Write On Time - Newsletter | George Blackman

Write On Time

Create more engaging videos with simple, actionable scriptwriting tips.

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"I started a Chess channel and applied some things from your newsletter. In the first month I'm doing over a million views on long form content and have 3 videos cracking the 100k views mark."

Chess Nuke

@chessnuke

30k+ Subcribers

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It’s hard being so smart, isn’t it?

When writing about their specialist subject, I often see YouTubers struggling to decide what information is actually important for the script.

After all, you’re an expert in whatever you’re talking about. You know there’s a tonne of nuance you could put into in every video.

I’ve struggled with this feeling, too. Staring at a script, thinking:

“I can’t trim this more than I already have. Every piece of information is completely essential.”

But 99% of the time, if you feel like this… you’re wrong.

”Forced Prioritization”

The feeling is summed up in this quote:

“Forced prioritization is really painful. Smart people recognize the value of all the material.

They see nuance, multiple perspectives - and because they fully appreciate the complexities of a situation, they're often tempted to linger there.

The tendency to gravitate towards complexity is perpetually at war with the need to prioritize.”

This is from Made to Stick, a book recommended to me by my friend Gil Hildebrand.

Never has a quote (that's NOT written about YouTube scripts) so perfectly summed up the struggle of writing YouTube scripts 😂

I often see students and clients get in their heads about some imagined critic complaining about their scripts:

“Erm, excuse me, you didn’t caveat [point X] with [point Y]!”

Gradually, they start to second-guess everything they’re writing.

And this slows their writing speed to a crawl.

But remember - you’re writing a YouTube script, not a college essay.

Yes, you should strive for accuracy and fairness in your videos.

But there will be times when certain nuances or tangents must be consciously ignored.

Made to Stick argues that we must learn to tell the difference between “critical” and “beneficial” information.

The goal is not to remove nuance completely.

It’s to accept that some level of nuance will usually need to be sacrificed, which might mean not all “beneficial” information will make the cut.

Let's look at the difference between "critical" and "beneficial" information using a practical example.

But first!

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Every single week, I use 1of10 to find high-performing ideas for channels I work with.

Check out this 8min video showing exactly how.

They recently added an AI thumbnail generator too (and it's surprisingly good).

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Just use the discount code 'GEORGE50'.

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Critical vs Beneficial

To identify the difference, you need to have a clear picture of your audience avatar.

I’m still ruminating on the best way to define each term, but right now I think of it like this:

“Critical” information is highly likely to convince your target audience to keep watching.
“Beneficial” information is something which they might find interesting, but which won’t specifically cause them to keep watching.

Example - Strong Coffee Lovers

So, let’s look at “critical” and “beneficial” information in action.

Imagine an audience of coffee lovers whose primary desire to to brew strong coffee.

They’re not fussed about diverse flavours - they just want something that’s gonna give them a kick up the butt.
They already have a basic home setup, but prefer not to spend more money on additional gear.
Speed is important to them - they don’t have time to learn any complex new brewing techniques.

I’ve just written a hook for an imaginary video, but have deliberately included “beneficial” information in red.

Notice how this information still fits pretty nicely in the hook, but doesn’t appeal directly to my audience avatar:

Version 1 - with "beneficial" information left in.

Why is it so hard to brew the perfect filter coffee?

You’ve probably tried everything in the book - changing the grind size, cleaning your conical burrs and watching every James Hoffman video under the sun - but each cup still comes out weak and you can’t detect any of the interesting flavours they mentioned on the bag.

So in this video, I’m going to show you how changing the way you prep your tap water will completely alter the strength and flavour of your coffee.

It’ll take you five minutes, you won’t have to spend a penny, and you’ll be shocked that you didn’t think to try this sooner. Prepare to start making cafe-grade coffee from the comfort of your own home.

Compare this to the below rewrite where “beneficial” info is removed.

Now, the focus is on the strength of coffee, saving money and speed.

Version 2 - focused on "critical" information.

Why is it so hard to brew strong filter coffee?

You’ve probably tried everything in the book - changing the grind size, cleaning your conical burrs and watching every James Hoffman video under the sun - but each cup still comes out weak.

So in this video, I’m going to show you how changing the way you prep your tap water will completely alter the strength of your coffee - it’ll take you five minutes, you won’t have to spend a penny, and you’ll be drinking cafe-grade coffee at home for the rest of your life.

Both hooks are pretty similar, and it’s not as though the first one includes any irrelevant information.

But the key is identifying and prioritizing the “critical” information.

Action Point

The one thing I want you to take away from this week’s newsletter?

Next time you realise you need to delete some “beneficial” information from your script, say to yourself:

“I am consciously removing this piece of information, and that’s alright.”

You must accept that removing a caveat here or a piece of nuance there is not only “ok”, but necessary to write a better script.

You can't go down every rabbit hole.

Focus on what your audience cares about, and prioritise creating a more memorable experience for them.

As they say in Made to Stick:

A common mistake […] is that they get so steeped in the details that they fail to see the message’s core - what readers will find important or interesting.

I’m finding this book unbelievably useful for YouTube scriptwriting and highly recommend you give it a read.

If you want to grab a copy, feel free to use my affiliate link!

That's all for this week!

But if you're locking in for a scriptwriting-centric Friday, you can also check out the latest episode of my podcast, Making It.

**YouTube Scriptwriter Reveals Viral Writing System**

Watch Now
‍

Any questions, just let me know!

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Scripting Frameworks

Hey!

In recent months, the best lesson I've learned about writing YouTube scripts came from watching a band I love write music.

This slightly weird tactic will help you write hooks more easily.

You'll stop overthinking every single word and will create the hook structure much faster.

Find the melody

Ok... I’m not a musician.

So I instinctively assumed the lyrics would always be the first thing a musician came up with when writing a song.

Which is why I found it fascinating to learn that musicians often create the melody first.

When watching behind-the-scenes footage, you'll see bands improvise their way to a sound that feels good - one that conveys the emotion they're trying to express.

Then, afterwards, they create lyrics to match the melody.

It's such an interesting process to watch - particularly when you see footage of a band creating a song you know incredibly well...

...back when they had 0 lyrics and were just "feeling out" the sound.

They hum along, occasionally throwing in a phrase that you know will eventually become "that famous part" of the chorus... but their priority is nailing the melody.

Without meaning to, this is how I have started approaching YouTube scripts.

🛠️ Tool Shoutout

Quick side-note...

I'm experimenting with affiliate marketing at the moment, so I thought I'd kick off by shouting out my favourite screen recording software.

If you communicate a lot using screen-recordings, I massively recommend Tella.

I switched to Tella over a year ago and have used it to record over 200 videos:

If you want prettier screen-recordings for quick comms, tutorials or filming courses, give Tella a try.

(I'm an affiliate, so you'll get 30% off and I'll get a financial kickback too!)

Get 30% Off Tella

Ok, let's get back to it...

Blob scripts

Because YouTube is such a visual medium, I can often see a kind of "blob" version of a video in my mind before I know exactly what I want to say.

It probably comes from having watched a LOT of YouTube… but I can almost visualise the ebb and flow of the hook before I’ve thought about the words.

Imagine I’m writing a script about a 5-step system to help students pass their exams.

Immediately, my brain starts to imagine something like this:

“Dum dah, dum dah, dum system.”

“A system that’s gonna blah.”

“And once you dee dee dee dee doo”

“Your grades are gonna dum dum dee!”

This might sound a bit mad.

But remember, as viewers, we rarely remember a video because of the words alone - we remember the pacing, the visuals, the sounds... all the stuff that comes together to create a video's "melody".

And considering you’ve probably watched a lot of YouTube [FIRST NAME GOES HERE], you’ll have an intuitive sense of how hooks often flow.

But how does this makes writing easier?

Quite simply, once I start writing and get into a flow state, I allow myself to "skip" certain words.

If pausing to think of a "fancy adjective" or the "perfect verb" is going to ruin my flow, then it's not worth it.

If I've got momentum, I don't want to lose it.

I'll write "X" or "Y" or "[thing]" or whatever I need to breeze over if it'll keep my flow state going.

I can always come back to those tiny gaps later.

My priority is nailing the script's "melody".

Here’s an extract from an actual hook I wrote a few weeks back… the first time I tried to “sound out” how it would flow:

Not only does this approach generate faster progress…

…but it also gives you a better chance of writing a video that looks and feels like you dreamed it would when the idea first came to mind.

Rather than a video that has perfect verbiage but no soul.

Give this a try and let me know how you get on.

That's all for this week!

Any questions, just let me know!

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Hook

Hey

This is probably the most "real talk" newsletter I've written for months.

It started out as me journalling to myself, but the more I wrote, the more I realised I wanted to share this...

Scriptwriting is a weird part of YouTube.

Especially as a “freelance scriptwriter”, you’re basically “subbed in” to keep an existing train rolling.

You’re not really expected to grow the channel.

Good scriptwriting is necessary to grow a channel faster, but it’s not sufficient.

This has pros and cons:

On the plus side, if a video completely bombs, it’s probably an issue with the core idea, how it’s framed, or how it’s packaged.

It’s rare that you can point to the script and say “this is the main reason the video failed”.

On the flip side, just as you can’t really be blamed for a video flopping, you can’t really take credit for a video going viral either 😂

You occupy a weird middle ground where your value is probably quantified more by your ability to free up your client’s time than it is by your ability to write “viral scripts”.

Protecting your reputation

This is why I get a bit uncomfortable when I’m introduced on podcasts as “the writer behind 25,000,000 views!”

Like, sure, it’s not a “lie”. But it’s not nuanced either.

I mean, who could have guessed that my time working with viral video machine Mike Shake would suddenly add another 10m views to “my” view counter?

It comes down to this:

Your reputation is more important than anything else, especially if “proving your value” isn’t completely straightforward.

Your “view count” (which is often misleading) is way less influential than what influential people say about you.

I still have relationships with creator teams I worked with literally once, even if the script went kinda badly.

Yes, good work is important, but how you conduct yourself both during the relationship AND in the aftermath (on Twitter, podcasts, etc) has a longer-term impact than anything.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t shout about how many views you’ve contributed to.

But don’t use it as a crutch.

And definitely don’t inflate the number of videos you say you’ve worked on just to sound more impressive.

Back yourself as a person and as a creative to do good work - your reputation will carry you forward.

That's all for this week!

I definitely owe a few of you replies from the last couple of emails.

I'll get back to those - and any thoughts you have on this one - next week ✌️

Speak soon,
George 👋

Business of Scriptwriting

Hey!

I run a community of 150+ scriptwriting-focused YouTubers, and it should come as no surprise:

The thing we spend the most time workshopping is hooks.

I’ve been so impressed by the quality of feedback my students offer each other.

So, I’ve collated (and anonymised) some hooks my students have shared, and the feedback we’ve offered to help improve them.

These are the 4 most common hook-writing problems I see every month.

Problem #1 - Specificity:

The last thing we want is an ultra-general hook that doesn’t give the viewer clarity about how you’re going to tackle their problem.

So always be precise when you’re outlining the video’s structure to make it feel more digestible.

Before:

"I've uncovered a few key insights that will help you lose body fat."

After:

I've uncovered five simple, science-backed strategies that will help you lose body fat.

“A few key insights” might sound ok at first.

But the community raised concerns that this phrase was too vague to be engaging.

Instead, be specific about the structure (”five”) and emphasise why the audience should care (”science-backed strategy”).

Problem #2 - Stakes:

The big question:

What is at stake in your video? What does your audience (or the character in the video) stand to lose?

Playing on these emotions is critical to keep viewers watching.

In the community, we’ve noticed a tendency to imply the negative implications of not doing X, Y or Z, without calling out the target audience's fears directly.

Before:

You definitely don't want to mess this cake up, so pay close attention to every step.

After:

Until you learn to follow these steps, your cake will taste dry and bland, or worse - it’ll just collapse completely.

Make it easy for your viewer to picture what’s at cake.

(Ok, I’ll leave.)

But of course, it's only worth perfecting your hook if the idea itself is clickable...

Find viral video ideas in seconds.

Get 50% Off 1of10 (forever)

Every single week, I use 1of10 to find high-performing ideas for channels I work with.

Check out this 8min video showing exactly how I do it.

They recently added an AI thumbnail generator too (and it's surprisingly good).

So if you struggle with finding new ideas for your channel, 1of10 will make your life 10x easier.

Just use the discount code 'GEORGE50'.

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Problem #3 - Relevance:

It goes without saying - when writing a hook, we have a matter of seconds to entice the audience to keep watching.

So always ask yourself:

Does every sentence need to be there? Is it obvious why I mentioned [X]?

Here’s an example where a couple of sentences felt a bit out of place:

Before:

I recently listened to a podcast with [figure of authority] - she wrote [impressive book].

She has spent years speaking on how to build and maintain powerful professional relationships.

My goal for the next 3 months is to build stronger professional relationships here is how I’m going to do it.

After:

[Show clip of [figure of authority] offering a nugget of wisdom - enough to pique curiosity.]

This is [figure of authority] - she wrote [impressive book].

Her business does over $10,000,000 in revenue each year, which she attributes to the strength of her network.

So my plan is simple…

Over the next 90 days, I'm going to follow [figure of authority]’s advice to strengthen and expand my network - and I’ll reveal whether this actually generates additional revenue for my business.”

So what changed here?

Well, one of my community members gave this sage advice:

“Don’t add details unless it’s clear why they’re necessary.”

Before, it wasn’t obvious why the hook began by referencing that particular figure of authority.

Yes, they were related to the topic.

But you could just as easily have started the hook without the first two sentences and it would have made no difference.

In the rewrite, we circle back to that figure of authority at the end of the hook, which makes it clear that her specific advice will play an integral role in the video.

Problem #4 - Proof:

Promising a solution to a particular problem?

You’ve got to ask yourself why should the audience listen to you specifically.

(Especially if you’re competing in a saturated niche.)

But how do you do this if you’re worried your experience doesn’t sound impressive enough?

For example, one of my community members is a fantastic music tutor, but because he only likes to work with a limited number of students at once, he was concerned that saying “I’ve coached [X] students…” would sound a bit lame.

So let’s workshop some alternatives if you’re in a similar position:

Before:

“I’ve coached more than 50 pianists…”

After:

“I’ve been a professional pianist for 30 years…”
“I’ve composed more than 500 songs on the piano…”
“Since starting this channel I've helped hundreds of songwriters level up their piano playing…”
I’ve played some of the world's biggest concert halls in my career…”
“I’m not a famous pianist, but my music has been streamed more than one million times…”

You can always get creative with how you “prove” your expertise during the hook.

That's all for this week!

Don't forget to use "GEORGE50" if you decide to join me and thousands of fellow YouTubers using 1of10!

And let me know... which problems have you noticed in your hooks (and how did you fix them?)

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Hook

Hey,

Ever been stuck in a YouTube scriptwriting rut?

Where each paragraph feels completely soul-sucking and the result is a hot mess?

Me too.

So here are three tried-and-tested ways to get out of a YouTube funk:

1/ Set Constraints

One of my students, Martin, had become frustrated that he would always get "carried away" with the script.

I can't seem to find a good way of doing a simple [script] outline... I end up coming up with good hooks, sentences that flow well and since I'll never remember them when I riff… it becomes easier to script the whole thing. - Martin

But this was making the process unsustainable.

Not only was this taking way more time, but he actually felt constrained by the word-for-word scripts he’d end up with.

So here's a quick exercise to force you to write scripts faster.

Pick a "safe" topic similar to a video you’ve made before.
Challenge yourself to a 10-minute brainstorm. In that time, create a super basic bullet point structure - maybe as few as 1 bullet point per segment.
Limit yourself to a 50-minute script editing session. Bulk out the most important parts first.

From here, yes - you can spend more time on the script.

But by acting as though you only have 60 minutes in total, you’ll be surprised how much LESS you overthink.

The priority is getting draft 1 finished without pausing to perfect each sentence.

Once you’ve practised this with your “safe” topics, you’ll find it easier to repeat with any video.

2/ Do Something For You

Meet another student of mine, Jeff.

An uber-talented guitar teacher, Jeff was looking for ways to inject new forms of creativity into his videos to prevent the process from becoming "stale".

So he:

Found a hill.
Walked up it.
Recorded a guitar lesson in a field.

There's plenty of evidence to show that changing environment contributes to improved mental well-being, and studies suggest a positive correlation between well-being and productivity.

Plus, ‘Attention Restoration Theory’ tells us that natural environments are amazing for replenishing cognitive function and reducing brain fog.

Now that's how you put the ‘content’ back into ‘content’. (This joke works better out loud.)

So, if you can - why not film your next video somewhere totally different?

By the way, if you’re interested in joining Martin, Jeff and 150+ scriptwriting-focused YouTubers inside my scriptwriting community, you can learn more about YTSP Pro here.

3/ Take the Pressure Off

Let's end on this quick nugget of wisdom from O.G. YouTube strategist, Denver Moore:

As he puts it, every YouTuber should "have a channel where you don’t have to care what people think."

It goes without saying: give your audience what they want on your main channel.

Meanwhile, test crazy strategies and experiment creatively on your second channel - without giving a *cough* about what people think.

The only rule?

Just have fun with it.

Matt D’Avella recently started a second channel here for exactly this reason.

This comes shortly after the release of this video, where he explains the dwindling creativity and diminished passion that comes with scaling a YouTube channel.

Remove the stakes, and you’ll remove the stress!

So there it is - your blueprint to revitalised YouTube zest:

Constrain the time you're allowed to spend scripting.
Film in a new location.
Experiment freely on a second channel.

Anyway, that's all for this week!

I wanna know - have you tried any of these strategies before? Hit reply and let me know!

Next week, I'm diving into the most common hook problems students from my scriptwriting community have experienced (and how we fixed them)!

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Business of Scriptwriting

Hey!

Why have I never heard of this scriptwriter before?

I’m pretty aware of the YouTube scriptwriting scene, ya know?

And if this guy has recently "transformed" his scriptwriting career, I feel like I ought to have heard of him by now.

So how come he's only just appeared on my radar?

And, come to think of it, why does he seem bizarrely similar to this guy talking about software?

(Someone needs to spend more time thinking about his audience avatar, amiright? 😏)

But before I get into what’s going on here, I wanna address something that’s been bothering me about scriptwriting for the last three years.

Scriptwriting is a weird part of YouTube.

Especially as a “freelance scriptwriter”, you’re basically “subbed in” to keep an existing train rolling.

You’re not really expected to grow the channel.

Good scriptwriting is necessary to grow a channel faster, but it’s not sufficient.

A video with an awesome script still falls to pieces if the idea sucks and the packaging is bad.

But that makes proving your value kinda hard.

Candidly, I’ve always struggled with the question:

“How much of a video’s success is really… me?”

So it’s time for a pivot.

Times are changing

The next phase of my business is going to focus on actively growing channels (and how scriptwriting contributes to this).

Because you and I both know… succeeding on YouTube doesn’t boil down to getting really good at just one skill.

Of course, scriptwriting will always be my #1.

But these YouTube skills aren’t siloed off - they’re connected.

That's why I'm starting to focus way more on ideation (and you should too).

And, after an entire year using 1of10’s ideation tool, I’m excited to have partnered up with them again to help me do this.

Here’s how title and thumbnail ideation just got 10x easier.

So, you might have guessed by now, but this guy…

…this apparent scriptwriting savant that you’ve probably never heard of before…

...well, he doesn't exist.

In fact, both of these title/thumbnail combos were created by 1of10’s new “Idea Generator”, based on this Alex Hormozi video.

(AI really latched onto the beard, huh?)

Here's the twist!

The exact moment this email lands in your inbox, I'll literally be on a Zoom call pitching a YouTube channel about working closely with them on their overall strategy (scriptwriting and ideation).

They actually read this newsletter too, so I have nowhere to hide hahaha 😎

Candidly, I wouldn't have had the confidence to pitch them on the ideation side of things before I started using 1of10 a year ago.

And its ability to generate 90% usable thumbnail concepts in seconds has played a big part in that.

Seriously, the quality of these thumbnail suggestions is absolutely incredible:

(I'll be honest, the titles still need a little work. But we’re writers, right? 👊)

So, if you find coming up with ideas just as hard as scriptwriting, I can't recommend 1of10 enough.

As I move into the next phase of my business, it continues to be one of the few tools I literally need lol.

And this brand new idea generation feature is just one part of what makes it my go-to - check out this short video I made showing you how to ideate viral ideas using 1of10.

Now don't worry - this isn't suddenly going to become an "ideation" newsletter 🫣

But it's important to think about how these different skills tie together as you continue to grow on YouTube.

Find viral video ideas in seconds.

Get 20% Off 1of10 (forever)

Every single week, I use 1of10 to find high-performing ideas for channels I work with.

And, since we last partnered up, they've added a bunch of new features.

(The AI thumbnail generator is only the tip of the iceberg.)

So if you struggle with finding new ideas for your channel, 1of10 will make your life 10x easier.

Just use the discount code 'GEORGEBLACKMAN'.

Get 20% Off 1of10 Now

That's all for this week!

If you have any questions about 1of10 (or ideation in general) just let me know.

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Business of Scriptwriting

Hey!

Forget everything else:

Your end-screen call-to-action is the most important CTA of all.

Even if you only have one hour to spend on a script, writing this CTA word-for-word will boost your channel watch time and generate more views.

But only if you do it right.

So let’s talk about how to pull this off with almost 0 effort.

By the way, this is part of a short series I’m running about the 80/20 of scriptwriting.

That is, the 20% effort that’s gonna get you 80% of the results.

(Plus how to carry out these steps faster.)

Feel free to check out #1 (hooks) and #2 (payoffs).

Now, let’s finish the series by talking CTAs…

Should I ask them to like and subscribe?!

Everyone worries about this.

But in my opinion, you shouldn't.

Honestly, it’s way harder to psychologically influence a viewer to "hit the like button" than to click an end-screen.

When you tell the viewer to "like" your video…

…you’re asking them to do YOU a favour.

But when you show them another video and provide a compelling reason to click…

…you’re offering THEM something.

(Which also happens to benefit your channel 😇)

So, sure, ask for a “like” or a “subscribe” - but if you’re spending any mental energy worrying about how to say it or where to put it in the video… STOP.

Focus on your end-screen CTA…

Why end-screen CTAs matter

Fun fact: Folks who click on your end-screen typically watch your next video for wayyy longer.

*Viewers who landed on this video through clicking an end-screen had a* ***much*** *higher AVD than all other viewer categories.*

So, when executed properly, a compelling end-screen CTA will have a non-trivial impact on the watch time of the video you link to.

Which in turn makes that video more likely to get pushed by the algorithm.

And, if you’re doing this consistently across every video, your channel is going to start growing faster.

Check out the below from Jay Clouse which shows this in action:

‍

‍The best part?

End-screen CTAs are quick and easy to execute in two simple steps:

1/ Identify a video that goes deeper on a topic explored in the current video.

Take this example my team worked on for ConvertKit:

The topic of “newsletter recommendations” came up, but the scope of the video didn’t allow us to cover it extensively.

So we found this older video on their channel about monetizing newsletter recommendations.

We figured this was aligned with the interests of the folks who watched the video we were writing.

Now, we just needed to convey why viewers would also find this video interesting.

Which brings me to step 2…

2/ Follow my 3-step CTA formula:

Link - refer back to the chosen topic covered in the video.
Curiosity - open a new curiosity gap around that topic.
Promise/CTA - outline the transformation they’ll experience by clicking your next video.

In a nutshell:

Get the viewer excited about going deeper on a topic you covered during the current video by outlining how they’ll be “transformed” by learning about it.

So, with the ConvertKit script, we said:

🎥 "Now, we've talked about how creators are using "Recommendations" to grow their email lists faster..."
🎥 "...but it's having an even bigger impact on some creators' revenue thanks to one critical part of their approach."
🎥 "So check out this video where we show you how you can actually get paid for your newsletter recommendations."

The result?

5x their channel’s average end-screen CTR.

Oh and btw, the Jay Clouse example above? Guess whose formula they were using! 😋

Of everything we’ve discussed in this 3-part newsletter series, this tactic probably has the biggest imbalance between time-input and potential upside.

It takes 2 minutes to write a CTA, but could generate thousands of additional watch time minutes.

Don’t overlook it.

So, now that we’ve reduced scriptwriting to its bare necessities, go forth and save heaps of time, energy and mind-fog!

That's all for now! Any questions, just let me know.

And I’d love to know - which of these simplifying hacks did you find most useful?

Speak soon,
George 👋

Scripting Frameworks

Hey!

The prospect of writing an entire script is terrifying.

Especially when you're staring at a blank page.

But I’m about to show you how to write a ready-to-film script in as few as 10 sentences.

By the way, this is part of a short series I’m running about the 80/20 of scriptwriting.

That is, the 20% effort that’s gonna get you 80% of the results.

(Plus how to carry out these steps faster.)

You can check out last week’s edition on hooks here.

Now, let’s talk about the rest of the script…

There are literally only two types of sentences you need to write word-for-word.

Setups.
Payoffs.

Here's an example of each from this video by Brad Giannini:

Setup:

"The second [thing] is what really creates that movie magic. So... what is it?"

Payoff:

"You want [your audience] to feel like [the action] is organically happening, for the first time."

(See this article for more examples of setups and payoffs.)

Let's start with “payoffs”

Imagine your video broken up into “segments”.

Every segment should end with a payoff, where the audience learns something or feels something.

It’s much easier to figure out all your payoffs before trying to write any setups.

In the example I gave above, Brad is discussing how to create cinematic online content.

We experience a payoff when we learn that "making action feel organic" is super important.

So, for each segment:

Write your “payoff” sentence first.

Now, let's write your “setup”

The #1 place I see retention drop (except the hook) is in the brief moments between segments.

Because once you deliver a payoff, the audience needs to know where the video is going next.

So treat each setup like a tiny hook, making it clear what this next segment is building up to and why your audience should care.

In the Brad example, once the audience knows that "organic action" is key, he immediately says:

"Now, I'm clearly no thespian, but I've found the best way to do this is..."

Instantly, the next segment is set up with a clear expectation of the payoff we'll receive in the next 1-2 minutes.

It's literally that simple.

Open curiosity with your “setup”.
Resolve it with your “payoff”.

(Assuming your video has five segments, that’s ten sentences total. It could be more or less.)

If you’re super short of time, that’s all you need to do.

With a fully written hook and all your setups and payoffs plotted perfectly, you’ve got the structural guardrails that’ll allow you to riff the rest.

That being said...

…riffing is hard, so I encourage you to spend an extra 5-10 minutes plotting some brief bullet points that take you from setup to payoff in each segment.

So, in a nutshell:

Write payoff.
Write setup.
(Optional) Bullet point to get from setup to payoff.

That's all for now! Any questions, just let me know.

Next week, we'll finish this miniseries by discussing the end of your script.

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Scripting Frameworks

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Since 2021, the videos I’ve written have gained 25,000,000+ views.

And, as you’ve probably heard over and over again…

The idea is the most important part of any video.

That’s why I’m excited to show you how I’m using 1of10.com to grow the ideas bank for my own channel…

…and how this impacts the scripts themselves.

Thanks to 1of10 for partnering with me this week 🤝

You can get 20% off your subscription (recurring!) using the code "GEORGEBLACKMAN".

Get 1of10 Now!

I'm super excited about this partnership because I literally use 1of10 every single day.

So let’s talk about how you can use outlier videos to:

Generate killer video ideas.
Make important scriptwriting decisions.

Part 1 - Idea Generation

In 1of10’s search bar, I can search for the niche I wanted to get inspiration for:

As you'll see below, 1of10 only shows videos that are outperforming their channel’s recent views average.

So, right away, I know that every video I’m seeing is doing something particularly well 👇

But, for my channel, I need to be mindful of something...

YouTube advice can go stale fast, so I don't want to see any videos that were published years ago.

In fact, there were a few extra parameters I wanted to set.

So I filtered for videos that:

Were 2x outliers or higher.
Had 10k views or more.
Were from the last 6 months.

Once I applied these filters, I noticed a video called “How To Write A Killer YouTube Script (2024 Algorithm)”.

This is exactly the type of video I could see myself making a version of...

So I wanted to see similar content that could inspire me.

Aaaand 1of10 lets you do that by clicking “similar topic” 👇

Now I was only seeing videos similar to the one I liked 👇

But a big problem my students have raised inside my community is knowing which outlier ideas to take forward...

To help with this, I consider these 3 factors:

Subject - am I immediately enthusiastic about the topic presented in the title?
Expertise - do I have the experience to create a better version of this video?
Views - what’s the view ceiling? We already filtered for videos with 10k+, but the higher the potential, the better.

Based on those factors, I used 1of10’s “bookmark” feature to save a bunch of these videos into a visualisation space 👇

Now I've got a bank of super relevant, high-performing content from which to take inspiration.

Part 2 - Scripting

But how does this influence the script itself?

This is where a little analysis comes in.

By having these high-performing outliers in the same place, it’s much easier to compare how they approach their scripts.

Pay attention to their...

Tone
Format
Style

Here’s a super distilled version of what that might look like for three of the videos in my “bookmarks”.

How To Write A Killer YouTube Script (2024 Algorithm):

Tone: Chilled.

Format: 5-step system.

Style: Fairly basic talking head A-Roll.

How To Write ADDICTIVE YouTube Scripts:

Tone: “Conspiracy.”

Format: Superfast hook, straight into point #1.

Style: Rapid editing changes, not to my taste. Appears to be deliberately overwhelming.

how to make a killer youtube intro (for the 2024 algorithm):

Tone: “Traditional” explainer.

Format: Another system (4 steps)

Style: Inspiring (”most creators got their big break from one video”)

As James Hoffman says, it's way easier to figure out which type of coffee you like by directly comparing two different cups.

So, by analysing and comparing these outlier videos, it’s easier to figure out what you want your scripts to look like.

My takeaways:

Tone: While it's clearly working for their target audiences, none of these tones felt like me. I prefer energetic and humourous.
Format: "Systems" made videos easier to follow. Superfast hook was effective.
Style: Avoid the conspiracy-style, retention-edited approach of Money Maxing. Lean into the authoritative, inspiring style of Aprilynne.

Recap

Identify outlier videos (initially in your niche, then branch outwards).
Determine which videos fulfil the “Topic, Expertise, Views” criteria.
Review each video and identify what you resonate with.

1of10.com makes this process so much faster and ensures you’re only ever modelling videos that you know are outperforming others.

Remember, you can use “GEORGEBLACKMAN” at the checkout to get a recurring 20% off your subscription.

Get 1of10 Now!

If you have any questions about how I use 1of10 (or anything else!), feel free to drop me a message!

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Imagine a car that has no windscreen.

As you drive around, you get frustrated as the seat upholstery gets covered in muck.

After all, there’s no windscreen to protect the interior.

So, being the fast-thinking genius that you are…

You replace the seat upholstery.

Good move. Windscreen aside, your car looks brand new again.

But, as soon as you take the car out for another spin…

…the seats get covered in muck again.

Because, with no windscreen, your car has a chronic problem.

And, sooner or later, you’ve probably got to ask yourself:

“Should I just buy a windscreen?”

Structural Problems

When we rely on a retention graph to identify problems with our video…

It’s like replacing the upholstery in a car that has no windscreen.

Yes, it’s going to help in the short term…

…but it doesn’t account for critical, structural problems with our content.

“But wait a sec, George. Didn’t this newsletter used to be all about retention graphs?”

Firstly, there's no need to call me out like that!

But secondly - yes it did. And it made me realise something.

It’s usually pretty easy to figure out what happened at moments like this in your video...

You started a new topic which the audience wasn’t interested in.
You rambled for too long about something and people got bored.
You introduced the video’s sponsor.

(Or any number of things.)

But, for graphs like this, it’s not always so simple.

Sometimes, we can’t rely on big dips and obvious clues.

Mindset Shift

That's why my goal across everything I write is to create a mindset shift among YouTubers.

Rather than troubleshooting individual problems after you've made the video…

…I want to bake in strong “retention awareness” before you make it.

Because, sometimes, it’s not as simple as reupholstering the seats.

It might be the problem with your windshield...

‍

“All I'm trying to do is get people to a point where they're CLOSER to scripting, even if they’re just planning more and really thinking about the structure ahead of time.

It's why every single YouTuber under the sun starts out a video like ‘here are the objectives’ or ‘in this video we're going to talk about boom boom boom’ or ‘here's the game plan’. It just makes it easier for us to digest.”

- Me, on the Scriptwriting For Newbs Podcast.

‍

When your retention graph is slowly declining for no clear reason, it's nearly always a problem with:

Confusing structure.
Lack of payoffs
Payoffs given too early.

That's why you can't think of your videos as a series of moments that can be corrected with quick "retention fixes".

You need to zoom out and view your video as a whole.

That's why, when scripting a video, I encourage YouTubers to:

Break the script down into segments.
Identify the payoff for each segment.
Ensure each payoff is properly set up.

(There's lots more to talk about here, so check out my full scriptwriting system if you're interested.)

And look, I get it.

For some folks, word-for-word scripting will never be enjoyable.

In fact, for some niches, it doesn’t make sense at all.

But, by encouraging creators to “script everything”, I’m not actually saying that you should.

I’m just trying to make you think about the structure a little more.

Because a clear structure keeps the viewer oriented within the video.

And when we feel oriented, we’re less likely to get overwhelmed and click away.

So keep reviewing your retention graphs, but remember they only tell half the story.

They’ll help you troubleshoot the little things over time.

But if you want to make your videos better, faster…

Spend more time plotting the structure.

Wanna hear more?

This newsletter was inspired a longer conversation I had on the Scriptwriting For Newbs Podcast, where we also discussed:

How I learned lots about scriptwriting in a short period of time.
Scriptwriting workflow for entertainment channels.
Imposter syndrome when working with 10m subscriber creators.

Watch Now

Miko’s questions were different to the usual stuff I get asked, and it was one of the most fun podcast experiences I’ve had.

(Ed from Film Booth went on the week after me too, so there will be plenty of amazing guests to come.)

That's all for this week!

Speak soon,
George 👋

Last year, I made a pretty wild claim.

I said that my end-screen call-to-action (CTA) formula could boost your end-screen click-through rate (CTR) by as much as 3-4x.

It turns out I was wrong.

Today, I found out that when Jay Clouse took my advice…

...his end-screen CTR increased by 5x:

"This ONE change made a huge difference for our channel…

‍@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."

‍Need a refresher on why this matters for your channel? Check out my original article here.

Can we take this further?

I’ve had a lot of people asking how to apply this formula to a different type of CTA.

One where, instead of promoting another video, you're encouraging the viewer to sign up to or download something.

It could be a free resource, a template pack, or even a paid course.

These types of CTA usually occur mid-video, rather than at the end.

So, my question is this:

Can the same CTA formula be used halfway through a video to promote products and services, as it can to promote another video?

To find out, let’s talk about the subtle difference between an end-of-video CTA (”End-CTA”) and a mid-video CTA (”Mid-CTA”) so you can drive more downloads of your products and services.

(Worth noting, I’m not talking about integrating paid sponsorships here. I may do in future, but the number of variables involved in a sponsorship makes it tricky to distil into a simple formula.)

(1/3) Recap

For an End-CTA, this is the formula I use:

Link - refer back to something covered in the video.
Curiosity - open a new curiosity gap around that topic.
Promise/CTA - outline the transformation they’ll experience by clicking your next video and closing that curiosity gap.

So, let's adapt this to create a Mid-CTA…

(2/3) Theory

The biggest difference between an End-CTA and a Mid-CTA is the level of subtlety we can apply.

During an End-CTA, we’re being super subtle.

Because, when well-executed, the viewer thinks we’re simply setting up the next talking point of the video.

Yes, they have to click to keep watching…

But we create the effect that it’s all part of the same information flow.

During a Mid-CTA, there’s no escaping the inevitable “plug”.

One way or another, you're going to have to tell them to “download my thing”.

This feels different for the viewer because we can’t apply the same level of subtlety.

So, to combat the “ick” they (or we) get from the plug, we need to:

Keep it brief.
Illustrate clear benefits to the audience.

With that in mind, here’s how I think about adapting the formula for a Mid-CTA:

LINK becomes “TRANSITION”.

Rather than calling back to something else that happened earlier, the information is integrated in a way that would still make sense even if the "Plug" (see below) was removed.

Check out this example from Pick Up Limes. You wouldn’t know it in isolation, but this is actually the start of her Mid-CTA…

"So I just checked and this soup is super nutritious… I think because of the legumes and all the different greens in there. There's over 25 g of protein and over 7 G of iron per serving…"

CURIOSITY becomes “PLUG”:

There’s no escaping it: you’re gonna have to straight-up say what the product/service is.

But think about it from an audience-first perspective - what do they want and why does your thing make it easier?

Pick Up Limes continues as such...

"…and this is also going to be a shameless plug for our app. But if you are interested in more high-iron and high-protein recipes, we've got a filter for that!"

PROMISE becomes “DETAIL”:

Briefly provide additional information for the viewer.

That could mean listing a couple of additional benefits of your product, or getting them excited with the promise of a free trial.

Pick Up Limes concludes...

"If you want to try out one week for free check out the link in the description box below."

So, thats... Transition > Plug > Detail

Here's another example from Bass Buzz, this time without interruption:

"You just start one scale note below, and then bask maniacally in the glory of your superior theoretical knowledge.

[Transition] If you don't have the theory chops to bask maniacally and know the right scale…

[Plug]…maybe it's time to take my Beginner to Badass course where I'll cover all this essential theory in a way you can actually understand…

[Detail]…plus everything else you're working in this exercise, including muting, accuracy and basic slap technique."

(3/3) Experiment

So, here’s our formula:

Transition - subtly set up the reason the audience might need your product.
Plug - tell them what it is and be explicit about the benefits.
Detail - provide any extra info (and get out of there!)

But remember... the audience will be on to you almost immediately.

The moment you reach the "Plug", you start a ticking timer in the viewer's mind.

While you can take your time with an End-CTA, carefully widening the curiosity gap and getting them excited for the next video...

...the Mid-CTA needs to be snappy.

You haven't delivered the Grand Payoff yet, so don't spend more than 10-15s promoting your product.

‍

If you promote your own products/services inside your content, I’d love you to try this:

Record your average conversion rate across the last 3-5 videos.
Implement this formula.
Compare conversions over the following 3-5 videos.

That's all for this week!

If you have any questions, you can always reply :)

Speak soon,
George 👋

A lot of people ask me what to charge for scriptwriting.

(Or, how much to pay a scriptwriter.)

So, I went back through a bunch of invoices I’ve sent to clients in the last 2 years.

And I noticed some patterns which I think you’ll find useful (or at least interesting), whether you’re trying to figure out what to charge, or what to pay.

But before we get into it...

Want us to review your script?

My small team will provide detailed notes (and video feedback) from a structural and visual standpoint, including recommendations for...

The hook, use of B-Roll, storytelling, pacing, CTA, and more.

And, while I'm training them up... I'll actually be doing the reviews myself.

So, for a limited time, you'll get a personal review from me at a reduced price!

Learn More!

So, let's talk script pricing...

The single biggest factor that determined what I could charge was actually the client’s level of YouTube experience.

But, interestingly, it was not a linear pattern.

In fact, hitting the highest rates ($1000+) was only really possible when dealing with clients who had EITHER very low or very high experience.

Those with middling experience, or whose channels were not yet making life-changing sums of money were (obviously) inclined to pay less.

Taking 10 real scripts as our data points, here’s the spread:

*Does this graph surprise you? Or is it what you were expecting?*

Let’s explore the different “clusters” so you can understand more about who these channels are, what they want, and why these were the rates we agreed on.

1/ Low Experience, High Cash

These are almost always businesses.

They have low YouTube experience, but plenty of cash.

They’re treating YouTube as a funnel for their products and services, so aren’t often “passionate” about the platform.

They just want someone to kickstart / maintain their YouTube presence.

Because YouTube is top-of-funnel for their business, the ROI from hiring a writer is high.

If their flagship product (e.g. course, software, etc) sells for $200 and they pay a writer $1000, the video only needs to convert 5 customers in its lifetime to make a return.

Remember - the "value" of a script changes based on the goals of the YouTuber. When negotiating, always think about what would make the deal a “win” for both writer and YouTuber.

2/ Some Experience, Some Cash

Here, we’re often talking about channels with under 100k subscribers.

This can obviously vary wildly, but a common trait of this middle group is that YouTube, by itself, isn’t generating a shed-tonne of money.

Or, maybe their YouTube budget is being funnelled into something they consider higher ROI, like editing.

They aren’t necessarily looking for a writer to revolutionise their channel. They just need help maintaining upload consistency.

Naturally, these are the YouTubers to target when you’re just starting out as a writer, because you’re basically paid to plug into an existing machine, learn fast, and keep the wheels turning.

If you’re hiring a writer and paying $3-400, you shouldn’t expect them to make a tonne of strategic suggestions either. If they do, they’re probably above-averagely good, and you should consider paying them more.

3/ High Experience, High Cash

As we move towards more experienced channels, the budgets go back up.

Generally, we’re looking at channels between 100k-1m subscribers (and beyond).

Anecdotally (though I have no idea if this is representative), these channels are the most “creative” - their content is really fun to write.

They’re probably pulling in plenty of money through AdSense, sponsorships, and other parts of their ecosystem.

Ergo, they’re willing to pay for writers with a little more experience.

At this level, writers should be thinking strategically, pushing back on bad ideas, and making suggestions of their own.

Some experience working in clusters 1 and 2 is invaluable for landing clients like these.

4/ High Experience, High Expectations

Once we go upwards of $1200, these are usually (though not always) multi-million subscriber channels.

They absolutely aren’t looking for “plug and play” writers - they want strategic thinkers as well.

When I’ve worked with YouTubers in this camp, they’ll:

Ask for insights from other clients I’ve worked with.
Expect me to spend more time looking at retention graphs from videos I’ve written.
Treat me like a major part of the team, and we’ll bounce ideas off each other.

Matching writers with YouTubers at this level usually comes through recommendation/headhunting.

Caveats

Let me just quickly cover my arse with a few things:

I am generalising here - there’s more nuance to the conversation than I can fit in this piece.
This is not the gospel on how much to charge. There are numerous factors when deciding how to price yourself / pay. I’m sure I have under/overcharged before.
Some projects on this list took 1-2 days… others took more than a month 😬 There’s a lot we could unpack about each project, but that’s not the focus here.
I started freelance life with an Ali Abdaal testimonial under my belt, so I was definitely able to raise prices faster than average. I’m sharing these figures to shine a light on how high the ceiling can go, not to dishearten you if you’re charging on the lower end (because that’s totally normal).

That's all for this week!

I don't often delve into this stuff, so let me know if it was helpful or not.

And, if you have any questions, you can always reply :)

Speak soon,
George 👋

When working with clients, it’s my job to extract relevant information from them to help me write the best script possible.

Because, unless I know certain details, there’s no way I’ll be able to write anything good.

So here’s a wacky thought.

What if we treated ourselves as our own client?

What if, rather than simply starting to write our next script based on intuition alone…

…we forced ourselves to lay out all the critical information we would want an external writer to know?

The problem is…

Most of us think we’ll hit the nail on the head instinctively, simply because we're experts in our subject.

But I've consistently found that the more time you spend thinking about the "macro" of your video, the easier it becomes to nail the "micro".

So, here are the most important questions I always ask a client before writing their script.

Going forwards, I encourage you to ask yourself the same things:

1/ Describe the video idea in a sentence

This is a critical starting point.
If you can’t summarise the video in a few words, the concept isn’t clear enough in your own mind yet.

2/ Who is your audience avatar?

This underpins absolutely everything you do.
It’s essential for figuring out the “framing” (more on this soon).
It’ll affect every word of your script.

3/ Why haven’t you subscribed to Tintin Smith’s newsletter yet?

Wait, sorry, how did this get in here? Well, seeing as we’re now talking about it…
Tintin is Ali Abdaal’s Head of YouTube and writes an incredibly down-to-earth weekly newsletter for educational YouTubers. He's also just a supremely nice man 🥹

You basically get the inside track on all the experiments he’s running on a 5m subscriber channel - to see what works, what doesn’t, and what he’s learning along the way.
This isn’t sponsored btw - I just want to take every opportunity to highlight other useful resources for you on your YouTube journey, and I’ve really enjoyed Tintin’s stuff recently!

Check it out ⚡️ (It's free!)

4/ How do you want this video to be framed?

This forces you to make your idea more specific.
Doing so makes the idea more interesting, but it's also essential for making sure the video appeals to your audience.
I wrote about this in way more detail here.

5/ Have you ideated any titles/thumbnails yet?

You know the score...
Don’t develop your idea before checking you can package it correctly, etc etc.
(However, I do prefer to “frame” my idea before ideating titles + thumbnails.)

6/ By the end of the video, what do you want your audience to understand/feel?

Based on the direction you choose (”framing”), what sort of transformation will the audience have undergone by the end?
Is there a specific emotion you want to elicit? (This helps focus the type of language you use).

7/ How should the video be structured?

Always create the structure before you write.
e.g. 3-5 key points that NEED to be included.
Knowing how you plan to link from one payoff to the next makes writing those transitions way easier.
Check out the “payoffs” segment of this article I wrote for a bit more detail.

And, in case you’re a writer and you’d like to use this list with your clients, here’s a quick rundown of all the other questions I ask:

Tell us about your editing capabilities. For example, do you create animations for your content, or film additional B-Roll? Or, is there anything you want to avoid, like stock footage?
Ideally, how long would this video be? (Duration/word count/both).
Would you like us to include any specific CTAs?
Is there a sponsor? If so, please link their brief below and let us know if there's a specific way you'd like us to approach the integration. If not, we'll get creative!
Any specific sources we should use to guide our research?
Any other info we should know to help guide how we write this video?

6-figure product launch with a 10k audience

Alex Llull (The Steal Club) recently interviewed me about launching a 6-figure product with a small audience.

It might be an interesting listen if you use YouTube as a funnel for your business / paid products 👇

Watch Here 🎥

That's all for this week!

If you have any questions, drop me an email!

Speak soon,
George 👋

Why So Curious? 🤡

Curiosity gaps are what keep people watching your videos.

But a lot of YouTubers aren’t using them correctly.

And, until you understand the problem, you’re constantly at risk of viewers clicking away to watch something else.

So let’s talk about how to set up a curiosity gap that doesn’t cause your audience to leave.

❌ The Common Approach

Read this paragraph and see if you can spot the problem:

"To understand which type of soil you need to grow tasty parsnips, we need to talk about soil density.

But I would never have understood soil density if I hadn’t heard of a principle that’s so important, gardeners who don’t understand it fail 90% of the time.

To show you that principle, I’m going to reveal what my gardening mentor told me in 1989."

At a glance, this might look ok.

The creator has opened a few curiosity gaps to keep me hooked.

Which is a good thing, no?

But the problem with this approach becomes obvious when you break down what’s actually being said:

“To understand A, we need to talk about B.
But I would never have understood B, if I hadn’t heard of the super important principle C.
So, to uncover principle C, I’m going to reveal critical thing D.”

Think of it like this…

The white line is the viewer’s “starting” level of understanding.

They want to understand mini-payoff “A”.

So we tell them they first need to understand “B”.

But before we’ve explained “B”, we introduce another curiosity gap, “C”, and so on.

This is “Curiosity Gap-ception”.

We’re creating curiosity gaps within curiosity gaps.

In our attempt to create a ton of curiosity for mini-payoff “A”…

...we’ve taken the audience down so many extra rabbit holes that they’ve probably forgotten what “A” was, and why it mattered.

And, when your audience forgets why what you’re saying matters…

They’ll get bored and leave.

✅ A Better Approach

It’s time to fix this.

Notice the difference between my last paragraph about parsnips, and this one…

"To understand which type of soil you need to grow tasty parsnips, we need to talk about soil density.
[Explain important things about soil density]
And now you know about soil density, it’s way easier to choose the right type of soil!
But that raises an important question - how much soil do you actually need?
To explain this, I’m going to reveal what my gardening mentor told me in 1989…"

These aren’t big changes.

In fact, a few sentences are exactly the same.

But the difference is that we’re no longer stuffing curiosity gaps within curiosity gaps within curiosity gaps:

“To understand A, we need to talk about B”
‍[Talks about B]
‍And now you’ve understood B, you understand A!
But that raises an important question, C.
So, to explain how we solve C, I’m going to reveal important thing D…"

This diagram makes it clear why our second approach is so critical…

We’re no longer getting bogged down in curiosity gaps just to reach a single mini-payoff (e.g. ”A”).

Instead, mini-payoffs ”A” and “C” are achieved by opening and closing individual curiosity gaps each time (”B” and “D”).

Every time we open a curiosity gap, it’s clear what we’re building towards.

We keep the viewer oriented within the overall structure of the video while giving them a regular "hit" with each mini-payoff.

Rather than drowning them in a ton of curiosity gaps that obscure the direction of travel...

...now, their understanding is constantly progressing.

This approach is far more likely to keep people watching.

Welp, I’m never saying “curiosity gap” again in my life. The words have lost all meaning.

Perhaps I’ll let AI write my newsletter from now on.

Speaking of which, you can check out my recent conversation with Gwilym and Jamie about how we’re using AI in our YouTube workflow.

(Side note - this was recorded a few months back, and I’m wayyy more on the AI hype-train these days. Don’t come for me🤖)

Watch Now!

That's all for this week!

Speak soon,
George 👋

‍

Repeat after me:

“My channel needs an audience avatar.”

“Audience avatars are not boring.”

“This is my favourite newsletter and also I love having an audience avatar.”

Remember, this week's advice won't work unless you actually say all this stuff. Out loud. 👀

Ok, let's rewind...

Recently, we discussed the "level of detail" in your scripts, and how important it is to identify whether your audience wants to learn, or simply to be inspired.

This week, we’re taking this topic to its extreme in pursuit of YouTube scripting stardom ⭐️

Because deciding on the “level of detail” is only the start.

And only when you focus on your entire audience avatar will your videos become truly engaging to the right people, to keep them coming back each time you upload.

So, this week:

I’ll show you how ChatGPT can help you re-write your hooks so they speak directly to your audience avatar.
I’ll give you my free audience avatar template, designed specifically for YouTubers, so you can create one for your channel in under 10 minutes.

Context

This is my audience avatar template (which I’ll give you for free at the end of this newsletter 😇)

It contains a bunch of questions that help us better understand who our audience is and what they want.

For this experiment, I filled it in twice and deliberately made each “avatar” completely different.

Arbitrarily, I imagined I was running a fitness channel, so I gave these avatars goals that related to the “fitness” niche.

💼 “Gwen” is career-focused and struggling to fit exercise into a busy work/home life.
✨ “Alex” is a bit more bohemian and struggles to balance sport with spontaneity.

Both avatars have a similar goal… but they are dissimilar in almost every other way.

Their personalities, the obstacles they face, the language they respond to, whether they’re logic or emotion-led… all very different.

And this is why having an audience avatar is so critical.

Your viewers might have the same goals as your competitor’s viewers…

But until you learn to talk to your audience using language they truly respond to, you’ll never properly engage them.

The Experiment (steal these prompts!)

First off, I screenshotted both avatars and fed the images to ChatGPT with the following prompt:

I’ve created an audience avatar for my YouTube channel on Notion. If I send you a screenshot of it, could you identify the textual information and simply write out the same information inside this thread? Don’t alter any of the information I provide.

If you don’t have GPT4 (which recognises text within images), you can simply type out the avatar information, one sub-heading at a time.

Once it had recognised the text, I followed up with:

I’ve also created an alternate audience avatar for my YouTube channel on Notion. If I screenshot that, could you repeat the process (identify the textual information and write it out inside this thread)?

ChatGPT had now logged the information about both avatars.

Next I gave it this prompt:

If I provide a "hook" - that is, the opening paragraph - of a YouTube video I'm going to write, could you adapt and re-write the hook twice? Once so it appeals directly to the information I’ve provided about [Gwen], and a second time so it appeals directly to the information I’ve provided about [Alex]?

Then, I wrote a generic hook relating to the “fitness niche”, using the “target, transformation, stakes” formula I’ve spoken about before:

We all want to be healthier, but our busy lifestyles constantly stand in the way. At least, that's what we tell ourselves. In reality, there's just one thing preventing us from meeting our fitness goals... but it's not what you think. In this video, I'm going to reveal what it is, how it affects you, and the simple way to overcome it so you can get fitter and live longer.

Finally, I sent it my generic hook for an avatar-centric AI makeover…

Results

Granted, it’s far from perfect.

I’m no ChatGPT master, so I’d love the AI wunderkinds among you to suggest a more precise prompt that could have rooted out some of the dumb stuff (”Let’s face it, Alex!”).

But the contrast between these hooks is massive. Even at a glance, you can see differences in:

Language
Tone & delivery
Stakes
Obstacles to overcome

With a little effort, I edited the hooks:

Gwen

Balancing a fast-paced career and family life can easily cause our own health habits to slip. But what if I told you it’s not time, but something else that stands between you and your fitness goals? Today, I’ll unveil the real problem that's holding you back, and the practical, time-efficient strategy to overcome it, so you can live a long, healthy life without sacrificing time with your family or impacting your career.

Alex

'Being healthy' sounds easy in practice. But for those of us with a spontaneous lifestyle, finding time to work out and eat well doesn’t always happen. But what if I told you that your fitness goals don't have to clash with your free-and-easy approach to life? Because, in this video, I'll expose the one myth that's preventing you from staying fit, and the simple yet radical approach that’ll help you overcome it in the next 7 days.

The point is...

If you want your videos to stand out, you need to know who you’re talking to.

Writing every script to a “generic” viewer will never generate an engaged audience.

Your viewers want to feel seen when they watch your videos.

So pinch my free template below, do some digging on your audience, and start addressing them in your next script.

Get the template!

And, remember, you can always feed ChatGPT the information.

Use the prompts above to help convert a super generic hook into something tailored for your audience.

That's all for this week!

Speak soon,George 👋

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