Hi friend! I’m Nick Magnuson, and I help people use YouTube and the power of video content marketing to grow their business.
People typically hire me to make videos for them (planning and strategy, filming, and editing), or to advise them as they do it themselves, but not everyone has the budget for that.
So I decided it was time to start teaching the concepts I use to help grow my client’s businesses, as well as answer a lot of the technical questions I get and help as many people as I can. Think of me as your virtual video & online business coach.
A lot of people get hung up on technical issues when it comes to making videos…whether it’s not knowing what gear to buy (or how to use it), how to edit your videos, or how to start a YouTube channel, it’s easy to be overwhelmed. So let’s break down some common hurdles and help get some momentum moving in the right direction.
What’s Holding You Back?
The specifics change from person to person, but when you boil it down, the real reason you’re stuck comes down to any combination of just a few things:
- Time
- Gear
- Skill
- Fear
Time
Some people say they don’t have time to do it or figure it out. This might be true if you already make money in your business and your time is better spent on other things. If that’s you, hire some help to get things rolling.
If you don’t have the money to hire it out, you need to do it yourself. And if you’re saying you don’t have the time, then it’s just an excuse. We make time for what’s most important to us. If growing your business is important to you, then you need to make it a priority.
We’re all busy, I get it. But if you can carve out even 30 minutes a day (which you can), you’ll have enough time to get things going. Start by scheduling in 30 min a day to work on your content. Either wake up 30 min earlier, stay up 30 minutes later, or cut something else back during the day. Or even work on it during your lunch hour!
Gear
Many people get stuck on the gear. They don’t know what camera, mic, computer, lights, editing software, etc. to buy.
Let me tell you a story. A client asked me to talk to a friend of hers and see if I could help her with her business. I talked to her for over an hour, finding out where she’s at, what she’s stuck with.
She was telling me how she went to B&H (which is a gear mecca for anyone in the photography or video business) and wandered the store, asking questions about what camera to buy. She was there for over 4 hours and left with nothing because she didn’t know what to get.
She had already bought a laptop, which was a step in the right direction. Although I’m not sure it’s where her money was best spent…she could have bought a used laptop with more power and had more money to buy other gear.
I told her she already had a great camera…her phone…and just needed a few other things (like a cheap lav mic and a light). Then I gave her some real practical next steps to help her get started.
She didn’t have the budget to hire me to do it for her, so I offered to coach her at a low rate for a few months just to get her going.
She thought it over and decided it was premature, and wanted to get a start on her own. Which I’m totally fine with!
But I know she hasn’t. She’s still wondering what camera to buy.
True you need SOME gear, but usually, it’s an excuse.
If you have a smartphone, then you have enough to start. Smartphones these days have great cameras! And paired with a cheap wired lav mic, you can make great videos for very cheap.
Skill
Now let’s talk about skill. This one trips up a lot of people, and it’s a legitimate reason that you don’t make videos (or you do make them, but they suck).
Here’s the truth: It becomes an excuse when you don’t do anything about it.
There’s a lot of information out there about how to make videos, both free and paid content, so the ball’s in your court. Watch YouTube videos, buy courses, and just START!
It’s like driving a car. You can watch videos and hear people talk about until they’re blue in the face. But until you actually start driving a car, you’re never going to learn how to do it. Yes it’ll be rough at first. But it’s the only way to learn it!
I got my start making videos because I couldn’t afford to hire someone to do it for me. So I watched videos, bought a few courses, and just started making videos. My early videos were not that great. I made mistakes. My editing was rough. I didn’t know or understand “the rules.”
But I kept going, kept learning, and I got better.
You need to do the same.
Fear
Fear is usually the biggest one, and it’s often disguised as another problem. Actually, a lot of the time it’s the root cause of what we’ve already talked about. The main reason a lot of people don’t make time for it, don’t decide on what gear to get, and don’t put in the time and effort to learn and grow is because THEY’RE AFRAID.
Afraid that their videos will suck.
Afraid they won’t know what to talk about or will quickly run out of ideas.
Afraid of what others will think of them.
Afraid because they’re not “an expert.”
News flash; you don’t have to be the best at something to teach other people. You just need to be further along than others and teach people how to get where you are. And honestly, these days people don’t really care if you’re an expert. They care if you can get them results. Period.
Can you help people get results? That’s all that matters.
I’m not the best video guy out there. There are a lot of other people who know more and make better videos than me. But I know I can help people make better videos, so I had to get over myself and just start.
Just getting really honest here, this has been holding ME back. I strategize, plan, shoot, and edit videos for other people’s channels and businesses. I have the gear and know-how to make good videos. And I’ve been putting off starting my own YouTube channel. I’m used to being behind the camera, and don’t particularly like being in front of it.
So I had to take my own advice.
Just Start
Use what you have, or make a decision to buy whatever you need, and JUST START. If you need help making a decision, reach out to me and I’ll help you pick what’s best for your budget and needs.
You’ll only get better if you put in the work, try and mess up, learn from it, and try again.
It’s uncomfortable. But without discomfort there’s no growth! Look at exercise, or learning any new skill. It’s uncomfortable at first, but over time that discomfort leads to growth. What was once hard becomes easy, becomes second nature.
But it’ll never happen unless you just start!
-Nick