I've built my DJC brand since 2008, and its YouTube channel, DJC Kids, has grown to more than 261 million views, 288,000 subscribers and 463 videos, all written, designed, animated and edited by me. Here's what that has taught me about content of any kind.
Characters build loyalty
Viewers come back for characters they know. The same is true for brands. A recognisable cast, voice or style builds familiarity that a one-off idea never will.
Publish consistently
Four hundred and sixty-three videos is a lot of Tuesdays. Showing up regularly, with quality people can count on, matters more than any one viral moment.
Define the audience
Children's content has two audiences: the child watching and the parent choosing. Most B2B content has two as well: the person reading and the person who signs off. Good work serves both.
Adopt new tools, keep the standards
I began with hand-drawn 2D animation and now use an AI pipeline. The tools changed completely. The story, the characters and the care in the edit didn't. That is the part audiences respond to.
Learn from people who do it at scale
I spent 12 years in the Maker Studios (Disney) creator network and 8 with BroadbandTV, working with partner managers on collaborations and channel promotion. Watching how larger creators worked taught me as much as my own experiments.
Handle the operational details well
Titles, descriptions and publishing schedules affect how many people find a video. The same applies in marketing: good work still has to be found.