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Trusted by creators like
Ali Abdaal
Abi Connick
Creator Booth
Mike Shake
@GeorgeBlackman_ gave us the secret to improving the end screen click rate on our videos.
After implementing this, our end screen click rate went from ~3% in our videos up to 15%+ for some videos.
Jay Clouse
@jayclouse
5.5m+ Views
Subscribers
110k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Aside from being one of the nicest people I’ve ever worked with, George is great at distilling complex ideas into clear writing, and making my life as a creator way easier.
Ali Abdaal
@aliabdaal
450m+ Views
Subscribers
5.9m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
George provided clear and actionable steps we could implement to improve our videos.
One of the biggest obstacles to improving as a creator is not knowing what you're doing wrong and working with George provided the clarity we needed to identify these areas.
Abi Connick
@abiconnick
27m+ Views
Subscribers
389k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Thanks for your help mate, great working with someone I trust and respect 🙏
Ed Lawrence
@Ed_FilmBooth
26m+ Views
Subscribers
375k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
It’s been an absolute pleasure to work with George.
He’s great at scripting YouTube content, and during the time we spent working together we created several videos that hit multiple millions of views.
Mike Shake
@mikeshake
764m+ Views
Subscribers
4m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Loved working with George. His service was fantastic and we always felt that our success was his priority. He was super easy to work with and was always on top of everything.
ConvertKit
@ConvertKit
20m+ Views
Subscribers
36k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
@GeorgeBlackman_ gave us the secret to improving the end screen click rate on our videos.
After implementing this, our end screen click rate went from ~3% in our videos up to 15%+ for some videos.
Jay Clouse
@jayclouse
5.5m+ Views
Subscribers
110k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Aside from being one of the nicest people I’ve ever worked with, George is great at distilling complex ideas into clear writing, and making my life as a creator way easier.
Ali Abdaal
@aliabdaal
450m+ Views
Subscribers
5.9m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
George provided clear and actionable steps we could implement to improve our videos.
One of the biggest obstacles to improving as a creator is not knowing what you're doing wrong and working with George provided the clarity we needed to identify these areas.
Abi Connick
@abiconnick
27m+ Views
Subscribers
389k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Thanks for your help mate, great working with someone I trust and respect 🙏
Ed Lawrence
@Ed_FilmBooth
26m+ Views
Subscribers
375k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
It’s been an absolute pleasure to work with George.
He’s great at scripting YouTube content, and during the time we spent working together we created several videos that hit multiple millions of views.
Mike Shake
@mikeshake
764m+ Views
Subscribers
4m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
Loved working with George. His service was fantastic and we always felt that our success was his priority. He was super easy to work with and was always on top of everything.
I'm giving away the templates I developed while writing for Ali Abdaal, Mike Shake, and many more. Scripts written on these templates have gained millions of views.
YouTube is 31x more efficient at generating leads for my business than Instagram.
(And it's got a lot to do with how easy it is to write an effective CTA.)
Let me explain:
22 weeks ago, I started my business Instagram with the intention of replacing the traffic I used to get from Twitter.
(Miss u, Twitter xxxx)
The perceived "lower effort" of writing and filming a Reel (vs a YouTube video) drew me in.
But, after figuring out a more efficient system for writing YouTube scripts in less time (a combination of my YTSP scriptwriting system and the advice I give in this video)...
...I re-launched my YouTube channel as well.
So this week, I wanted to crunch the numbers.
Even at this early stage, I wanted to know:
Which platform had been more effective at generating leads.
How much time input was required per lead?
(I mean, between you and me, I knew YouTube was going to win... 👀)
...but the extent of the victory shocked me 😆
In the below stats, a "lead" is somebody who joined this newsletter via a lead magnet promoted by the piece of content.
Instagram (started 22 weeks ago)
Videos: 11
Views: 4500
Leads: 4
Average time to script + film one video: 70 minutes
Average time input per lead: 192.5 minutes
YouTube (started 3 weeks ago)
Videos: 4
Views: 2300
Leads: 79
Average time to script + film one video: 120 minutes
Average time input per lead: 6.1 minutes
Ok, so... let's address the elephant in the room.
"You only made 11 Reels and gave up."
True. But is it any surprise?
Instagram nerds will tell you that, to properly grow on Instagram, you need to post daily.
So, assuming you only have 3-4 hours per week to write and film content...
...Instagram is a non-starter.
YouTube, on the other hand? 😍
3-4 hours per week is plenty of time for most channels to write and film a video (again, combining my writing system + advice hyperlinked above).
And approx. 1 video per week has already had a non-trivial impact on newsletter sign ups and even sales.
And my channel is still tiny.
Some of you, reading this, will already know exactly how impactful YouTube can be at 100x these numbers.
But why is there such a disparity?
My business is just a single example, but I don't think it's atypical.
And I believe it comes down to two key factors across both platforms that grossly affect how many leads they generate:
1/ How easily can you convince the viewer to click?
YouTube: Viewers build more trust from a single piece of content. When you're delivering 10 minutes of value, the viewer has more patience to listen to a 15 second plug.
Instagram: Viewers have less time to build trust. Plus, while already trying to cram a tonne of information and nuance to a short video, you probably only have 3-5 seconds to include a plug.
Takeaway: Long-form YouTube content, as a medium, is just better set up to build trust and allow you space to script a convincing plug.
2/ How physically easy is it for the viewer to click?
YouTube: QR codes on-screen allow TV viewers to "click", and links in your description + pinned comment make it way easier for PC and mobile viewer to click.
Instagram: Viewer can navigate to your link in bio, or a third party tool like ManyChat can be used (but these require the viewer to comment to receive the lead magnet).
Takeaway: YouTube viewers can access your links with a single click. For Instagram users, there's more friction.
All that being said... I still have a presence on Instagram.
My partner, Julia, converts all my newsletters into carousels, and we double-post those on LinkedIn as well.
There's no harm in keeping a presence elsewhere, if it doesn't distract you from the highest leverage platform (YouTube).
So... if you want to see my highest-converting lead magnet so far, check out this video:
Today, I've got something essential to keep in mind when writing your next hook.
Specifically, if your hook ends with a "rule of three".
A rule of three usually appears at the end of a hook and sounds like this:
"So in this video, we're going to cover:
[Topic 1]
[Topic 2]
And [topic 3]"
Having a video that answers multiple questions like this is great because:
We can really sell the amount of value in our video.
We can set up the video's structure, which is essential to keeping the viewer oriented and engaged later.
But here's the problem:
The choice of which three things you mention is more important than you'd think.
It's not as simple as choosing "the most interesting three topics from the video".
And I've seen channels with 100k+ subscribers get this wrong (and their retention has suffered because of it).
For example, let's imagine a video called "Best laptop for small businesses in 2025".
In the past, I've seen channels who made the mistake of writing something like this at the end of their hook:
"So in this video, we're going to cover:
The huge problem with Sony laptops in 2025.
The unexpected realities of Apple's new M5 chips.
And which laptop is right for small business owners in 2025."
But... why is this a problem?
All three bullet points sound exciting and, more importantly, relevant to the topic.
But here's the issue:
While it might feel like a good idea to pick the three most exciting topics from your video and mention those at the end of your hook, this can actually disrupt the viewer’s sense of the video’s structure.
(And, remember, structure is key to retention - and setting up that structure in the hook is essential.)
By putting three equally important topics side-by-side, it makes it more difficult for the viewer to latch on to the primary question.
The primary question is the reason they clicked - and it's probably the question expressed in the title (in this case, "which laptop should I buy as a small business?")
Instead, the rule of three should include two supporting questions and then the primary question.
In our laptop example, it might look like this:
"So in this video, we're going to cover:
The key features of each laptop.
How their spec will affect your day-to-day workflow.
And, ultimately which laptop is right for small business owners in 2025."
As our video progresses, we want our viewers to retain complete clarity about why they're watching.
And muddying the waters in the hook by expressing three equally important-sounding ideas makes it more likely they'll lose that clarity later on.
That's not to say that our laptop video can't include discussions about "the problem with Sony laptops in 2025", or "the unexpected realities of Apple's new M5 chips"... but we should avoid using these in our "rule of three" during the hook.
I've got two more quickfire examples below if you're still not 100% clear on what a "good" vs "bad" rule of three looks like, but first...
New Video Just Dropped
7 YouTube Scriptwriting Hacks (from 40m Views)
After launching my channel two weeks ago, video #4 just dropped. Feel free to check it out!
I know you wouldn't normally hear from me on a Saturday, but it's been a heck of a week!
Today, I simply want to thank you 🙏
This week, I had the privilege of attending VidSummit to deliver a talk about YouTube Scriptwriting and AI.
My talk was the very last of the entire conference, and considering the fatigue I was experiencing by that point, I was not expecting the turnout we got - somewhere in the region of 150 folks.
And it struck me - back in 2022, I was writing this newsletter to fewer people than that for months.
So to have the opportunity to speak to such an incredible group LIVE is making me teary eyed even as I write this!
Not only that, but I lost count of the number of you that I was fortunate enough to meet before and after the talk.
Newsletter readers, students, and even past clients - I will never take it for granted that (in our little pocket of the internet world) there are so many kind people that I've been able to connect with thanks to writing this newsletter.
From handshakes, to hugs, to sharing a few too many drinks on the final night... I'm honoured to have spent these few days with you 🫡
But let me say, regardless of whether you were able to attend VidSummit this year...
...the fact that you're reading this now - and the fact that you've ever opened one of my emails - is the reason that VidSummit were crazy enough to let me talk in the first place 😂
So thank you for your support! I'll endeavour to pay it back as many times as I can between now and next year with these emails.
That's all for this week.
Any questions? You can to reply to this email and I'll get back to you.
I've written for 10+ channels, advised on content from 40+ niches, and consulted with 10,000,000+ subscriber creators.
People have said nice things!
"Aside from being one of the nicest people I’ve ever worked with, George is great at distilling complex ideas into clear writing, and making my life as a creator way easier."
Ali Abdaal
@aliabdaal
400m+ Views
Subscribers
5m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
"George transformed my YouTube scripts, making them sound just like me with minimal edits needed. His understanding of YouTube's unique platform is exceptional."
Justin Moore
@creatorwizard
470k+ Views
Subscribers
46k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
“After analysing several scripts and reviewing retention graphs, George provided clear and actionable steps we could implement to improve our videos. One of the biggest obstacles to improving as a creator is not knowing what you're doing wrong and working with George provided the clarity we needed to identify these areas."
Abi Connick
@abiconnick
21m+ Views
Subscribers
322k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
"George excels in scriptwriting and boosting viewer retention. His guidance made my scripts crisper and more entertaining, leading to increased audience engagement."
Jake Thomas
@creatorhooks
6m+ Views
Subscribers
40k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to work with George. He’s great at scripting YouTube content, and during the time we spent working together we created several videos that hit multiple millions of views.”
Mike Shake
@mikeshake
650m+ Views
Subscribers
3.3m+ Subcribers
Subscribers
“[It’s been] great working with someone I trust and respect.”
Creator Booth
@creatorbooth
1m+ Views
Subscribers
34k+ Subcribers
Subscribers
04 - About Me
Hey, I’m George 👋
I started as a full-time scriptwriter for Ali Abdaal, and have since worked with creators between 30,000 subscribers, all the way up to 10,000,000+.
I'm on a mission to educate both YouTubers and writers about the impact scriptwriting can have on a channel.
Whether your goal is to increase retention, grow a loyal audience, boost AVD, skyrocket end-screen CTR, or simply make the process of making a video less stressful…
...I'm here to help you do that through smartly scripted YouTube videos.