Spotify’s Big Changes, Explained

January 22, 2025

Welcome to Created, the newsletter that’s better curated than your Instagram grid. Here’s what we got for you:

Spotify goes all-in on video podcasts

Doctor Mike turned down a $20M deal

Outlier of the week

PS sorry we’re day late this week! We’ve been on the road for a shoot.

Why Doctor Mike Turned Down a $20M Deal

Doctor Mike is one of today’s most popular doctors.

I interviewed him to talk about how he built his career, tips to avoid burnout, and why he said no to millions.

The $20M Deal He Walked Away From

One of the biggest deals he turned down? A company offered him $20M upfront to create a private-label product line.

The catch? It didn’t meet his standards.

“It’s not why we started this,” he said. “I’d rather earn less and sleep well at night, knowing I stayed true to the science.”

Other Declined Deals

National TV Show: Doctor Mike declined a syndicated health show when he realized he wouldn’t have full control over sponsor approvals.
Multi-purpose Toothbrush: He walked away from a lucrative sponsorship for a toothbrush with a secondary feature after trying it himself and finding it underwhelming.

Quote: “I have no fear in turning those down and not because I’m successful. I had that lack of fear, even when we first started.”

Bigger Trend:

Doctor Mike helped kick off the Dr. Mike-ification of YouTube, a trend where industry experts turn their fields into viral content:

NileRed: chemistry

Legal Eagle: law

Steve Ramsey: woodworking

Our Take:

Doctor Mike’s approach is proof that sticking to your values pays off.

Despite starting out in debt from med school, he’s built a massive platform without compromising on what he believes in.

“I hope young doctors and experts listen and realize you don’t have to sell out to be financially successful.”

His story is proof that saying “no” to the wrong opportunities can be just as powerful as saying “yes” to the right ones.

Spotify Goes All-In on Video Podcasts

At its invite-only event in LA, Spotify unveiled Spotify for Creators, an all-in-one platform packed with tools for video, analytics, and monetization.

We were there and spoke with the Spotify team to get an inside look.

What’s New:

Short-form video: Upload vertical clips of your podcast to Spotify to drive viewers to full episodes.

Monetization Program: Creators will earn based on video consumption from Premium subscribers. Starting January 2025 in US, UK, Canada, and Australia.

Thumbnails: Upload custom horizontal thumbnails to make your podcast stand out.

Where’s The Money?

While Spotify hasn’t disclosed exact payout rates yet, co-president Gustav Söderström claims the program will be competitive with YouTube’s revenue-sharing model.

Who’s Eligible?

The new program isn’t open to everyone. Creators must meet these benchmarks to qualify:

10,000 streamed hours from 2,000 unique users in the past 30 days.
At least 12 published episodes.
Content hosted on Spotify.

This exclusivity means Spotify is betting big on committed creators who are ready to embrace video.

Quote: Spotify’s Head of Content Partnerships, Jordan Newman, explained:

“We announced new tools to give creators more control on Spotify: the ability to upload vertical video clips and thumbnails to promote their shows.

Also, for Premium subscribers in select markets, video episodes will stream ad-free, ensuring an uninterrupted viewing experience while rewarding creators based on their audience’s engagement.”

According to Spotify, more than 250 million users have already watched video podcasts, which is growing much faster than audio-only.

Our Take

Spotify’s shift signals a broader trend in creator platforms: video is king, and podcasting is evolving.

With 300,000 video podcasts and growing, Spotify’s push into video shows it’s ready to compete with YouTube on its own turf.

The question is: will creators and fans follow? And how will Spotify’s payouts compare to YouTube’s in the coming year?

Stay tuned. We’ll keep you posted as we see the results come in.

🎯 Weekly Roundup: Thumbnails

Here’s why we love these YT thumbnails. Hopefully they inspire your next one.

Stark split between dark and colorful side creates visual contrast (golfcart)
Oversized Mac Mini grabs attention (Marques Brownlee)
$4K text makes you wonder why the bib costs so much (Morning Brew)
Massive ‘SCAM’ text paired with Apple logos creates instant intrigue (Austin Evans)

🚀 Weekly Outlier

This video by Chris Howett has got 1.1M views which is 50 times higher than the channel’s average. Here’s why it took off:

Unique Challenge: Running a marathon in Crocs for a world record grabs instant attention.
Uplifting Payoff: The cheering support of the crowd and runners makes the finish an emotional high.
Legitimate Struggle: Chris’s blisters, cramps, and exhaustion make his journey feel raw and real.

I found this week’s outlier using Spotter Studio, a tool that helps you research and brainstorm your next upload.

Get started and get 2 months free using this link.

This week, we’re kicking off a new section to share job opportunities from top creators:

Asher Lara is hiring a YouTube strategist

LOL Podcast is hiring a video editor

Drew Dirksen is hiring a Shorts video editor

🏆 The Created Referral Program

Know someone who’d also love this newsletter? Refer them and get gifts.

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.

Copy this unique link and email, text, or post it: [RH_REFLINK GOES HERE]

👋 See You Inside

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– Jon

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