Hey friends, 

So… our team at Creator Startup gave me some feedback on these emails. They said they were too bespoke, that no one knows what to expect every Sunday when they open this email, which is probably fair feedback… 

So this week, they gave me boxes to fill in, and if you guys like this format, i’ll keep going with this. It was pretty fun to fill in for me, so hit reply and let me know what you think.

Do I think DM’s are going to work on YouTube? Honestly… probably not.

But the announcement signals something way more important about the state of content right now.

So why bring DMs back?

YouTube says it’s a “top feature request” on mobile. Beyond that, every major platform is leaning harder into messaging. Spotify rolled out DMs this summer. Instagram literally moved the DM icon to the center of the home screen. That’s not an accident.

DMs are the most influential environment for content to spread.

It’s why Instagram posts go viral.
It’s why memes move culture.

Word of mouth has always been the strongest form of marketing - and DMs are just word of mouth with a share button.

So when I think about the state of YouTube right now… it’s becoming TV.
High-quality. Lean-back. Longer. More premium.

But TV isn’t DM culture.
And if YouTube is turning into TV, where does the water-cooler moment happen?

It happens in the DMs.

A Quick Win for Your Channel: 3 Questions To Make Your Video Shareable

If we’re trying to get your video in the DMs, then it has to be share-able. 

And there are 3 questions I’d ask myself before I hit publish to figure that out…

1 — Are you giving people “purple cow” moments?

Seth Godin talks about if you’re constantly seeing normal-looking cows, then all of a sudden you see a purple cow…you’re gonna tell everyone about it.

So make sure your videos are familiar, but different. Give people enough of what they're used to so they feel comfortable (the cow) and within that, show them something they've never seen before (the cow being purple).

2 — Is your video worth sharing?

If you think about the last DM you sent, it was probably because it reminded you of someone or put words to something you’ve been thinking.

This is why comedy creators do so well in short form. We see something and immediately think of someone else who needs to see this. 

3 – Is it genuinely valuable?

The last reason people share videos is because it makes them feel helpful.

Like they’ll watch something and think, “Oh — this would help so-and-so.”

When you give your audience something practical, they’ll want to pass it along.

With all 3 of these tips, the goal is to make your video remarkable…

Seth Godin also says: “Something is remarkable if people remark on it.”

So the takeaway is to make content that’s worth talking about, because  we’re moving to a place where distribution happens in the DMs and you’re gonna want to be a part of that.