Hello Reader,
I had promised to share behind-the-scenes discussions in my last newsletter to stick to the promise of building "Brain Box Gurukul" in public. If you've been following me on LinkedIn, you know that I have been shouting from the rooftops for about a year now on a "Video-first strategy". Close to 90% of our Personal Branding clients have taken the leap with us.
So just last week, a potential client (let's call him Mike) who had seen one of my (many) posts pinged me since his YouTube views were decreasing & he questioned if it was even worth it anymore.
It’s a fair question, especially when you pour time, energy, and money into content on any social media platform, only to see double-digit views and silence. So, here are a few uncomfortable truths:
Truth #1: You need to know your WHY
Take a pause and think WHY are you posting? About 85% of our clients do it to generate leads. When I say leads, I don't just mean people who would buy from you (the obvious one), but also connect with people to HIRE you! We have clients who WILL be looking to switch jobs in the next 6-12 months (or even longer) & are posting regularly!
While getting the perfect leadership role is about building that personal brand, here's a quick video that dives deep into the exact strategy on how a client landed a job with a 40% hike in just 15 days .. in 2025! As promised, you can just copy-paste to do it yourself.
Truth #2: You have to identify your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
Once you know your WHY, you'll be able to figure out WHO you want to talk to. We call them 'avatars' in our agency. For instance, if you're a Thought Leader, your videos should reflect the expertise in your subject. WHY? So a TedX or a startup summit would jostle to host you on their panel (true story!). That's how we tailor the content.
On the other hand, Mike, was working full-time, spending time, effort & money to shoot videos in a studio & someone advised him to leverage LinkedIn (which is where he saw me).
On seeing his channel, I realized the challenge was that his video content was everywhere. He was talking about wildlife to the Israel-Iran war to Hollywood movies. But on conversing with him, I realized that he was posting with only a vanity metric in mind. He just wanted to be 'popular'. This brings me to the next truth I told him.
Truth #3: Each social media platform is a very different animal.
The strategies for YouTube are vastly different from Instagram (though both are video-first) & very different from a LinkedIn. Though the video content & even the format may be the same, the write-up we use for each platform for each of our clients is very different.
We have one person in our team dedicated JUST for YouTube. Our agency's video vertical CANNOT make client YouTube videos without taking inputs from him. That's the level of focus you need for each platform.
Truth #4: Persistence is the key.
It's true that all the social media channels are now interest-based rather than follower-based. This means even with 10,000 followers on LinkedIn, a person posting on politics with 500 followers can have a greater reach than me. But remember that our focus is to get leads - not popularity. And while we have had clients strike gold within the first month, none of these social media channels reward instant gratification.
Can you imagine posting diligently for 4 years from the age of 12 with negligible results? That's the story of Mr. Beast for you. That's persistence. So if you’re building your personal brand, let this sink in:
“You’re not playing for views. You’re playing for leverage.”
The Bottom Line
If you’re a business owner or coach, don’t obsess over going viral. Our own agency clients have closed leads from LinkedIn & YouTube with double digit views. Remember, It’s easier to get 10 million views on one outstanding video; than to get 1 million views across ten average ones. So instead of racing to upload content every few days, get your strategy right first.
Oh, and One More Thing ... All social media algorithms evolve fast. What worked 6 months ago might be obsolete now. What worked last year, certainly won't work today.
The creators winning today aren’t the ones with the fanciest cameras or biggest budgets. They’re the ones who adapt fast, test faster, and stay the course.
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- Kaushik