#NerdsUnite: Path to YouTube Partnership- Comedy or Advice?

<editors note> Nerds, meet Brian Freedman!! He is 24, and has spent over four years answering men and women's relationship questions through various sites. He also loves him some comedy, so he's now combined the two into a web series called Spitfire where he answers relationship topics, with humor ⎯ new videos every 1st & 15th.  Go watch.  youtube.com/ImBrianFreedman. If you don't like 'em, he'll bake you pie.  Mmmm... piiiiiiieeee. K. That is all.  </editors note>

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's Brian Freedman

I've been struggling with this idea for awhile now.  There are two parts to me: I'm very funny and very spiritual.  I love making people laugh just as much as helping them grow and learn.  The dilemma when building my YouTube Brand is how to meld the two, if that's even possible.  I feel I've been focusing on being funny AND giving advice, but because my attention is split I've been good at both, but great at neither.

I would love to create purely comedic videos that are witty and bring smiles to millions.  Imagine I have 2 million views per video and most of the comments are "I love you Brian.  You're soo funny!!  LOL!!!"  But let's say I focused on genuine, helpful advice, only get 100,000 views, but most comments are, "Brian, you've changed my life and helped me so much in my relationships."

I'm an Alpha male.  I LOVE being the best, because I can be.  Whether in Call of Duty, defense in basketball, my humor, or my ability to relate and connect with others, I dominate.... easily.  That's what makes making videos so difficult.  If I go full on comedy, I will have extremely high views, but people probably won't learn anything of real value.  If I choose applicable advice, it's helpful, but not entertaining.  Thus, very low views.  The problem with low views is the less people I can reach, the less I can help.  So, going along with my Alpha persona, I want to be the best.  You CAN'T be the best with just spiritual, especially on YouTube.  People watch videos to be entertained.  That's a fact.  Solid advice is very difficult to make entertaining to the mass market.

I have always lived my life with compromise being the best solution.  That way, everybody wins.  But in this case, compromise isn't really an option.  Or if it is, I am not strong nor smart enough to figure out how to mix the two beautifully.  At best I do 75% Comedy, 25% Substance.

I would say comedy comes more naturally to me than anything else, hell even when I stub my toe I just laugh at how painful it feels (I guess at the simple stupidity of the whole situation).  As I write this I know what I need to do, primarily focus on making people laugh so that I may build a large audience.  My concern is, my audience will respect me for my comedy, but would they take me seriously when giving relationship advice?  Damn double-edged sword.  Then again, people like Ray William Johnson in several old episodes of Breaking NYC and Timothy DeLaGhetto's "Dear DeLaGhetto" have shown popularity equates trust, so I build myself up as an awesome guy and people will naturally be interested in my advice. 

Another option: my YouTube would be my comedic battlefront, and my articles, like this one, would be my outlet for engaging others hearts and minds.  I just do not believe it's possible to combine the two and still be Top 100 YouTube Status.

I still haven't decided, which leaves you guys with, "What the hell?  No concreate ending?  No closure!?"  Sorry to say, no closure.  But a line I heard watching Thundercats and will continue to be reminded of is, it's the journey, not the destination.

What a load of crap.  I'm kidding, I'm kidding.  People spend all their time on the journey, and the destination is merely but an instanst.  In reality, the destination is still apart of the journey ⎯ the last peice to achieving what you've sought after for so long.  But the second it turns from "One day" to "Today" barely a second has passed before you set your sights on a higher, more lofty goal and a new, more exciting journey has begun.

Sorry, I got philosophically sidetracked.

After going on one of my normal walks to clear my head, I feel I will build up my videos primarily as entertainment, to make people's lives full of laughter and joy.  Then, after I'm powerful enough, I'll focus part of my energy improving people's relationships.  There's your stinking closure.

If you guys see another path I haven't, feel free to let me know.  I'm all ears.

#nerdsunite



#NerdsUnite: Path to YouTube Partnership

<editors note> Nerds, meet Brian Freedman!! He is 24, and has spent over four years answering men and women's relationship questions through various sites. He also loves him some comedy, so he's now combined the two into a web series called Spitfire where he answers relationship topics, with humor ⎯ new videos every 1st & 15th.  Go watch.  youtube.com/ImBrianFreedman. If you don't like 'em, he'll bake you pie.  Mmmm... piiiiiiieeee. K. That is all.  </editors note>

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's Brian Freedman

Let me let you in on my dreams.  Actually, it’s not a dream because dreams don’t come to fruition, so I’ll call it my Goal.  My Goal is to be become a Top 100 YouTube Partner making videos helping people with their relationships in an entertaining way.

Now, why should you care?  Great question!  I have no idea.  Jen asked me to write something personal, and this what I am going through right now and REALLY care about, so I figured I’d let you guys in on the fun.

So I know what my end Goal is: to be a Top 100 YouTube Partner.  Got it.  So how do I get to there, from here?  Right now I’m at the bottom of the mountain, averaging 113 views & 5 comments per video with 22 subscribers, figuring out how the hell do I get to the top? when I’ve never climbed before and have no one leading the way for me.  Like men trying to please a woman without a roadmap ⎯ there’s a high probability it will end in disappointment.

After studying Freddiew, Ray William Johnson, and several prominent bloggers, I’ve noticed that when you create consistently great content, people will follow.

It’s basically the Field of Dreams method ⎯ “If you build it, they will come.”

I personally suck at marketing.  It is my weakness.  So, I don’t focus on what I can’t do, I focus on what I CAN do, REALLY FUCKING WELL.  And that is to be smart and funny.

My ultimate goal with each video is to connect with the viewer.  We hang out talking about relationships and what not, and I’m just a fun guy sitting across from you making you laugh and you actually learn something.  Despite all the jokes, I aim for a balance of humor and substance.  Why is substance so important?  If all I did was talk about which celebrity couple was having issues, I could easily get views, but I wouldn’t be happy with myself because I didn’t elevate people’s thinking so they could become better (by the way, did you hear about Selena and Justin Bieber!? OMG!!).

Serving others is a part of who I am, and quite honestly, it is the ONLY reason I have my YouTube Channel.  I make videos to bring smiles and nuggets of knowledge to as many people as I’m blessed to have support me.  That is why I not only respond to basically everyone who comments (good or bad), but with a fun, playful response because people deserve some goddamn happiness and respect in this world.  And they certainly deserve open communication from entertainers, which I also feel is sadly lacking.  If it wasn’t for fans and people appreciating the work a person does, that person would be out of a job in two seconds.  Now that's easy for me to say, given where I'm at, but there are some well-known people who work hard but still make a point to connecting with fans and I will do the same.

I’ve talked for awhile now, sorry if you fell asleep.  Unless you have sleep apnea, then you're welcome.

I hope I let you in on who I am and what my mission in life is (Answer: To Serve Others).

Life can be hard at times, but as long as you keep a positive attitude and spend your time thinking how you can make others happier (while still caring for yourself), I promise you nothing will ever satisfy you more than making another person smile.

Wish me luck on my goal!

#nerdsunite

Check out more from Brian over yonder ...

YouTube: youtube.com/ImBrianFreedman

Facebook: facebook.com/pages/Brian-Freedman/119790301389812