Welcome to Created, the newsletter that’s more essential than your 7 AM iPhone alarm that you hit snooze on. Here’s what we got for you today:
- Popular streamer Ludwig sells his company & launches a new brand
- Outlier video of the week...and what you can learn
- Weekly roundup of top YouTube thumbnails
Ludwig Launches New Brand...And Sells Company To His Employees
Another day, another creator launches a company. But here’s why this one’s different:
Ludwig (5.8M subscribers) launched Offbrand Games, a new division within his production company Offbrand.
What's Offbrand?
- In 2022, Ludwig started Offbrand to help streamers produce large-scale live events.
- Past Offbrand events: Creator Dodgeball Tournament, Fast50 speed-running event (raised $250K for charity), and Streamer Awards 2024
- But Ludwig admitted "events alone aren't gonna cut it." Hence the launch of this gaming division.
There's More:
Ludwig also announced he sold his ownership stake in Offbrand to…his employees.
That means Offbrand is now a co-op where employees share in profits and vote on company’s future.
Quote: “I have as big of a vote as someone who’s worked there as long as I have who operates a camera…this is the best path forward for a stronger work culture and a more sustainable company,” Ludwig said.
Takeaways:
- Find opportunities to vertically-integrate. As a streamer, Ludwig loves playing games so it makes sense to publish his own.
- Don't do it yourself. To lead Offbrand Games, Ludwig hired former Blizzard developer Jason Hall aka Pirate Software (1.8M subscribers).
- It's not just about money. With controversies and layoffs in gaming, Ludwig wants to set new standards and treat his team better.
🎯 Weekly Roundup: Thumbnails
Here’s why we love these YT thumbnails. Hopefully, they inspire your next one.
- Visual symmetry + shock factor of iPhone blasted with water (MKBHD)
- Visual overload of identical dishes creates intrigue (Mythical Kitchen)
- Repetitive text + striking color of Ryan Reynold stands out (Dodford)
- Aerial shot of Apple campus with elevated section makes viewers do double take (Neo)
🚀 Weekly Outlier
In this section, we analyze the biggest videos from the smallest channels.
This video by Xander Budnick got 4.41M views though he only had 800K subscribers. That’s 15X the channel’s average, according to Viewstats.
Here’s why it took off so you can apply to your next video:
- Elevates A Viral Concept: MrBeast dominated YT with his survival series, but Xander takes it to the next level with no camera crew, no emergency flare, and no fancy editing. Just Xander and the island.
- Raises Stakes Immediately: Within 60 seconds, he establishes he has no food, no water, and his rescue will only come in 5 days.
- Realistic Thumbnail Sets Expectations: The gritty thumbnail promises a real experience — which Xander delivers on for 90 minutes as he builds shelter, scavenges for food, and survives the island.
Sponsored by Shopify
How Katie Groth Turned Her Side Hustle Into A Creator Business
With so many creators starting part-time, Katie’s Collective is providing a blueprint for turning your side hustle into a real creator business.
While working as a vet technician, Katie Groth sold custom paintings in her free time. But when she lost her job during Covid, she decided to do it full-time.
She launched Katie’s Collective, which sells everything from puffy 3D paintings to Crocs shoe charms, tote bags, and sweatshirts on her Shopify store.
Quote: “Shopify has been a big help. Their platform provides me with a lot of very helpful data — which social platforms direct traffic to my site, what my customers are searching, which pages on my site are the most popular,” Katie said.
Four years later, Katie’s Collective has over 300K followers. With the success of her recent launches, she’s been able to her first break now as a full-time creator.
Ready to launch your side hustle this summer? Click here for a free Shopify trial and buy the Shopify x Katie’s Collective collaboration.
🏆 The Created Referral Program
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Refer 1 friend: you’ll get my Infinite Ideas book. It’s my 8 best tips to find viral ideas for your next upload.
Refer 5 friends: you’ll get my Top 50 Thumbnails book. It includes a detailed breakdown of why they work so you improve your packaging.
Trust me, these books are packed with more tips than most paid courses.
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