Meet the Tyler Perry of YouTube

She's a woman living in Birmingham, Alabama.

Hey honeys and hustlers,

I’m writing this from my hotel room in the Outer Banks. As I was driving here for Epicurrence, I listened to an episode of the Colin and Samir show featuring a fellow Alabama native and creator, Kinigra Deon. As a scripted video creator, she’s making entertainment-focused content for kids and family-friendly audiences. While I love researching people’s channels, learning their business models, and seeing where they get inspiration from, there were two sections of the episode that really stuck out to me: what she’d like to see YouTube improve on and her perspective on why there aren’t more women creators.

She mentioned some features I’d thought of before and some that were new to me.

• Product placement ads vs. overt ad reads/ad placements. Right now, YouTube requires that you disclose if you’re including an ad read or promoting an affiliate link to a product in a video. It’s not ideal for educational content, so I know it’s even more difficult to make an ad read feel natural in a scripted video. She currently makes the ad read as part of the script and discloses the video sponsor shortly after her introductory montage. She thinks ads will perform better if we could do product placements and link the product in the video without having to overtly call attention to the product. I agree with this, and I know many creators have spent painstaking hours looking at their retention graphs drop when they mention a product. Film and TV productions can do this, and with the rise of YouTube TV viewership, I hope this policy change happens soon.

• A/B testing but for specific audiences. I was super stoked when YouTube added the ability to internally do A/B/C thumbnail testing, but there are some limitations. You can’t A/B/C test the video title, and the thumbnails you test are shown at random for a limited amount of time. Netflix and other streaming platforms have almost perfected their ability to show the thumbnail that most aligns with the viewer’s interest, no matter when the show or film hits the streaming platform. The same way someone browses Netflix and YouTube is not much different on a TV screen, and I can imagine that similar UX/UI changes will come to YouTube’s desktop version and app. YouTube has done a great job at suggesting videos that people want to watch on their home screen and in the side panel of a video, and this change would be a further step in that direction.

• The audience has to know that scripted content isn’t real. I actually didn’t know that this policy existed, but it explains why I see YouTubers using obviously fake props in scripted web shows that I’ve watched. There are so many web series and scripted movies that have gone on to be sold to streaming services or production companies that produce theatrical releases. I think this could be an opportunity for YouTube to cut into the Netflix, Hulu/Disney, and HBO dominance that we see for original shows and movies.

The answer to “Why aren’t there more women creators?” may be obvious to some, but in the context of YouTube and original content creation, I really appreciated the thoughtfulness of her response.

• Men are more likely to go to film school while women are more likely to go to school for acting. Women are more likely to be in front of the camera than behind it. When she first started creating content, she was struck by many women actresses’ reluctance to have their own YouTube channel and produce their own videos. I could speculate all day as to why this is, and I’d love to hear your thoughts as well.

• Early YouTube favored risk-taking videos that went viral, a video style that catered to men. Women tended to make more beauty, fashion, and lifestyle videos in the early days of the platform. Peter McKinnon, one of the biggest photographers on YouTube, actually started his channel making those viral clickbait-style videos (yes, I’ve been following him for a long time). There aren’t a lot of women who have a similar longevity and/or following in the creator space on YouTube.

• Women get discouraged quickly if they struggle to find community with other creators. With the film industry of behind-the-camera talent being largely male, women likely have trouble finding other women doing similar work. I can definitely attest that this is true. I have worked with more men than women as a creator, and as much as I’ve tried to change that, I’ve made very slow progress in that area.

This isn’t the answer factory, but we are trying to bridge the gap in the creator space by helping women creators find their tribe. We launched the PHR Creator Database with this exact goal in mind. We want to make it easier for creators in this community to find and be found for deeper connections and opportunities – collaborations, mentorship, and more. View and join the database at the link below!

Thanks to the folks who have already joined the database! This is still in its early stages so please send me your thoughts and feedback on how we can make it better. I’m rooting for you.

Please Hustle Responsibly,

🤙🏾✨

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