Is my YouTube channel actually working?

Last week, I went live and open-sourced my entire YouTube Studio!

We broke down:

• My fastest-growing video (and why it might have been a mistake).
• Retention issues, traffic sources, and end-screen CTR wins.
• Lead magnet conversions.

Missed it? Watch the Replay here!

Biggest takeaways:

1. Consistency is more important than individual stats.

As I hinted at in an earlier newsletter, my stats are all over the place:

• Poor first 30s retention (50-60%).
• Loads of new viewers, hardly any casual returning viewers.
• Suggested traffic coming from completely random videos.

On paper, it's a mess.

But, the reality is this:

YouTube doesn’t know who I am or who my videos are for yet.

If the platform doesn’t know who to show me to, then over-analysing tiny CTR differences or obsessing over early retention is procrastination pretending to be “strategy”.

So instead, I’ve set a very boring - but attainable - north star:

• Make a video every two weeks.
• Make those videos for a highly specific audience (like you!)

Everything else is secondary for now.

2. The Ali Abdaal video might have been a mistake.

My fastest-growing video is this one where I basically just rinse Ali Abdaal.

This did “well” in classic YouTube terms:

• Big initial views spike.
• Strong browse traffic.
• High CTR early on.

Then, all of a sudden... CTR dropped, browse fell off a cliff, and views dried up.

My read:

• The video benefits from Ali’s face and name
• It attracts “Ali fans”, not necessarily “I want to become a better YouTube writer” people.

Those viewers are much less likely to:

• Watch my nerdy scriptwriting videos.
• Join this newsletter.
• Become customers.

And, by seeing early positive results from an audience who would probably click Ali's face in any context, the algorithm later struggled to figure out which viewers to serve it to.

So yes, the Ali video is a “win” in that it brought more attention in the short term.

But in terms of helping the algorithm figure out who my channel is for, it's not ideal.

A video that gets fewer views from the right people is more valuable than a video that gets more views from the wrong people.

(And I even kinda knew I was shooting myself in the foot with this one... I just couldn't resist poking fun at Ali ONE more time, for old times' sake.)

3. There are SOME stats worth looking at.

Here’s what I am keeping an eye on:

a) Who my videos are being suggested next to

For the three launch videos, suggested traffic is now mostly:

• Other scriptwriting content.
• My own videos.
• My Jay Clouse interview.

Perfect. That’s what I want.

And I know I can increase the likelihood that my videos get suggested next to each other by:

• Adding them to playlists with each other, and other videos in my niche.
• Consciously making videos on similar topics.
• Using end-screens to link relevant videos together.

b) End screen click-through rate

Across the board, end screen CTR is high (often double digits, sometimes above 20%).

That tells me my structural frameworks and CTAs are working, so I don't need to change my approach.

c) Lead magnet conversion

Viewers who are downloading my free lead magnets, have provided me with some useful stats.

This lead magnet is converting at 77.6% 👇

Whereas this one is only converting at 60% 👇

My take on this?

The transformation suggested by the former is much clearer.

Ergo, I've updated the landing page for ScriptHook to try and create the same effect.

NEW VIDEO

The Easiest Retention Trick For Educational YouTubers

This video shows you a quick and easy retention trick that:

• Boosts watch time.
• Increases your authority within your niche.
• Increases the video's runtime (without you even trying).

Watch Here

That's all for this week.

Any questions? You can to reply to this email and I'll get back to you.

Speak soon,
George 👋

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