How Zach King Built His $500M Empire (Interview)

How Zach King Built His $500M Empire (Interview)

Today we learn about Zach King's success on YouTube thanks to @Youshaei Podcast.

Check the full episode on Youtube:

SUMMARY

Zach King's success on YouTube is attributed to strategic collaborations, the monetization of YouTube shorts, maintaining control over his channel, hiring skilled individuals, early adoption of platforms, and his dedication to creativity and planning in content creation.

• 00:00 🎥 Zach King built a $500M empire through social media, emphasizing the importance of building a process around ideas, using AI tools for brainstorming, and focusing on relatable stories rather than illusions.

  • Zach King has built a $500 million empire through social media, creating new ideas for videos and accumulating over 20 billion views across platforms.

  • Zach King discusses his creative process and how he comes up with new ideas, emphasizing the importance of building a process around ideas and brainstorming with others.

  • Zach King discusses how he generates ideas for his work, using prompts and AI tools for brainstorming and creating images.

  • Zach King uses a visual learning technique to come up with memorable and YouTube-ready concepts, using AI to bring his ideas to life.

  • Zach King explains the process of brainstorming and creating a successful Amazon video, starting with an idea dump and then narrowing down to the best concept.

  • Zach King uses sticky votes to gauge team feedback on ideas, focusing on relatable stories rather than illusions, and encourages the team to think creatively without worrying about budget constraints.

• 08:28 🎥 Zach King discusses his creative process, refining video ideas, improvising on production day, adding extra elements for humor, planning and scripting videos, and testing different intros to make his content more appealing.

  • Zach King discusses the creative process behind his videos and how he incorporates iconic elements like scuba diving gear and Amazon's Alexa.

  • Zach King discusses the process of refining and producing his video ideas, including the cost and challenges of creating a specific video with real and CG water effects.

  • Zach King saves room on production day to make his videos more creative by improvising and pushing for better shots, resulting in some of his most special and viral videos.

  • Zach King discusses how he adds extra elements to his videos to make them more watchable and funny, including ad-libbing, trying different intros, and incorporating visual elements like drawing income.

  • Zach King plans and scripts his videos, even the spontaneous ones, and uses mock-ups and rough drafts to pre-produce and plan his content.

  • Zach King discusses the process of refining and testing different versions of the intro for his videos to determine what is catchier and more appealing to the audience.

• 14:46 🎥 Zach King discusses his income sources, challenges of YouTube, and potential for higher payouts through YouTube shorts.

  • Zach King discusses the challenges of creating content for YouTube, the value of his studio, and the different ways he earns income as a creator.

  • Zach King's income comes mostly from production work and brand deals, with a small portion from AdSense and YouTube competitions.

  • Zach King discusses the cost of winning competitions, the expenses of giving away money, and the comparison between earnings from TikTok and YouTube shorts.

  • Zach King discusses the challenges of making a living as a creator on YouTube and the potential for higher payouts through YouTube shorts.

  • Advertisers joining shorts on YouTube may initially have low payouts, but as the platform becomes more savvy at bundling ad packages, payouts for shorts are predicted to increase, providing more meaningful earnings for creators.

  • Zach King discusses his strategy of posting videos once a week and waiting for them to perform well before posting anything else, with a current cadence of once every seven to ten days for shorts on his YouTube channel.

• 23:17 🎥 Zach King releases consistent long-form and short videos, categorizing them as a show to engage viewers, discussing the importance of giving ownership to his team and maintaining personality in content creation.

  • Zach King aims to release one long-form video a month, with additional shorter videos in between, following a 28-day rule for consistent content.

  • Zach King talks about the success of his short videos and how he categorized them as a show to keep viewers engaged and watching more.

  • Zach King discusses the format and success of his short films on YouTube, which have garnered millions of views and subscribers.

  • Zach King discusses the process of creating a short film and the importance of finding people who have ownership over the projects.

  • Creators should give ownership to their team and not hold their creative process too close in order to grow.

  • Zach King discusses the challenges of letting go of control and the importance of maintaining personality in content creation, while acknowledging that some people are not interested in managing a team.

• 28:25 🎥 Zach King built his $500M empire by hiring a team, staying on the artistic side, bringing Hollywood-level production to his videos, and emphasizing the importance of pre-production and creative control.

  • Zach King initially didn't want to work with a team but now sees the value in having one, although he acknowledges that not everyone needs a team to be successful.

  • Zach King discusses how he has been able to stay on the artistic side of creating while hiring people to handle the business aspects, and he mentions a sponsor, Creative Juice, that provides business support for creators.

  • Zach King discusses the hiring process for his team and the importance of finding people who are better than him in certain areas, as well as the maturing creator economy and the challenges of growth.

  • Zach King brings Hollywood-level production to his YouTube videos and has learned from Hollywood experiences, particularly from Lord and Miller, to enhance creativity in his process.

  • Zach King emphasizes the importance of pre-production and creative control, and discusses how he guides the development of his videos while ensuring his team maintains his personality in the content.

  • Test freelancers for six months before hiring them full-time to ensure they handle stress well and avoid the hassle of firing.

• 34:36 🌟 Zach King's success on social media is attributed to his early adoption of platforms like Vine and TikTok, his exploration of new apps for creative opportunities, and his emphasis on learning and building relationships on new platforms, despite potential failures.

  • Zach King attributes his success on social media to getting a head start on platforms like Vine and TikTok, and he continues to explore new apps for creative opportunities.

  • The speaker discusses the potential for creators to excel on social media platforms by combining photography and writing skills, and emphasizes the value of learning and building relationships on new platforms even if they ultimately fail.

  • Zach King discusses a video he made about gas prices that he believes was underappreciated and may have been shadow banned.

  • Zach King discusses the production process and working with celebrities for his expensive YouTube videos.

• 38:35 🎥 Zach King prioritizes work-life balance, sets boundaries with his kids, and gives himself a salary from his company to simplify accounting.

  • Zach King had to travel six hours to a remote desert location for a wardrobe fitting for a film shoot.

  • Zach King gives himself a salary from his company to simplify accounting and avoid getting too comfortable in life.

  • Zach King prioritizes work-life balance and strives to create a team environment where employees can produce great content without working excessive hours.

  • The speaker discusses the challenges of balancing being a creator with being present in personal relationships and expresses uncertainty about how to create boundaries.

  • Zach King discusses how he manages work-life balance by setting boundaries with his kids and finding inspiration in their imagination.

• 42:25 🎥 Zach King reflects on the importance of encouraging creativity, draws inspiration from old Hollywood, and aims to balance practical and CGI effects in his videos.

  • Zach King reflects on how he unintentionally shut down his son's creative idea and realized the importance of encouraging creativity.

  • Zach King's work is inspired by old Hollywood and he shares clips internally for inspiration.

  • Zach King references old comedy legends like Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin in his work and enjoys adding modern twists to their classic gags.

  • Zach King prefers to use practical effects in his storytelling and aims to continue incorporating new technologies while maintaining a balance between practical and CGI effects.

  • Zach King discusses the practical and VFX elements of his videos, emphasizing the importance of real effects and the challenges of faking certain elements.

  • Zach King discusses the cost and challenges of using VFX in his videos and thanks the interviewer for the inspiration.

INSIGHTS

Business and Monetization Strategies

• 💼 According to Zach King, a significant portion (80%) of his income comes from brand deals and sponsored content, highlighting the importance of collaborations in building a successful empire.

• 💸 YouTube shorts monetization has significantly increased Zach King's earnings, with $7,900 earned in just two months for approximately 540 million views, resulting in a much higher payout compared to regular videos.

• 📈 By strategically focusing on shorts and then transitioning to long-form content, Zach King observed an increase in returning viewers, indicating the potential value and retention of short-form content.

• 💥 Zach King believes in quality over quantity when it comes to YouTube videos, preferring to release a banger video every few months rather than sacrificing quality for frequent uploads.

• 💡 Zach King strategically used teasers at the end of his videos to build anticipation and increase subscribers, resulting in millions of views for his short films.

• 💼 Zach King believes that maintaining control over every aspect of his channel is crucial for preserving its unique personality and style, even though delegating and scaling can still maintain personality with a bigger team.

• 💼 Zach King emphasizes the importance of hiring people who are better than him in certain areas, highlighting the value of leveraging their skills and expertise.

• 🚀 Zach King's early adoption of Vine and Musically gave him a significant advantage in building his empire, with a head start of millions of subscribers.

• 💪 Zach King values transparency and honesty in his team, ensuring that they understand the expectations and commitments of the job.

Production and Content Quality

• 💡 Despite the perception of social media being oversaturated, Zach King's success on YouTube with 65 million followers and 20 billion views proves that there is still room for new ideas and content.

• 💡 The use of a reveal moment in the video, where Alexa transforms into the scuba diver, adds an element of surprise and creativity to the content.

• 🎥 Despite the appearance of spontaneity, everything in Zach King's YouTube videos is completely scripted, highlighting the level of planning and attention to detail involved in his content creation process.

• 🌟 Bringing a Hollywood level production to YouTube sets Zach King apart and adds a unique element to his content.

• 😮 Zach King's dedication to his craft is evident in his willingness to go the extra mile, even traveling six hours away for a shoot in the desert.

Creative Process and Idea Generation

• 💡 Zach King's creative process involves both spontaneous ideas that come during activities like go-karting, as well as a structured brainstorming process to find and refine the best ideas.

• 💡 Zach King emphasizes the importance of prompts in generating creative ideas, suggesting that anyone can come up with great ideas if they have a starting point or theme to work with.

• 💡 Zach King's creative process involves starting with an "idea dump" where he and his team generate at least 100 ideas before moving forward with a project.

• ⏳ The process of refining ideas involves considering the heart of the concept and imagining what could be done if money was not a constraint, before reality checks and adjustments are made.