2025 is all about taking a deep breath, believing in our brilliance and going for it! And our YouTube adventure so far has definitely been a rollercoaster of emotions.
Over the course of 2024 it became increasingly obvious that launching a direct-to-consumer division within Woodcut was the next logical step for the company. Through listening, reading and learning, I became a ‘the future is YouTube’ convert, thanks especially to Justin Crosby, Evan Shapiro and Sam Barcroft.
Now, Woodcut is a small to midsize company, and we’re a true indie with the resources to match. However, our big advantage is that we own a lot of our own content. In the Autumn of 2024, the senior team took the bold decision to invest much of our profits and development spend into a new direct-to-consumer venture. The plan was to repurpose our shows, create new content, launch three YouTube channels and work alongside the fantastic Woodcut International sales team to maximise revenue. Simple.
I had no idea how obsessed I’d become.
Yes, it’s true that first thing in the morning I wake up, grab my phone, and check the YouTube studio app. Our Monday morning exec meetings are now spent talking about viewing habits in a way that we never have before. And who knew I’d spend so much time analysing, dissecting, and discussing thumbnails? Every day is a school day when it comes to the nuances of thumbnails it seems.
But it’s not just me. We’re all obsessed.
In October, we assembled the Woodcut YouTube team. A combo of experienced (read old) programme makers and very young YouTube savants. We’re not taking this lightly. At any one time six people are full time on the project and it works like a production team.
I’ve led many production teams over the years; however, I can hand on heart say that none of them have had the level of passion, frustration, confusion and ecstasy felt daily within the YouTube operation. When our first video suddenly blew up four weeks after it was originally posted, our channel manager was on holiday. Although abroad, his mum still phoned him at 2am to tell him the good news!
Our first channel launched in December; True Crime Uncut. The intention is to create a global crime, variety channel. By repurposing our extensive library of rushes we’ve been posting videos weekly, shorts daily and have even started our own podcast. Extraordinarily we monetised by mid-January – way ahead of our projections. We were over the moon and if I’m honest, feeling slightly smug. We were smashing this YouTube challenge. We’d be millionaires by Christmas.
Then came February along with the inevitable YouTube highs and lows.
It appeared that all we touched did not in fact turn to gold. Some of our content just wasn’t landing. My data obsession upped a level, our Monday morning meets were becoming increasingly depressing, and I’d walk into the office to the sight of our channel manager’s head in hands.
One week we’d get 200 views and then the next, 100,000. The analysis is never ending, and humility prevailed – we need to serve the viewer and trust the algorithm. Improving and tweaking the content each week is now a way of life for the team.
By the end of February, we were (just about) ready to launch History Uncut and we’ve gone for it again. We’re in that ‘wait and pray’ stage of the journey. I suspect it will take a little longer to reach monetisation but I’m very happy to be proved wrong! All the same principles are being applied – and so is the passion.
Next, we’re planning filming our The Essential Guide YouTube brand. Creating more original content and, to be frank, committing even more resources to this risk-laden journey. The hard work continues, the learning curve is vertical and my data obsession hasn’t died down yet.
I’ve loved every moment of the past few months. As an indie boss I’m a creative entrepreneur and I take calculated risks on a daily basis. This one is huge. However, I’m convinced we don’t have a choice if we still want to be relevant in five years’ time. A direct-to-consumer offering, sitting alongside our talented production business and highly motivated international sales team makes perfect sense.
Have I made any money yet? Yes… at the time of writing I’ve made $1500 and I’m so proud of that. It’s been earned through sheer blood, sweat and tears.
Kate Beal is CEO of Woodcut Media
