will increase in value over time, and to do that, you need to have a clearly defined voice that is yours, and to do that, you need to spend tens of thousands of hours working on your craft, whether that's how you say things, how you structure things correctly, how you plan things, and for YouTube videos, spending a lot of time making videos, figuring out how to edit, and so on.

2. Understand the 80/20 principle, also called the 80/20 rule. If you find yourself doing something that doesn't yield any results after a reasonable period, consider whether you're doing it because you enjoy the idea of doing it or because you're addicted to doing it. You must constantly assess situations from a business perspective. Are you making good use of your time and money?

The 80/20 principle should teach you to devote your time to activities that result in desired outcomes, such as impact or growth. Put your time, energy, and money into whatever that is, YouTube, whether its views, Impressions, or the click-through rate. If you recognize that something is a waste of time or taking up a lot of your time and you do not see results, find ways to minimize it, whether by outsourcing, doing something else, or stopping doing it entirely, and I believe the 80/20 principle, or the 80/20 Pareto principle, is extremely important here.

3. Burnout is another issue that people who create content in general, not just knowledge content, and who run startups face regularly. Burnout is a condition in which people continue to work hard but eventually get to a point where they lose it. They can't bear to do it anymore. Finding things in the process that you enjoy and getting out of the grind are the best ways to overcome burnout. You have to find joy in the process; if you don't find joy in the process, you will burn out.

You'd be on the right track with these three things; finding your voice, applying the Pareto principle, and finding joy in the process.

Workee: Thank you so much for sharing your journey, where it all started, to this point where you have seen impressive growth, a good following, and views. We wish you all the best. We believe this conversion will provide a lot of insight to our audience. Thank you for joining us once more. We sincerely appreciate your time and look forward to more in 2023. Happy New Year

Luke: Thank you so much! I appreciate it.

Find more interesting tips on Luke's youtube channel: Learn English with Cloud English and his blog American English Courses | Cloud English