[00:00] At the time I'm recording this video, I have 8,000 subscribers and 1.8 million views. So whenever you see this, compare these numbers to whatever I have when you watch this.
[00:13] So you might be wondering, what the heck is this? And honestly, I'll probably forget about this by the... Oh, I'm shaking a lot. Sorry, my hand's shaking. Uh, uh, wait. Let's talk this down. Uh, hold... Did I fix it? Yeah.
[00:25] If I told you three years ago that this guy right here was a YouTube genius, you'd probably laugh in my face. Back then MrBeast aka Jimmy Donaldson was filming videos of himself on his iPhone 5 in his bedroom. Today the 21 year old from North Carolina
[00:39] runs one of the fastest growing YouTube channels in history. In fact every single video MrBeast has uploaded in 2019 has over 10 million views. Something nor the creator has done before him. Not even PewDiePie. I don't understand. I just don't understand. So how did he do
[00:56] In this video I'm going to show you why MrBeast is the smartest YouTuber on the platform. So if you want to grow a channel in 2020, get out your notebook and get ready because this is going to be a YouTube masterclass. If you're new to this channel, I like to analyse big YouTubers and pinpoint the factors
[01:11] behind their success and growth. So why did I pick MrBeast? Well I think the numbers really speak for themselves. MrBeast currently sits at 27 million subscribers but he is growing at a rate of 1 million subscribers
[01:24] every month. He's bringing in 300 million views a month, which if you want to break it down into money terms, is probably around $600,000 every single month just from ads. Not bad for a college dropout.
[01:37] But the big question is, how is this all possible? What does MrBeast know that we don't? Well, the good news is that I spent the last week researching the hell out of the channel for all you guys, and I've broken it down into four factors that I think have set him apart.
[01:51] So without further ado, let's get straight into factor number one. So the first factor I want to highlight is how MrBeast has turned himself into a viral video making machine. For most YouTubers, viral videos are like gold dust. For many
[02:05] YouTubers they get one viral hit and then spend weeks or months desperately trying to replicate it with little success. Trust me I've been there before and it's very hard to keep up the momentum. However in MrBeast's case he has truly cracked the viral formula
[02:20] which allows them to make video after video that get onto the trending page and get big views. So what is its secret? In general viral videos are based around a few central themes Most viral videos can be placed into at least one of these categories They are money related in some form reaction based pranks challenges drama related or
[02:40] they feature other popular YouTubers, whether that be in their title or an actual collaboration. The really clever thing MrBeast does though is the fact that he blends multiple different viral themes into one video.
[02:52] Take for example this video here. Last YouTuber to leave wins $100,000. This was a collaboration video with various popular YouTubers. It's money based, but it was also a challenge. It also captured everyone's reaction to the situation, so it should be considered a reaction
[03:06] video too. MrBeast is a master at combining all the different ingredients needed to go viral and putting them into one video. The result in this case? 37 million views.
[03:18] Now you may be sitting there saying, where am I going to get access to 20 high profile YouTubers and a hundred grand in cash funds? But the truth is Mr. Beast figured this out very early on. Look through some of the videos he made a few years back when he was small and you'll
[03:32] see he still used the same method of blending popular formats into one video. See where you can apply this to your own videos to appear to allow your audiences. Now of course it's not just as easy as that.
[03:44] Making videos that have the potential to go viral and actually going viral are two very different things. How is anyone going to know your video is a viral hit in the making if no one sees it? And that brings us on to factor number two, MrBeast is beating the YouTube algorithm.
[03:59] YouTube cares about two things now more than anything else, click through rate, which is the amount of people clicking on your video, and watch time, which is the amount of time people spend watching your video after clicking. These are the two main metrics that YouTube uses when deciding whether or not to show
[04:14] your video to more people. You see a lot of people like to over complicate things when it comes to the YouTube algorithm, But MrBeast keeps it simple and focuses on getting people to click and make them stay on his videos.
[04:26] In terms of picture rate, it's all about your title and your thumbnail. These are two things MrBeast is absolutely dominating at. His titles are short and snappy and always hold some sort of shock value.
[04:38] I can't tell you the amount of times I've seen a MrBeast video and thought, surely not. Being able to spark someone's interest through a few words is a skill that is often overlooked. As for MrBeast's thumbnails, on the surface they may seem quite simplistic, and at times
[04:52] even poorly made. This thumbnail right here looks like it was made in 5 minutes. I mean, he didn't even bother photoshopping the follow account icon properly, and yet this video still has more views than my entire channel.
[05:04] Hmm However once again Jimmy is much smarter than many give him credit for These thumbnails perfectly suit the type of videos he makes They are in your face instantly recognisable and amateur by design
[05:16] Things that tend to go viral on the internet are things that look amateur, especially when it comes to pranks or challenges. People don't want to see some polished end products when it comes to a challenge. This simplistic look is definitely intentional.
[05:28] MrBeast wants to stay true to that traditional YouTuber style. If he came out with a flashy polished thumbnail and fonts it just wouldn't suit his brand. Most of his thumbnails showcase some form of reaction. This may seem simple but it's very important to remember.
[05:44] Another interesting point to remember is that over 50% of all traffic on YouTube comes through phones. MrBeast knows that thumbnails need to grab attention and be readable on smaller screens. Most YouTubers create their thumbnails on their computers so it's an area that's
[05:57] easy to forget about. So that's how MrBeast gets people to click, but how does he get them to stay? Here I've outlined three things Jimmy does that ensures he clocks up hour after hour of watch time. The first thing is he gets straight to the point of the video from the get go.
[06:12] Usually in the first 10 or 20 seconds of his videos he explains exactly what is going to happen. This is commonly called a hook and it ensures viewers know what to expect from the start, so they are more likely to stick around.
[06:24] This quite literally hooks their attention. Here's an example from one of his own videos. I wanted to open a free bank, so I did what any logical person does. I rented a real bank, grabbed a ton of money, hired all my friends and tellers,
[06:37] and then bought a billboard and paid calendar flip a sign. And here's what happened. I asked the bank for a billion dollars and they said no. What? So, I made a grab. So then we made a grab.
[06:49] And regardless, we're opening a free bank to put them out of business. Go give away money. Yeah! The second thing is very obvious. his videos are long. If you want to get more watch time it makes sense to have longer videos.
[07:02] There's a sweet point though, which for MrBeast is usually between 10 and 20 minutes. And thirdly MrBeast uses a lot of retention tactics to make sure viewers are brought on a journey through his videos and don't click off. Most of his videos are not resolved until
[07:18] the end, so you naturally want to stick around to see what happens. If you break it down they are all a story with an intro, middle and end. He also uses a varied approach of editing, for example combining energetic humour with slower, more emotional moments. Some
[07:31] of this is just from being a good storyteller, but it all helps to make sure people stick around after clicking. Ok so onto the final two points These are going to be much less detailed but equally as important so make sure you stick around Factor number three is the fact that MrBeast understands the importance of the growth stage
[07:52] The growth stage is a term used in business to describe the stage where a new company is growing rapidly fast to get more customers and develop a better product, without worrying too much about being in profit. MrBeast applies the same concept to his YouTube channel which
[08:06] I find to be a fascinating model and a very clever move. Pretty much all the money Mr Beast has made from his videos up until this point has been reinvested into making even better videos. You see a lot of YouTubers go like this, they get to a certain point
[08:21] and fail to innovate and fail to create better videos and then they die off. However the way Mr Beast is constantly upping the stakes and improving his videos means his growth isn't slowing as his videos get better and better each time.
[08:34] This is what the mountain star, Dr. Sam Edges, in his KC Nice Dad interview.
[09:04] I want to finish up with the final point. MrBeast has proven that positivity can win on YouTube. I think sometimes it's quite easy to view YouTube as a whole in a negative light. You can at times feel like a toxic environment that is built on bringing other people down
[09:20] to fight your way to the top. However, MrBeast is a perfect example that by being a genuine, positive and likeable person you can still rise to the very top of this platform. Maybe this is the most important lesson of them all.
[09:33] Wow, I don't even know what to say. What you guys do is just a blessing and I never thought in a million years that, you know, I would get that opportunity, but I'm so, so grateful. Aww. We really are thankful.
[09:45] You guys did a good job. Keep giving away my money. I'd rather not have money and see things like that. Thank you. And with that said, thank you all for watching this video.
[09:58] My goal this year was to hit 50,000 subscribers which, let's be honest, I don't think is going to happen. But if we can hit 500 likes on this video, it would be the perfect Christmas present. Please leave a comment below letting me know who you'd like to see analyzed next, and as always, I'll see you at the top.