Okay.
So something bizarre is happening on my channel.
And I have to share it with you because it's a really, really good lesson about audience
growth, growing your own audience and it doesn't even really matter what platform you're on.
So last week I made a video talking about how I'm disrupting the algorithm, and there
were so many great comments on that video.
And one of them in particular, I wanted to share came from Borne Deegan, and she said,
"Thank you for this.
I resonated with this so much.
Do you have any thoughts for how this will work for a much smaller YouTuber who's just
getting started?
I feel like I have to carefully target and create niche videos to get started.
And I don't have the platform or audience right now to be as holistic as I'd like to
be in my video topics and information.
What would you recommend?"
So it's a great question and a totally valid question.
And if you're confused as to what I'm talking about, and you haven't been on my channel
in a while, or watched a video in a while, about two weeks ago, I shared a video where
I broke out of what people are used to seeing on my channel.
And it came straight from my heart.
It came straight from what was on my mind and what I felt was important to be speaking
about right now.
And the reaction since that video I've talked about, and I talked about it in the last video
is that I have had a big amount of loss, but also a huge amount of gain.
And the gain is the part I want to talk about in this video, because it's unlocked something
about growing a true audience that you need to know.
So I talk a lot about YouTube.
I've talked a lot about YouTube over the years, and I have a ton of videos that I've linked
to in the description below this video about the tactics and the science behind YouTube
but there's something in particular that I did on Instagram about a year ago and my growth
catapulted.
I grew by 60,000 followers on Instagram pretty quickly.
And before that, I was growing at a really slow pace.
And again, vanity metrics are not the be all end all, but it's a valuable lesson because
not only do my followers grow on Instagram, my engagement skyrocketed as well.
And I truthfully didn't really ever look back and think about the actual turning point of
that.
I know the tactics.
I've shared the tactics on here.
But this is a little bit different.
So when you're talking about social media, when you're talking about algorithms, whether
it's Instagram or YouTube, it's an art and a science.
And we all focus on the science so much that a lot of the times, the art goes out the window.
And so the science of YouTube is you have to know which keywords are going to get you
seen.
You have to know the numbers and the data and the science behind how the algorithm works.
That's really, really important to understanding how to get your content seen.
The art piece is the part where you know who you are, you know why you're sharing your
content and you also know exactly what your audience truly needs from you.
That's a big difference.
If you're only ever focusing on the science, you're kind of just contributing to the noise
and you're talking about the same things over and over and over again.
Whereas with the art part of it, you're going really deep with people and that has a really
incredible effect, which I'm going to share more about in this video.
So the other thing about YouTube that happens a lot that I've noticed, and that honestly
I've contributed to as well is I've talked about echo chambers a lot, which is kind of
like one person says something and then everybody else says the same thing.
And you'll see this happening.
And tell me if you've seen this happen where one YouTuber content creator will create a
video on a topic, that topic blows up on their channel and then a bunch of other YouTubers
will be like, "Oh, that blew up for them.
I'm going to make a video on the exact same topic and it's going to work for me."
And sometimes it does, and we call those gateway videos and I've used that tactic and it can
work and I'm not knocking it, but it does contribute to this echo chamber of seeing
the same kinds of content over and over and over again, and feeling really unfulfilled
and bored in the kind of content you're creating.
So you know what's extremely powerful?
Is when you match that science with the art, which is what I'm sharing in this video.
And if you look at any of the massive YouTubers, there's something that they do that combines
with tactics so if you can combine tactics with truth and trust, that is the winning
formula for growing an audience.
That is what's going to separate you from anybody else and truly make you unbeatable
and uncopyable.
So the whole strategy of copying each other's topics and copying each other's titles, it
works to a certain extent, but if you're truly basing your content off of who you are and
what makes you unique and also what your audience truly needs from you, and combining that with
the keywords and the categorization and everything the algorithm needs for you to get seen, that's
how things really started to take off in kind of a crazy way.
So anybody on the planet can teach tactics.
That's the truth.
And it's not a bad thing.
I'm not knocking it.
I have been doing that for a long time on this channel.
The issue with that is that literally, I could go Google how to be a figure skater.
And I can tell you, these are the five steps to be a figure skater based off of just seeing
what somebody else has done.
And because everyone's become so obsessed with growing their audience on social media,
a lot of the times, that's what we default to.
We default to just seeing what somebody else has done and copycatting them.
But I don't even know if that's a word.
I made that up, but you know what I mean.
So when you do that though, you're stealing your unique differentiating factors, which
is you.
And I've said this before, but it's called a YouTube for a reason.
And I'm listening.
I'm taking this advice for myself right now too.
And it's been a big light bulb for me in the last couple of weeks.
I've linked to the last few videos so you can get context and see what I'm talking about,
but that's really at the heart of this is figuring out how you can be someone that nobody
can copy and no one can really compete with, which everybody on the planet has the ability
to do, especially on this platform.
So like I said, anybody can teach tactics, but tactics don't build depth.
Tactics build numbers.
And the problem, and I've talked about this before, you know it, the problem with only
focusing on building numbers and going wide with your audience is that after a certain
point, they just kind of stop listening because they've heard the same things over and over
and over again from you.
So it'll grow you, but it won't retain people.
And when you have a big audience and people aren't engaging with your videos, that leads
to you actually getting pushed down and not being seen in the algorithm.
So the better goal for you to have is to make sure that you have whatever size audience
you have, well, make sure they're actually paying attention and they're actually engaged.
So the thing that's happened for me and that I'm really noticing is that when you really
go deep and you show up as yourself, it creates this ambassador effect.
And I've always known this, but this has really been proof in action and me being living proof.
So I want to show you what has happened since I've shared these last two videos so take
a look.
Absolutely going down the right path.
Please don't stop.
So together, let's turn our pain into power.
I'm standing with you.
As long as we stand together, no one will fall.
We have a long fight so let's just keep using our voices and hold each other up.
Okay?
Sunny, I thank you.
I applaud you.
I respect you and I support you.
Not only am I getting people creating videos and taking the time to create videos, whether
they're a private video, like the one that Cindy sent me from the power of your voice,
or it's a public video.
I'm getting comments like this, "Hey, Sunny, I've been watching your content for a while,
but I didn't subscribe until your video of last week.
Before that video, you seemed to be perfect, which somehow felt unobtainable and impersonal."
"I signed up years ago for you and even bought your course, but on a personal level, I wasn't
connecting with you as a person."
"I've been following you for a while.
I've gotten amazing value from you, but this is the first time I felt connected to you."
"Wow.
This is the first time I'm seeing this side of you.
Before this, I never used to pay much attention to your videos, but today I listened and I
listened carefully."
"I'm now officially a subscriber, Sunny.
Thank you for being true to you and listening and speaking up."
"I had actually stopped watching your videos until the last two.
Keep going."
"I've watched you here and there, but now I'm a subscriber."
"I watched and liked some of your videos and for some reason, didn't subscribe, but this
video made me do it."
That blows me away.
And what's happening on a very nerdy analytical side and I'm never going to lose that part
of me.
I am a huge nerd.
So this has all been really, really fascinating for me to dive into.
If you look at the analytics on my channel, it's peaks and valleys.
It's crazy.
There's huge dips and then there's huge spikes.
And in this last week there's been this steady uphill, even though I'm still losing subscribers
every single day and I'm still getting nasty feedback and all that stuff.
The growth is now outweighing the loss.
And more than that, the depth is so outweighing the loss.
I never talked to you in the way that I've now been able to talk to you.
The private conversations that I'm having with you are amazing.
I can't even really put it into words because I'm so moved and touched and I feel like we're
besties now and that for me is the real key.
So how do you do this?
It's super easy for me to teach tactics.
Like I said, it's super easy for me to say, "This is the system," which our system effing
works.
You know it does.
But when you combine that with also understanding what you, as a person bring to the table,
that's the real differentiating factor, that blows up your channel.
As you're seeing with me right now, the last two videos that I put out too, they've been
two of my top performing videos that I've ever had on my channel, despite losing subscribers,
because I'm going deeper and so the algorithm is seeing the depth of the comments and they're
saying, "Wow, this channel needs to be seen and suggested and searched and all of those
things."
So it's really, really cool and I have to share that with you.
So how do you do this?
So you, of course, need to know the system.
You, of course, need to know how to target keywords and all of that stuff and know where
you want to be categorized in the algorithm.
That's never going to change on YouTube.
That's just how it works.
It's a robot.
That's how it works.
But to get to the root of you and to get to the root of how you're really going to connect
with people like this, there are a couple of questions you need to ask yourself.
And I promise you, you ask these questions, the light bulb moments are going to happen.
So first question, what is the hardest thing you've ever been through in your life?
What is a problem you've had to solve for yourself or overcome?
What's the most painful thing you've ever been through in your life?
Remember pain is power.
What makes you different?
What makes you totally meek?
What makes you one of one?
Because there's something.
I know there is.
What's one thing that people always ask you for help with?
What are some of the greatest lessons you've learned in your life?
Now, you don't need to answer these right now.
If you have some ideas, feel free to put them in the comment, but it's also personal so
I get it.
But if you take a second to write those things down and to journal on them, your key to true
connection and building an audience that's going to last a lifetime is hidden in the
answers to those questions.
I promise you that.
And I, again, improve of that.
One of my biggest mistakes, biggest struggles, most painful things that I've experienced
in my life is truly how I've created my business.
And now it's showing up in an even bigger way.
I've mentioned this in the past couple of videos, but I have really struggled to use
my voice in really important times of my life.
And I created a business to solve that problem without even really knowing it.
And it's grown.
It's grown a lot.
My business is, it's at a place that I never could have dreamed of.
And now I'm truly understanding that I made this business to solve one of the greatest
pains I've been through and I've never shared that story publicly and I think I will.
I'm working up to it.
I think I will share it at some point, but you have to know that whatever you think is
your struggle is actually really your strength and hone in on that because that's what's
going to make you stand out and that makes you uncopyable.
People can maybe steal your title, but they can't be you.
And that's the beautiful thing about YouTube.
What a time.
You can build an entire audience and huge reach because you're you and you're watching
me do this.
And it's been a crazy ride these last couple of weeks, but you're here.
You're watching this so this is proof, right?
So the heart of this and the science of this, the heart makes you uncopyable.
It makes you unbeatable.
It makes you stand out.
The art makes you stand out.
Heart and art, same thing.
The science gets you seen.
So combine those two together and it's really powerful.
And I have to share, I got this comment on Instagram.
Made my life.
It's from drivingmisslauralinda and she said, "Watching you evolve has been so incredible.
This feels like when Oprah shifted into Change Your Life TV."
Compare me to Oprah, my life is made.
"I'll ride with you wherever you go from here."
I've never seen comments in my life like this before.
And you know my obsession with Oprah is very real lest we forget when I met Oprah and forgot
how to smile.
It haunts me still.
But one day, I'll meet her again and I'll redo that picture.
But I remember hearing an interview with Oprah where she talked about when she was in the
90s, when she was doing her talk show, she was up against people like Sally Jesse Raphael
and Jenny Jones.
And some of you are young and probably have no idea who I'm talking about, but they were
kind of like trash TV shows to be honest and Oprah, who you think of her as now, was not
doing the kind of content she does now.
She was doing similar kinds of content, like who cheated on who and all that stuff.
And at one point she was like, "No, I don't want to do this anymore.
It's not who I am.
It's not what's important to me.
So I'm going to talk about spirituality.
I'm going to talk about living your best life.
I'm going to talk about personal development," at a time when that wasn't even a popular
thing.
And so she had, again, a purge of viewers and her ratings tanked and that's a really
scary thing when you work for a TV network, you have advertisers and all this stuff.
And I remember somebody asked her, "wasn't that scary for you?"
And she said, "No, because I knew if I was true to myself, the audience would follow."
I'm certainly not comparing myself to Oprah, but if you compare me to her, I'll take it.
And I can tell you, it feels a lot fucking better to be here as who I am and know that
I'm showing up for you 100% as myself and speaking about the things that really matter,
and that are on my heart and minds.
And you are showing me that that's what you want to hear as well so we're meeting each
other, which is a really beautiful thing.
And there's a quote that I shared not too long ago that I love and it says, "It's better
to be hated for who you are than loved for who you're not."
That's where I feel like I'm at and I want you to remember that too.
So I hope this was helpful for you.
And I hope you can take those questions, use them as an exercise, dive deep and really
get to the root of how you are you, because that my friend, that is your power.
All right.
Give this video a like if you liked it.
Be sure to comment below if you have any light bulb moments.
I can't wait to hear them.
And if you ideas for the next video, let me know in the comments because I'm reading all
of them, even bad ones, whatever.
All right.
I'll see you in the next one.
I love you.
Bye.