Austin Evans is not what most people would think of when considering the CEO of a million-dollar tech empire. Yet, the 32-year-old is heading a tech video business that the world has never seen before. Arguably, when Evans set up his YouTube channel in 2009, he didn’t expect things to blow up like they did.
A 16-Year-Old With a Dream and a Computer
Evans’ foray into tech happened in 2009 when the then-16-year-old started his YouTube channel and uploaded his first video. The iPod Touch debuted a mere year before that, and the youngster wanted to cover as many of the apps on the hardware as he could.
His channel was an instant hit, at least for a 16-year-old. He saw 100 subscribers within the first month, and it encouraged him to keep doing what he was doing since he was seeing results from it. He set a pretty strict schedule of one upload a day in those early days.
An Uphill Battle to Make Partner
Evans was among the earliest to benefit from the YouTube partnership program. He applied and was rejected twice before he finally made it into the partner program and received payment for the videos he was making. His first paycheck was around $500 – quite a sum for a 17-year-old.
However, once he started making money, he quickly realized that this was content people would love to watch. Focusing on what he loved doing, Evans branched out into custom builds and testing hardware – pretty much anything a techie would want to know about.
No Intention Of Switching To A Different Platform
Evans has made many changes in this business model over the years. His crew has grown from just him to around eleven people employed by Overclock Media. He’s changed the focus of his videos, and his company has recently acquired a building that they can use. Some have asked him if he was getting too big for YouTube, but Evans replied that he had no intention of leaving.
According to Evans, he’s seen how content is made Hollywood-style, and he wants no part of it. Even smaller production companies have many rules and regulations that he doesn’t want on his content. Instead, he says that YouTube will remain his content channel of choice simply because of the return on investment he’s seen with the platform.
Learn to Adapt
Evans notes that YouTube changes dramatically, and content creators should learn to adapt. Similarly, on social media platforms like Instagram, the push has been towards short-form videos, meaning that many content creators with months’ worth of still pictures had to pivot.
Evans notes that pivoting is something he’s done with the business several times in more than a decade of content creation. It’s a natural part of evolution. Business owners must adapt to their chosen platform or risk getting overtaken by others who understand new formats much better.
Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment
Many entrepreneurs have one thing that works really well for them. Once they have that one thing, though, they become complacent and stop experimenting. Evans says that if he had done that, he would never have built such a powerful media empire. The key to longevity is to experiment often.
He insists that iteration—making something, trying it out, and figuring out what works and what doesn’t—is the best way to develop content. Not everyone will like everything you put out, but that shouldn’t be a reason to stop releasing new things. Trial and error helps the business find its niche.
Diversification is Important
In recent years, Evans has been trying to build more diversification into his business. To this end, he’s set up a few other channels, each with its own particular niche. His goal is to develop something that can sustain itself. He thinks that diversification is crucial to ensuring the business continues when he can’t directly run it.
A diverse business base allows the business to weather hard times and offers room for expansion. As a business owner, there will come a time when the business needs to branch out. Diversification into several areas allows the business room to breathe and grow. Evans says it’s something entrepreneurs who need a break should look into once their company becomes large enough.
It’s About Delivering a Good Product
Despite starting as a high-schooler, Evans knew the key to engagement was putting his all into video production. He learned cinematography and believes that having a good flow for a shot makes the entire video better. Unlike many of his competitors who treat YouTube as a hobby, Evans treats it as a job.
However, even though he exudes professionalism, he’s not another stuck-up tech YouTuber telling you what he thinks is right. His catchphrase, “Hey Guys, this is Austin…” has stuck around for a long time because it makes his videos approachable and consumable regardless of the level of tech you understand.
Know What Your Audience Wants
When asked how he comes up with ideas, Evans simply shrugs and says that he figures out what his audience wants. On YouTube and other social media sites, that usually means wading through the comments, and Evans has a lot of subscribers. At last count, his YouTube videos were shown to 5.1M subscribers worldwide.
Evans knows that his audience wants to understand tech. Regardless of where he pivots or what he does with his channel, he’ll keep giving his subscribers the content they signed up for. And he’ll keep it approachable so new people won’t feel daunted.
Teaching People the Joy of Technology
Evans has been in the YouTube Creator business for years, but part of the reason he’s so successful is that he never gave up. YouTube may have changed several times since he started the platform, but he’s learned how to adapt to and even capitalize on those changes. Regardless of what changes happen next, he will always have the needs of his viewers as his number one priority.
