Find your content pillars for maximum growth
It all sounds great when I tell you to just come up with good video ideas to grow your channel. But new ideas take a lot of effort to come up with as explained in our previous newsletter about finding the gaps in the market.
So I already explained how you come up with new ideas, I will share some examples of finding the gaps in the market and nailing content pillars for consistent growth.
I want to give you a disclaimer or a heads-up that it takes time and effort to find and refine these content pillars.
It's so worth all the effort to figure out what video formats work for your goals. It will reduce the efforts to make your channel grow 10x, and that's not even exaggerated.
Content pillars/Video Formats
Think about your best-performing video.
What if you could replicate that success again and again?
That's what a format allows you to do. It becomes your content pillar, a repeatable framework that consistently delivers results.
Content pillars are the core themes or overarching topics that a channel chooses to consistently focus on and create content around.
Channel growth <- content pillar <- video ideas
That is the order of progression for any growing channel.
Content pillars work when you accept that posting the same topic or type of video repeatedly is okay. Many people we talk to don't want to post about something again because they already have.
If a certain email outreach script works, would you stop using it because you already sent someone an email with that? No.
Double down on what works.
Different content pillars can have different outcomes, the most obvious one is of course channel growth. A type of video that gets more views than others, but case studies for example is a video format or a content pillar that helps to convert viewers into customers. Some formats are to get more course sales, calls booked, brand awareness, AdSense revenue, lead generation, etc.
Example channel
PhotographyExplained is a photography channel for amateurs, explained by an amateur. It grew to almost 20k subs in a very competitive niche in about 5 months.
This channel is part of our done-for-you Playstack Studio package and we've been monitoring closely.
The channel works well doing a few formats that I'll break down here - the best part is that it can continue to make videos in these formats.
Three winning video formats
Technical Myth-Busting
- Format structure: Challenge expensive/complex gear or settings
- Examples: “MEGAPIXELS Don’t Matter” (244K), “CAMERA METERING EXPLAINED” (264K)
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Why it works:
- Breaks down intimidating concepts
- Saves viewers money
- Creates debate/discussion
- Attracts both beginners and experts
“The TRUTH About…” Series
- Format structure: Reveal insider knowledge about common photography practices
- Examples: “The TRUTH about shooting at ISO 100” (59K)
-
Why it works:
- Hints at hidden knowledge
- Promises expert-level insights
- Creates curiosity gap
- Challenges established beliefs
Photographers Caught/Drama
- Format structure: Expose mistakes or controversial practices
- Examples: “PHOTOGRAPHERS GOT CAUGHT CHEATING” (50K)
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Why it works:
- Taps into community drama
- High shareability
- Drives comment engagement
- Creates tribal knowledge
Key success patterns
Title Formula
- Technical term + Pattern interrupt
- Numbers/specifics
- The promise of simplification
- Claims of truth revelation
Thumbnail Style
- Before/After comparisons
- Clear visual proof
- Host reaction shots
- High-contrast text overlays
- Equipment/settings shown
Content Angles
- Money-saving insights
- Technique simplification
- Expert-level revelations
- Technical comparisons
Videos that perform best combine technical authority with pattern-interrupt premises that make photography more accessible.
Worth noting: Tutorial-style content (“How to shoot in manual mode”) consistently underperforms compared to these myth-busting/revelation formats, suggesting the audience responds better to content that challenges their existing knowledge rather than basic education.
This formula could be further optimized by:
1. Focusing on technical debates/comparisons
2. Simplifying complex concepts
3. Using strong visual proof
4. Maintaining a contrarian but helpful perspective
As a photographer myself for the last 10 years, I love this channel.
Other parts of its success are his experience in delivering a message and the production quality of the videos and setup.
Why formats are better than ideas
A video format is your repeatable framework, your proven recipe for creating content that works. Think of it like a fill-in-the-blank template for your videos.
Here's why formats matter:
- Predictable production instead of reinventing the wheel each time, you follow your proven structure. Same setup, with different content.
- Audience expectations when viewers know what to expect, they're more likely to return. The format becomes your signature.
- Faster ideation once you have your format, generating ideas becomes about filling in variables rather than starting from scratch.
- Streamlined editing your editor (or you) knows exactly how to structure the content, making post-production efficient.
The Format Formula:
- Hook structure
- Content flow
- Pattern interrupts
- Delivery style
- Closing framework
Start by analyzing videos you love. Notice their patterns. Then test different formats until you find one that feels natural to you and resonates with your audience.
Your Next Steps
- Look at your top 3 performing videos
- Identify the common format elements
- Create a template from these patterns
- Test the template with new topics
What's your best-performing video? Reply to this email, and I'll help you identify the format elements that made it work.
