We all want to get better at creating authentic content, right? Well I’ve been obsessively watching YouTube lately — and yes, I know I’m late to the party. Everyone else was bingeing Jenna Marbles years ago (an icon, truly).
For the longest time, YouTube wasn’t my go-to platform. Sure, I’d use it for music or the occasional tech tutorial, but that was it. Lately though, that’s changed. I moved into what I think will be my forever home, and now I’m deep in the world of 2025 interior design trends, office organization, how to make your living room cozy — you name it, I’ve watched it.
And because I can never turn off my marketing brain, I started noticing patterns. Watching all these creators made me realize there are real lessons we can apply as small business owners — whether or not we ever post a single YouTube video.
So today, I’m sharing eight things I’ve learned that will change how you think about creating content and connecting with your audience. Let’s get into it.
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Table of Contents
Okay, so like I said, this is not going to be an episode about YouTube tips. Honestly, I’m not qualified to give those.
I do have a YouTube channel with about 13 videos, and I took Jamar Diggs’ Low Lift Club program — which I highly recommend. I’ve tried a few YouTube courses before, but his was the only one that actually got me to publish a video. The others? Either they were so dense I never finished them, or they left me second-guessing everything and doing extra research just to feel confident.
Anyway, this isn’t an episode about YouTube strategy.
What this is about are the lessons I’ve learned from watching YouTubers on creating authentic content — lessons that apply no matter where you’re marketing.
And after watching what feels like every 2025 home video on YouTube, one thing became obvious: there’s a big difference between professional YouTubers, business owners who use YouTube to market, and true beginners. No shade to anyone — we all start somewhere — but there are patterns about creating authentic content worth noticing.
1. It’s incredibly hard to watch someone without a personality
So let’s start with lesson number one: it’s incredibly hard to watch someone without a personality. When someone sounds like they’re reading off ChatGPT or a teleprompter, it immediately feels less trustworthy. Definitely not like creating authentic content.
When you don’t have a personality, you almost always sound less confident — and it shows.
It actually reminds me of something Taylor Swift said during an interview about the Eras Tour. She mentioned that she needs to know her routine so well that she can be silly and have fun with her fans — because that confidence in the foundation gives her room to be spontaneous. I think that’s true for us in marketing, too.
When we rush through our outlines or rely too heavily on AI to fill the gaps, it’s no wonder our content feels stiff. If you can’t bring your personality to a topic, it becomes harder to trust — and honestly, harder to watch.
I’ve seen YouTubers who can hold your attention for 30 minutes straight without you even realizing it. And then there are others with topics I should love — like “how to make your living room look good even with a toddler” — but I can’t sit through five minutes because they sound monotone or unsure. Life’s too short for that kind of content. (If you’ve listened to episode 89 on time anxiety, you know what I mean.)
And here’s the thing — if you’re not naturally expressive, it’s okay to borrow a little personality until you find your own rhythm. One of my favorite home decor YouTubers, Caroline Winkler, recently hit a million subscribers, and someone asked if she ever feels pressure to play up her personality. Her answer really stuck with me: she actually feels the opposite. She’s her most “dressed-down self” on camera. You can tell when someone’s being themselves versus performing — and that’s true across every kind of content, not just YouTube.
In other words, she prioritizes being her most authentic self. She’s not putting on a show, and I think that’s part of why her videos work so well.
When we try too hard to “perform,” we often end up toning down our real personality — especially the quirks that make us memorable. And that matters more than ever when creating authentic content in a post-AI world.
YouTube is one of the few platforms that’s publicly said it’s penalizing AI-generated content. (Fun fact: Pinterest now lets you turn off AI content in your settings, too.) Algorithms aren’t great at spotting AI yet, but it’s coming — and so is the flood of generic content. Which means your human voice — your tone, your weirdness, your offbeat humor — is your biggest advantage.
Honestly, I think a lot of us have developed what I call a “ChatGPT personality.” Everything sounds polished, safe, and a little bit beige. And that’s why it’s so forgettable.
Quick story: my extended family was recently trying to pick a resort for a vacation, and somehow YouTube became the research hub. Everyone wanted to weigh in, so we started watching review videos — and oh my gosh, so many of them were painful.
You could tell instantly which ones were AI-generated. The footage looked like it was pulled straight from Google Images or the resort’s own marketing site, and the narration sounded like someone reading copy off a brochure. Technically fine, but 99% AI — and completely soulless.
Nobody liked those videos. They were missing the one thing that actually makes content worth watching: a real perspective behind it.
2. Embrace Your Weird Quirks
We can all be a little weird when creating authentic content. Maybe that word doesn’t resonate for you, but here’s what I mean: go off on a tangent, say the wrong thing, use that random analogy that pops into your head and see it through — even if it doesn’t quite land. We can’t pre-plan every single thing we say when creating authentic content, and sometimes we try too hard to edit out the human parts.
When you cut out the quirks — the repeated phrases, the little stumbles, the offbeat moments — you also cut out what makes your audience feel in on it. The creators who build real personal brands online are the ones who let people see behind the curtain a bit.
And let’s be honest: what we do as small business owners is weird. We’re filming ourselves, often in public, talking to a camera. Even when we’re doing it privately in our home offices, our friends and family are still going to see it.
I actually mentioned this on Threads once — and maybe in an email (by the way, if you’re not on the list yet, I send new emails every Thursday at thekarareport.com/newsletter) — but someone in my family told me they’d been watching my YouTube Shorts and said, “They’re actually pretty good!” And instead of cringing or saying, “Oh my gosh, don’t watch those, that’s business stuff,” I just said, “Thanks so much for watching.” That, my friends, is growth.
Because the truth is, creating authentic content is unnatural — and that’s fine. Embrace it. Let the weirdness show. I even borrowed a page from Mel Robbins’ podcast playbook recently and added some bloopers at the end of an episode. Those little off-the-cuff moments? They remind people you’re real — and that’s what makes your brand worth following.
As I’ve been watching YouTube, I’ve noticed how those weird little moments — the inside jokes, the unscripted comments — actually create a deeper connection with the audience. They break the fourth wall a bit, and that’s what makes it feel real.
Honestly, it’s made me look at my own content differently. I’ve realized my brand sometimes comes across as too serious, even though I’m not a particularly serious person. I wouldn’t describe myself as super silly either — you’ll never see me doing full-on comedy skits — but does everything have to feel so buttoned-up? Probably not.
Yes, I take my work seriously. I help clients with blogging and Pinterest strategy, and I’m proud of the results we get. But it’s not rocket science. Somewhere along the way, a lot of us forgot that marketing can be fun — both to create and to consume.
3. We’re Not Putting Enough Effort Into Creating Authentic Xontent
Lately, I’ve been thinking: we’re not putting enough effort into creating authentic content
And I say that like a fact — but let me back up, because I don’t think the answer is necessarily that we should be. Most of us aren’t full-time content creators, and that’s okay.
Here’s what I’ve noticed: on YouTube, the bar for content creation is pretty high. On TikTok, sometimes it feels like the bar is… on the floor. You can get away with a good idea and minimal execution… messy bun, no makeup, FaceTiming-with-your-bestie energy. But on YouTube? The editing, the storytelling, the pacing… it all matters more.
As a marketer, one thing I like to do is compare what I’m creating to what’s already ranking. If I’m writing a blog post about sourdough, for example, I’ll ask myself: Is this better than what’s already out there? If not, maybe I shouldn’t expect it to rank.
And here’s where AI changes things. With search engines (and even ChatGPT-style AI searches), the best content isn’t always coming from page-one results. Tools are pulling answers from deeper in the rankings, sometimes from position 21 or beyond. That means if your content is actually good — specific, useful, and human — you can show up faster than before.
So instead of worrying so much about backlinks and domain authority, the goal now is simpler: be the best answer for your audience. That’s it. That’s what’s always mattered, but AI has leveled the playing field in a way that rewards depth and clarity over legacy authority.
Now, I’ll admit — I’m not immune to cutting corners. Woman to woman, I have one YouTube video that I look so haggard in, I can’t believe I paid someone to edit it. Every time I sit down to film now, I ask myself, Do I have enough energy — and have I at least brushed my hair — to justify paying for this edit?
It’s just something I’ve been thinking about while watching YouTubers. I do think a certain level of quality is required on platforms like YouTube because the competition is so high. But on other platforms, I don’t know if the ROI is there.
So yes, I think we need to have a certain standard for our content — but maybe not about the things we obsess over. I don’t think our audiences care as much about the things we stress about.
I guess what I’m trying to say is: we’re all competing for attention with professional content creators now. And that’s just the reality.
I was scrolling on Threads the other day, and one post I saw said, “The middle ground is dying.”
And honestly, I think that’s true. We’re seeing it everywhere — on YouTube, the highly produced content is performing really well. On TikTok, the super low-effort, off-the-cuff content is still getting tons of views. But the stuff in the middle? It’s struggling.
A lot of us are sitting right there in that middle ground and that’s why we’re having such a hard time with our content.
We want our content to look beautiful and polished, but realistically, we don’t have the time. Or the ROI just isn’t there, so we can’t justify spending hours producing something that might only reach a few hundred people. It’s the same tension I see with business owners who want to charge luxury prices but also crave volume — even though they only want to book five clients a year.
So we have to figure out what level of effort aligns with our brand when creating authentic content.
When I think about raising the bar for my own content, it’s not really about production value — it’s about the ideas. It’s about making my delivery stronger, making the message hit harder. We all have different weak spots, and I’m not here to identify yours, but one thing I’ve noticed is that lowering the bar for production can help you create more content overall.
I was watching a video from Vanessa Lau, and she talked about how perfectionism was slowing her down. She said she needed to publish more content, even if some of it wasn’t perfect. Her point was, if one video gets 800 views, that’s great, but if you post six videos that each get 200 views, you’ve reached more people and learned faster.
There’s a ton of value in that.
4. It’s Excruciating To Watch Someone Without An Opinion
It is excruciating to watch someone weigh the pros and cons of two options without ever telling you what they’d choose. If you’re going to compare peel-and-stick wallpaper to pre-pasted wallpaper, tell me which one’s better!
That’s why I love long-form content — there’s room for nuance and perspective. I don’t want a clickbait take like, “Peel-and-stick wallpaper is the only wallpaper you should ever use.” But I do want to know your opinion. I don’t want a hot take that’s just meant to stir things up. What I do want is, “Here are the pros and cons. Here’s what I chose. Here’s what I’d choose if it were my bathroom,” or whatever the situation is.
And I think a lot of us want to be thought leaders, but we’re afraid to actually share our thoughts. I’m raising my hand here — myself included. I catch myself doing this all the time.
We end up apologizing for having a preference or an opinion. We say things like, “Well, it depends what’s best for you,” or “It depends on your priorities,” or “It depends how much time you have.” And sure, all those things can be true — there’s nuance in almost everything.
But I keep coming back to this old example that stuck with me for years. There’s a manifestation coach named Amanda Frances — I feel like a lot of us know who she is, whether you like her or not — and she sent an email ages ago, maybe six years back. In it, she said something like, “I’m tired of being called high-maintenance just because I have preferences.”
Her example was simple: she always wants a bathtub in her hotel room. And that’s it. She wasn’t apologizing for it, she wasn’t over-explaining — she just owned it.
And I think that’s what so many of us need to do more of in our own content. Stop hiding our preferences, stop diluting our perspectives.
It’s so much better to have an opinion — even if you clearly say, “This is just my opinion, not fact.”
Because that’s what people connect with.
5. Pattern Interrupts Are Important
Number five is just that pattern interrupts are important if you want higher retention time.
When I’m watching good YouTubers, I really can’t even look away — and I feel like I’m the queen of watching my little screen while I’m watching my big screen, potentially with my medium screen in my lap. This is not a new concept to me.
One of the things I was thinking about when I was thinking about pattern interrupts was that new Reels size — that stupid skinny size. We all noticed every single one because it was so weird in the feed. It interrupted the scroll and somehow brought the attention to the caption.
I’m so confused as to why Meta — the Meta people — thought that this was a good idea or something that anyone, literally anyone, wanted. But you do notice it.
Attention spans are shorter. We all know that. We’re all watching Reels on 2x and celebrating it and begging for them to bring that feature into Stories. I mean, you’re probably listening to this podcast on 2x right now.
I would say “talking head” videos require more editing now. You used to just be able to talk to the camera and throw captions up, and that was good enough. Now I feel like it’s not engaging enough most of the time.
I’ve personally been recording more Reels in the Edits app, and honestly, I’ve been loving it. I’d actually love to know how you guys edit your Reels — if you use the Edits app and if you like it — so send me a DM on Instagram.
But personally, I’ve been making the transitions very tight. I’ve been recording more Reels and making them tight and shaking up — not even the angle, but like, I don’t know — I’ll pause and then adjust myself two inches. I don’t know what to do; I’m not an Instagram person.
But I’m noticing more and more tools that specialize in these short clips now have AI B-roll. And they’re doing that because they know creators need it to make engaging video. We have to shake it up — and it’s annoying, but it’s the reality.
I think consistency is great, but I also think a lot of us get comfy fast, because there are so few things in business that feel comfortable. So we take the wins when we can. But unfortunately — or fortunately, depending on if this is your strong suit — we have to shake things up more often.
In fact, Caroline Winkler, who I already mentioned as my favorite YouTuber, said in her one-million-subscriber video that every year she takes a little time off to think about how she can bring new things into her channel so it doesn’t feel stale.
Again, as small business owners, I don’t think we can just take time off whenever we want to “think about how we want to shake up our content.” I really, really don’t.
And I can feel my blood pressure rise even saying that, because I think so many of us fall into that trap — we take time to think about our content, to plan what we want it to look like, and it’s like… no. You don’t get points for thinking. You only get points for doing — for the action you take and the content you actually put out there.
6. Promote Your Offers and Affiliate Links
Number six: it’s okay to shamelessly promote your offers and affiliate links. Say it often, say it loud. Have it on screen, have it in the description, have it in the first comment.
One thing about YouTubers — they are going to promote their offers or affiliate links. For most of them, it’s affiliate links or sponsors.
I feel like back in the old Instagram days, everyone was saying, “You need to sell every day, you need to have a call to action in every post.” But now? Everyone’s doing it. It’s all sales, all the time. And I don’t even mean that in a bad way.
I feel like I’m known for having content that basically tells you to hire me in every single post but I do think we have to make sure there’s enough value in between.
That’s one of the things I love about long-form content — YouTube, this podcast, even longer Instagram captions or Stories. There’s room to show life — to show the in between — not just the sales parts.
Because if there isn’t enough of that, people just won’t pay attention. And if I had to pick one kind of value that most of us are missing, it’s entertainment.
Yes, I know that’s the hardest kind of value to create — I’m very aware — but it’s something I think a lot of us overlook. It’s something I’m actively working on myself.
And one of the best ways to figure out how to improve your content — or what new elements you want to bring into it — is to look outside your industry.
I am so guilty of this as a marketer, always listening to other marketing or business podcasts.
It is overwhelming sometimes, but I do feel like as business owners — especially in the B2B space, but even outside of it — we get stuck in an echo chamber.
And I actually think one of the best ways we can improve our content as small business owners is to look outside our niche — specifically at niches that make money from their content creation. I’m talking about the content creators, the YouTubers of the world.
And if you’re a podcast listener (which obviously you are, because you’re twenty-six minutes in — or however long this ends up being after editing), look at B2C podcasts.
Think of the ones hosted by influencers — like Call Her Daddy or the pop-culture shows that talk about TV, books, trends. They’re running ads, they have sponsors, they do collabs — everything is about getting more eyes on their stuff.
And what’s interesting is, most of them aren’t even promoting their own offers. So it’s fascinating to watch how they make money and how they grow their audience. Their job is to get volume.
For a lot of us, if we got one client a month from our podcast, that would be huge. But that wouldn’t work for an influencer or a full-time content creator — one person paying attention isn’t enough. So they have to try harder to get reach.
As small business owners, it’s definitely hard to compete with content creators — but the good news is, we don’t need their level of volume. That’s literally their job.
We can learn from them, but we can’t necessarily do what they’re doing because we have other jobs too.
In fact, Tayler from Enji talks about this — she asks small business owners how much time they actually have to market their business, and most of them say an hour a week. Which is wild.
This podcast episode alone took me about half an hour to outline and another half hour to record — and I still have to do the show notes and promote it on Instagram. And that’s with an amazing editor (thank you, Natalie!) who I’ll send this off to so she can make me sound good — which she always does.
So yeah, an hour goes by so fast. I mean, I spent 52 minutes making a carousel the other day.
We’re doing what we can with what we have.
7. Community Doesn’t Happen By Accident
And I had to add this one because Katie Steckly posted an Instagram Reel that said, “I didn’t accidentally become an influencer.”
I think most of the people who say they accidentally became a YouTuber or accidentally fell into their business… not everyone, okay — I do get that sometimes it really does just happen. You catch yourself, start doing the business thing, and figure it out as you go. For sure.
But most of us? We’re actually trying. We’re trying very hard.
And I think there’s this tendency to downplay that effort — I do it too. Like when someone in my family said they’d been watching my YouTube Shorts, and I was like, “Oh yeah, my silly little videos.” Meanwhile, this is literally what I do for a living.
Creating authentic content that people enjoy doesn’t just happen by accident — especially if you’re monetizing it.
That one’s short, but I wanted to add it.
8. Invest in Long-term Marketing
I beg you.
I’ve watched YouTube videos that were four years old and still hung on every word. I’ve bought from old affiliate links. I’ve followed YouTubers on Instagram after finding their ancient videos.
So please, invest in something that lasts. YouTube, a podcast, blogging — something.
If I’m honest, I don’t find podcasts last as long as YouTube videos. My old episodes still get downloads, but that’s mostly because I turn every episode into a full blog post that can be found on Google.
So treat your marketing like an asset. The more you create, the more you can link back to your other stuff, and the more you’ll build things that keep working for you over time. You’ll only benefit from it.
Okay, let’s recap — and I would say, just pick one or two of these things to try. Don’t do them all at once. Like I said earlier, we’re not professional YouTubers — we’re doing what we can with what we have.
- It’s incredibly hard to watch someone without a personality and they come across as less trustworthy.
- Weird is good, especially if you can laugh at yourself and make your audience feel in on the joke.
- Decide how much effort you want to put into your content, and commit.
- Have an opinion.
- Pattern interrupts are important.
- It’s okay to shamelessly promote your offers and affiliate links.
- Community doesn’t happen by accident.
- You should be investing in long-lasting marketing.
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