There’s a comment I get fairly regularly on my StoryLearning YouTube channel that always makes me chuckle:
“Oh, you’re the guy who wrote those books I’ve got!”
See exhibits A, B and C…
See, in the StoryLearning world, there’s a circuitous pathway that people take to becoming a customer.
Often it starts with discovering our books in the shops and grabbing a copy:
They read the book…
But don’t really pay any attention to who the author is.
They’re there for the learning, after all.
But then…
In full internet weirdness — the kind that legitimately freaks people out — they’re on their phone a few days later and…
Up pops my ugly mug talking about language learning!
They put two and two together, and:
“Holy s—, you’re the guy who wrote the books that I bought!”
Olly Richards = Olly Richards!
1+1 = 3
(or -3, if they don’t like what they see)
At this point, there’s a penny drop moment.
From buying my book to seeing me on YouTube and then inevitably clicking through to my website…
Entering their email…
And maybe even buying something…
I’ve now become firmly ensconced in their mind as “the language guy.”
This is the kind of positioning that money can’t buy.
You’ve probably heard the stats about how many touch points it takes people before they’re ready to buy from you?
7, is it? Maybe 14?
Whatever…
But it’s a lot.
There’s really no such thing as a “linear funnel” any more.
Here’s what really happens:
- Someone buys your book.
- They see you on YouTube.
- They read a blog post.
- They see an Instagram post or a tweet.
And then…
One day they’re at a conference, and they see someone randomly looking at your website on their laptop…
And that’s when they finally accept that it’s a sign from God, and next thing you know, they’re buying all your stuff.
This is a circular kind of journey that represents how real people behave in the real world.
And so…
While it’s certainly true that funnels can be designed and built, all the advantage goes to those who can be in multiple places and appear everywhere that your ICP customer is.
This is what I taught in Chapter 1 in my case study — “Crafting the Magic”.
It’s the core of an education brand.
But of all the media out there, increasingly…
YouTube is where the game is being played.
YouTube recently overtook Netflix for share of TV watch time.
And the algorithm is so good, that it makes sure that even the most niche content gets put right in front of the people who need to see it, like a wasp finding the only open car window in a traffic jam.
For example…
I can’t fully explain why it is that someone buys my book in a Barnes & Noble, and then immediately gets served one of my videos on YouTube, despite having never watched my channel before.
It’s freaky AF.
But it’s happened so many times now, I know it’s no coincidence.
Basically…
Whatever dark magic is at play, you can’t take an education business seriously in 2026 without making YouTube part of your arsenal.
It would be like Europe reducing their defence spending this year…
Simply asking for trouble.
And when I show you how to start a new business-focused YouTube channel in my new Intensive, excuses start to drop like flies.
Of course, there’s no point starting a YouTube channel and just becoming another “Hey guys!” influencer.
Instead, you need to build something that actually drives results for your business.
See you there.
Namaste,
Olly
