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I was watching something recently about youtube ads and the top paying topics were all about money, videos about how to make money online was up there if not #1

I was watching something recently about youtube ads and the top paying topics were all about money, videos about how to make money online was up there if not #1. You go and watch these and they all have the same content but presented slightly differently ("lets analyze X channel with Y subscribers, that channel gets $Z money per watch, its easy you just need to ...") People are constantly thinking "I should do that" and will watch videos on it and even pay money to get an ebook or take a course on it. Maybe they start a channel, maybe they become successful? I've seen a woodworking youtube channel turn into (in my opinion) a slimy "learn how to make money with a small biz" type of content where they just talk about their business. It feels like a lot of content is crafted to feed the algorithms for profit via ads.

travisjungroth 4y ago
There's definitely a lot of unscrupulous "how to make money" content out there. At the same time, a lot of people watch woodworking channels and find entertainment in imagining themselves doing it even if it never happens. Maybe you could say the same for imagining running a woodworking business. Adjacent is watching product reviews for categories of products you will never buy.
- mattbrewsbytes 4y ago
  Oh I watch a lot of stuff I'll probably never do myself. Its akin to watching New Yankee Workshop with Norm. I was watching someone piece together a broken lambo engine/car because the engineer in me just likes that stuff. I've watched a lot of car reviews too mostly for entertainment. I'd respect a channel more if they started a second channel that was about their business rather than co-opt their main/existing channel about woodworking into a small-biz focus.
  - travisjungroth 4y ago
    Ah yes the transition from “unique thing I like” to “annoying thing that gets more clicks”. It’s like the friend you’d talk about economics with becoming a crypto evangelist.
cosmodisk 4y ago
People don't think 'I should do that'. Instead, they think 'I haven't got a clue hot to better off myself, I'm stuck'. Then comes along an easy course and obviously they think they'll get unstuck by purchasing it.

travisjungroth 4y ago

There's definitely a lot of unscrupulous "how to make money" content out there. At the same time, a lot of people watch woodworking channels and find entertainment in imagining themselves doing it even if it never happens. Maybe you could say the same for imagining running a woodworking business. Adjacent is watching product reviews for categories of products you will never buy.

mattbrewsbytes 4y ago
Oh I watch a lot of stuff I'll probably never do myself. Its akin to watching New Yankee Workshop with Norm. I was watching someone piece together a broken lambo engine/car because the engineer in me just likes that stuff. I've watched a lot of car reviews too mostly for entertainment. I'd respect a channel more if they started a second channel that was about their business rather than co-opt their main/existing channel about woodworking into a small-biz focus.
- travisjungroth 4y ago
  Ah yes the transition from “unique thing I like” to “annoying thing that gets more clicks”. It’s like the friend you’d talk about economics with becoming a crypto evangelist.

cosmodisk 4y ago

People don't think 'I should do that'. Instead, they think 'I haven't got a clue hot to better off myself, I'm stuck'. Then comes along an easy course and obviously they think they'll get unstuck by purchasing it.