9 Amazing YouTube Tips from Mr. Beast's Leaked Document

I just finished reading the 36-page internal Mr. Beast document that he gives to all his team members on how to create amazing YouTube content, and I’m excited to share my top takeaways and lessons learned.

Quick caveat: If you read this or hear news about Jimmy Donaldson (Mr. Beast) being in some PR trouble, just know I’m highlighting the content tips, not endorsing the man or the company's practices. Let’s dive into the fun stuff now.

For those who might not know, Mr. Beast runs a multi-million dollar production company creating viral content on YouTube. He’s one of the most famous people in the world and a master at building audiences—so let's see what we can learn from him.

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Mr. Beast 1: “I don’t know how traditional media does it, but this isn't Hollywood, we make a video every week.”

?Lesson 1: You have to be nimble, work with small teams, and innovate constantly to create the scale of content needed for YouTube.

Mr. Beast 2: “I Spent 50 Hours In My Front Yard” is lame and you wouldn’t click it. But you would hypothetically click “I Spent 50 Hours In Ketchup.”

Lesson 2: Thumbnails and titles are the #1 reason people click on your video. The Click-Through Rate (CTR) is the first metric to determine success—spend a lot of time perfecting it.

Mr. Beast 3: It's important to re-engage the viewer around the 3-4 minute mark because they could get bored and click off.??

Lesson 3: Even after grabbing attention, you need to keep viewers engaged throughout. Think about every moment and frame—how can you keep them watching until the end? This will transform how you storyboard and create content.

Mr. Beast 4: Get rid of Netflix and Hulu and watch tons of YouTube. It will without a doubt make you more successful here.

Lesson 4: Research is key. If you want to create great YouTube content, immerse yourself in YouTube. Being connected to the content and community gives you an advantage when brainstorming, developing, and producing.

Mr. Beast 5: It’d be nice if at some point you got training on our style of holding a camera. When we do big shoots, it'd be nice not to bring 10000000 production people.

Lesson 5: Everyone is a creator, and hybrid skill sets are crucial to content creation.

Mr. Beast 6: We must always be improving and innovating—the camera angles, pacing, story, jokes, color, lighting, music, props, people, framing—everything.

Lesson 6: Never stick to one way of doing things. Always test new ways to create content, whether it’s big or small changes. See what works best for your channel.

Mr. Beast 7: “We aren't stuck in any old ways of thinking, and you can literally turn anything into content. Good content can be anything—always have an open mind and never stop innovating.”

Lesson 7: Stay open-minded with the types of content, formats, and styles you create. This will make your content limitless.

Mr. Beast 8: Hook people at the start of the video, transition them to an amazing story that they’re invested in, avoid dull moments, and finish with a satisfying payoff followed by an abrupt ending.

Lesson 8: Mr. Beast’s secret sauce for success. The hard part is executing it perfectly.

Mr. Beast 9: The viewer may think they want a format forever, but they don’t. They want new and fresh things. (This is evident because every channel that rehashes formats for years always dies.)

Lesson 9: Reinvent your content regularly to keep it fresh, different, and original.

If you want to read all 36 pages of the Mr.Beast document, you can click this sentence.

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Writers, Editors and Contributors

Eric Gray, AK & Davia Taylor