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Hey, before we jump into the show, I wanted to give you a heads up that my free YouTube strategy class is available right now on demand@thinkmasterclass.com on the class, I reveal the one YouTube strategy we use at Think Media to generate over 330,000 views every single day. So if you're new to YouTube, this will help you start right and avoid mistakes. And if you're a YouTube pro, this training will help you multiply your your growth. This class is 100% free, and you can watch it now on demand@think masterclass.com now, let's jump into today's show.
B
This is your teammate. What is my org chart? Where do I stand? Where are all these things? And then what can AI take over? I have a research teammate. I have a ideator teammate. I have a brand deal teammate.
A
How much does that cost?
B
$20. It has a skill that you don't have to always say it over and over again. So it's like I just need a thumbnail. Boom.
A
If somebody could only use one tool to start, what would it be and why? The truth is, this AI is separating winners and losers. But the problem is everyone's talking about AI at a fluffy level or a lot of overwhelm with all these different tools. And very few people are sharing actual tactics on how to apply this to today to get more views, to get more subscribers, and to do specific things like build thumbnails that look good or write scripts that hold audience retention or even generate complete AI videos. Today we have Nikki Saunders back on the podcast, who is a social media and AI expert. Not only is she followed by hundreds of thousands of people, she's helped influencers like Eric Thomas grow his platform from 300,000 to over 2 million followers in under two years. So wherever you're at, she's going to help you get more awareness, attention, and followers on your content. So lock in for this episode of the Think Media podcast. Nikki, I want to ask you, though, what's the most underrated AI workflow creators are sleeping on right now?
B
It's the clawed cowork. I think a lot of people don't understand. First off, that Claude is amazing suite in itself, because you can go from let me just have a conversation to let me schedule out everything that we just talked about to then let me build different workflows. But with cowork, you can get your videos transcribed, then create different content from that, where it's like real script, extra YouTube scripts, thumbnail ideas, and everything. But everything is just a matter of scheduling it out where so many people are just stuck on the, like the chat, like, let me just talk it out. And I have so many different chats. It's like, let's turn that into an actual plan. Schedule it out. And so this is where we start getting into the agentic flow. So I think people are sleeping on co work and getting that. All right, how do I create a research agent? Okay, let me find all the blogs that I look up. Let me go all the creators that I look up and tell Cowork, hey, every single day, see what they're posting, give me a summary of it, put it to my notion, put it to my notes app that I have. Okay, there's your research agent. Okay, let's talk about the ideator. Now that I have that research, how do I create new ideas for my YouTube channel for my social media ones? Now you have the research, now you have the ideas. Cool. Taking the ideas, then turning it into content. And that's just the workflow that a lot of creators are sleeping on.
A
If we take a step back, what exactly is Claude Cowork for somebody that's overwhelmed with all the different AI tools out there?
B
Yeah. So very simple. Claude had Claude code, which is super intimidating for most people. They said, okay, I got you. We're going to make Cowork, which is going to be super user friendly, where it has control of your computer and it has control of your web browser. So everything that you would do, from organizing folders to reading documents to booking a trip, from a very simple standpoint, you can now do that with Cowork instead and just having a conversation. Hey, I'm thinking about my new YouTube idea. My. I'm thinking about a new mastermind idea. Can you do all the research for me and then send it. Send an email to my team and it does that. So without being intimidated with the terminal and all the coding and all that stuff, and this is just a straight conversation to execution.
A
And so Claude Cowork is an AI agent. What is an AI agent?
B
It goes very simple. My conversations are now being executed. So where most of us were stuck in chat, hey, here's all the ideas. And we have so much content and so many different ideas stuck in our chats. Now it goes from here's the the chat to here's the actual content, here's the actual tangible thing, here's the actual emails being sent, here's my brand deals now being read, evaluated, and actually followed up in a matter of a couple of seconds. So this is your teammate. I don't even call it agent. It's like this is now your teammate, your employee that is like, okay, I have a research teammate, I have a idea teammate, I have a brand deal teammate, I have a follow up teammate. Everything that you would need in your team, that's what Cowork does.
A
How much does that cost?
B
$20.
A
So you can use cowork for just $20?
B
Yeah, the $20 a month and then
A
you run up to data usage though you pay more if you run.
B
Yeah. So of course the biggest thing that everybody's talking about is the limitations and like the rates. Like, we're so used to chatgpt, we could do anything.
A
Yeah.
B
And now that a lot of people have switched to Claude, it's like now that we're actually getting into the systems, that takes a little bit more tokens. And so it's like, yeah, the $20 doesn't move as much as you used to on Chat G. So what do you do?
A
Can you add more?
B
Yeah, you can add more. They have a max plan where you can pay the 100 or the 201. I think I, I pay the 101 and I never really struggle with token use or anything.
A
So with the one plan, you can pay more to use not just Claude, which Claude is an alternative to chat gbt, but Claude co work which allows you to essentially have a digital team mate that could be actually sending emails for you.
B
Yep.
A
Actually doing real tasks that could be done on a computer. On the.
B
Yeah, because like my, my workflows go from. I have a live show on Monday, so it does my run of show. So it does the research plus does all the segments and it does this
A
before like it's there for you. It's an automated task.
B
Yeah, No, I wake up and it already is in my notion and it's done right. It'll do. It'll look for new YouTube interviews that I've done and it'll transcribe it and turn into content. So it's always scanning every YouTube podcast stuff that I may be on. And that's like a daily thing or a weekly thing, however I want to put it. And then I also have one where it turns all the transcriptions into tweets and threads. So now I have the written content turn into substack posts, have the written content. And so everything that I would need from what I call like a content engine and a content team, that's what Cowork would. Would do for me. And I just make that and they have projects and all of that.
A
Do you think that AI is overrated or underrated by most people?
B
I think it depends on the who. Right. Like, I think in the masses, I think it's still very underrated. Right. Because we've seen too many studies where not everybody's using it, not everybody's comfortable, there's still a lot of fear. But I think I, I, I'll say marketers kill everything. So in the marketing world and the content world, it's super overrated. Right. When it's not going to replace anybody. It's not like it's still such a gray area. And when you really break down what is being created, it still needs humans to tweak it. Like when we see what is being written and what is the ideas, it's like, okay, that's cool, that's a great start. But let me add what I normally add and that's what's going to make it stand out. Because we're seeing a lot of ChatGPT flyers now. We're seeing a lot of AI thumbnails that all look the same. Right. And it's because we're seeing these recycle prompts and all of that. And so everybody with. The good thing is it removes the bottleneck, it removes the barriers of like, you can't do this no more. The, the problem is, is that now it really forces us to continue to level up our creativity. Now we have the foundation. But how do we make this thumbnail look better? How do we make this copy sound more authentic to us? And that still takes that, like that human touch point.
A
We're here at Social Media Marketing World. You're speaking on an AI workflow all the way through to do a social media post, like an Instagram post, could be a vertical video. This could of course also apply to YouTube community tab or YouTub YouTube shorts.
B
Yeah.
A
So break that down. What you're teaching here, though, is from the tool stack as well as the workflow. What is that? What's the first step?
B
So the first step is who is doing your research? Right. I think for what? For, for your content. So Whether you're on YouTube, whether you're on Instagram, whatever, how are we seeing what's happening in the world in your niche? Right.
A
And so good information coming to you about your industry that could be turned into content.
B
Yes, Right.
A
Or, or spotting trends or outliers or other people that are going viral or anything.
B
Or you could do from the journal standpoint, I'm always big on that. Where, how is your personal experiences, how is your, your Audio notes, how is the journal notes that you're doing? How are we turning that into content as well? Because that goes. That's where in this AI world, that's what's going to stand out. Your experience. Right. Of course, everybody could talk about what, what's the updates, the news and everything like that, but what is your personal experience and how is that being translated in this AI world is what's going to help. So I think a balance of having the research but having the balance of expert expertise and experience also translated into content is what's also needs to be in the workflow.
A
Yeah. Before we blow past that, I think you just shared probably one of the most important tips for modern content, and that is anybody at this point can set up these AI workflows. So what is your unique point of view? What's your unique perspective? What is your hot take? What is your maybe contrarian take? Because if you're going to be different at all, it can't just be the facts, because those are at the fingertips of everybody.
B
Of everybody research.
A
But your unique perspective and your point of view and your experience attached to that, which I suppose you could include in the workflow. Yeah, because AI could get to know you, you could bas, you could clone yourself. With AI, it starts understanding your flavor, maybe your things. It could be maybe a part of prompting you.
B
Yeah, but that's the important part with the prompting where let's say a new update comes in. But if in your prompt you have it to ask questions that will trigger your perspective, that is what's more to make that stand out where most people will do, okay, new Opus 4.7 came out. This is what it does. Cool. And they may get generic. This is what it does for content creators, this is what it does for small business. Cool. But how does it apply in your life? Because your audience is looking for your life because they relate to you. So having that prompt, having that workflow to where here's a new thing, let's ask you three questions that is going to trigger that perspective. Where is one? What is your initial thought on it? What? How do you see it in your workflow? How do you see it? That is going to add value to your audience. Those three things is then going to formulate different ideas, different content that is only unique to you. That's not going to be done in any other workflow. Like Jason isn't going to have that same answer in his workflow if he doesn't have those particular questions.
A
So we're talking about how to get A social media post from concept all the way to completion faster with AI tools.
B
Yep.
A
It's a cool step one to even mention, like, the strategy itself, the idea itself, the research itself. So step one is. Is set up your research and you're saying Claude Cowork.
B
Yes.
A
And how did. How long did it take you to set up your research teammate?
B
Probably 30 minutes.
A
Interesting. And when you're first, for those that feel a little bit intimidating, for as little as 20 bucks a month, you've never exceeded the $100 worth of credits with these digital teammates. But if the first time ever opening up Claude code for somebody, how much time would you recommend Claude Cowork? The first time somebody opening up to maybe get familiar with it, to not be too intimidated by it, and maybe to build their first automated.
B
I always say 10 minutes a day.
A
Okay.
B
To be honest, because, of course, as humans, we may get really geeked down. We'll go do like 20, 30, right? But in 10 minutes, I can start a conversation and say, hey, you have access to my computer. Give me recommendations on what I should do with cowork. And start there. See what it is. You can stop right there. It'll tell you all of that, and you can say, okay, let's do the first one. And it'll do that, and you're done for today. Come back to it. Be like, okay, how do we do number two? And how does number one like? What is the results of number one? Did I like that? What is the tweaks? Because the best part isn't accepting the first answer that Claude gives. Chat. Tbt Gives whatever. It's the tweaks that we make. I kind of like that, but this sounds more like me.
A
Yeah.
B
Right. And the biggest. The biggest I'll say advantage that most people will have in co. In cowork is what are the skills that you're creating? So Claude cowork has this thing called skills, where it can understand your brand voice, it can understand your formulas, it can understand your frameworks if you train it. So each teammate has a skill. So if you go, okay, I have a thumbnail framework, right? And anytime that I need a new thumbnail, I'm going to Claude cowork and they're going to create the prompt for me. Exactly. Not necessarily create the thumbnail, but it's going to ideate the idea, give it based off of, okay. On my channel. My channel is good for high contrast, warm colors, bold text, only up to three. And because you are training Claude Cowork with this, it has a skill that you don't have to always say it over and over again. So it's like I just need a thumbnail. Boom. Here's your whole formula in. In one spot. So the more that you're creating these different skills, and that's probably going to take the most time, is what are my workflows? That's probably one of the. We should have just started. What are my workflows? Not what tool or anything. If I have a team, what is my org chart? Where do I stand? Where are all these things? And then what can AI take over? And what is a human that just needs to press this button?
A
So we've helped thousands of people go full time on YouTube here at Think Media. And one of the things we discovered from analyzing their channels is that there's five stages of YouTube success. So our team got together and we actually created a free resource. You can check it out@mycreatorquiz.com and what it does is it will walk you through a series of questions that will get you fierce clarity on where you're at on YouTube right now, what's holding you back, and what you need to do next to unlock that next level of views and subscribers. So it only takes about three minutes. It's entirely free. Just go to mycreatorquiz.com or click the link in the show notes. All right, let's dive back into the podcast now.
B
Okay. Let me figure out the tools to make this work. Because each person, my whole goal is the people that are on my team. I want them to have about, like, 10, 15, 20, like, AI agents under them. Right. Or AI workflows, however you want to go about it. But they need to understand what are their roles and responsibilities. But also, like, what are the procedures that we do on a regular basis. Then I'm giving that all to cowork. All right, what can be created? Or look at this folder, what can be recreated? And that's why I said 10 minutes a day of doing that. You'll have 17 million different workflows. And you just be like, oh, I need my morning brief.
A
And it says that, okay, so I want to work through this whole thing of the graphics. But as we're on this journey in step one, really being the research, you're using cloud, Cowork, small side quest before we continue to build out a full social media post. Why cloud over Chad GPT.
B
So I. And this is me personally, right? I felt that Claude continues to update while chat. Just is in love with being number one.
A
Okay.
B
Y. So ChatGPT was burnt in our head as AI equals ChatGPT. That was our first, like, introduction to it. But as it started to go on and more and more tools started to happen, ChatGPT just kind of stayed there and went different side quests with a browser and the Sora and all of that and got distracted with what they were known for. And so Claude got really good at that one thing. Right now, Chad is coming back. I will say that I'm not stating that this, by the time this may come out, chat be like, hey, I got 17 different updates and we're back.
A
Right.
B
But for right now, the only thing that ChatGPT is extremely good at again is images. They just did a recent one where images have beat Google, which had the crown for a minute, but the chat still, it's. It seems too encouraging sometimes. And I need, I need a real teammate. I need to like, hey, here's my idea. Okay, that's good. However, have you thought about this and that Claude does that very well.
A
Yeah. Chat the problem. Almost like once you get it down a line of thinking, it will just like agree with you and reinforce that kind of thinking all day. It's very flattering.
B
Yes. It just flatters and it makes me feel very good.
A
Glazes you up.
B
Listen, all, I love talking to chat in the morning. Okay. Get. I need that energy. Tell me I'm doing good, tell me I look great, all of that. Tell me all my ideas are great. So I could start. But then once I get into that strategy mode, I'm going to Claude real quick. But I get my ideas from chat.
A
Interesting. Okay, so the process you're taking people through here.
B
Yeah.
A
Is blank page to created social media post.
B
Yep.
A
Research tool set up so that the research is coming to you. Or research step. What's the next step?
B
Now we pick the idea. Right. Because what the research did was give you a whole plethora of different ideas for you. You pick the idea. Don't let AI pick the idea. You still have to pick that. Yes.
A
The one that you think will hit does in your research. Like at this stage when we talk about idea and format, wouldn't you be picking both?
B
I'm picking both.
A
You're gonna pick the idea and it's gonna be a carousel. Pick the idea. It's gonna be a vertical video.
B
Yeah. So. And I still go. I go off of data and feelings. Yeah, right, Data. Because, I mean, I. We're still playing the platform game, so I still need to know what the platform is going to push so what I will have is, hey, when we're doing the research, when we're doing the ideation phase, let's assess what will probably the platform push more. Right. What are people searching, what are people engaging with? Right. But then I'm going to look at it and be like, I don't talk about that. I'm not really. I don't feel comfortable with that. Okay, let's go there. What are the different. Okay, we have carousels, we have single poles, we have a reel, we have long form video. I can create a YouTube. I could do a substack. I'll at least pick out of all the ones that I'm doing, I'll probably pick two. Two instant content formats. So that may be a reel and a thread or that may be a YouTube video and a substack. Like I'm always trying to make the most out of one idea in order for it people to see it, but also read it for two different types of audience.
A
Yeah. And if you're like, if you're going to outline or script a YouTube video, that content, that even intellectual property and thought can be turned into a substack. So long form video and long form written post align well together.
B
Yeah. Because with the, with how I have it, the long form video is going to be solely value of like, this is how you do it. The educational side, the sub stack may be more of a reflection of why I did that, of like how it really like affected me in my workflow. I was building this and this is the obstacle that I got. But what I'm teaching on YouTube is how to get over the obstacle. So that's, that's how I look at it.
A
Okay, so step one, we're doing research. Step two is now pick your idea, pick the format. What's step three?
B
Step three is now the creative side. So now we're figuring out which tool to. To do what. So if, let's say I'm doing a. We got the idea. This is a really good tweet. Right. But I want to make it into an image. So now I'm going into ChatGPT Image 2.0. That. That is killing the game right now. Or I may.
A
And how do you get that your normal chat GPT? A lot of people listening are spending 20 bucks a month on chat GPT.
B
Yep.
A
And the image generate. I mean I used to go to Dolly, but I feel like I don't have to leave my chat thread.
B
Yeah, you don't, you don't.
A
It's just. All right, there right.
B
So image 2.0 is right in the, in the chat. You don't have to go anywhere else and you can just. And what's great about it now because they have it in thinking mode where you don't have to be this prompt master. You can go, okay, get a picture of me with the brown hat. But now I want like a, a blue hoodie and it'll change it in the, in the palm trees and it instantly change it. Whereas before you had to be like location in California, outside, low, like golden. Like you don't have to be that detailed. With ChatGPT no more. It literally says, okay, here's the text that I want, here's the image, this is what I need and it will create it. Now granted, I, I'm still big on tweak it. Right. The first image is going to look great and if you're okay with it, cool. If you are that good at a one shot prompt, praise God. But I'm not. So I'm good at two or three more times. A little bit of a tweak.
A
Yeah.
B
One thing I will say, if you are using your own likeness after the third time, you have to re upload the picture of yourself because then it starts like manipulating. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So you, you an instant way of fixing that is like re upload it. Don't continue to have it because it's going to continue to mess up your face and your body and it's. You're just going to hate chatgpt on that.
A
Yeah.
B
So re upload. And I believe that's with any type of AI image model. After a couple of tweaks, it's going to do that. Just re upload it.
A
Interesting. So are there any other tools you're going to mention for this design phase in your talk?
B
So, so because it sounds like just
A
chatgpt or would you.
B
No.
A
So take it from there to Canva next or Photoshop.
B
So that's the thing. Like it depends on. So in my talk I go from. If we're talking about reels. Right. That, that's where we're going. If you want to go straight camera to like you to camera.
A
Yep.
B
Cool. You're probably going to want to pick like sub magic. Right? Sub magic is going to allow you to be yourself, talk to camera, but it's going to add captions. It can add B roll to you and not like the corny B roll. Like it's going to actually have like some premium B roll that you have. It has the zoom in Zoom outs. It understands that like every probably three seconds it needs some type of distraction,
A
ease in, ease out to hold retention.
B
Yes.
A
And so what you're also describing here is again we're talking like a social media post, but this could be a YouTube short. From research to picking the topic and what you mentioned, if we're recording a real or just a vertical video.
B
Yes.
A
Smartphone would be good enough. We set things up. Audio, video, lighting, stabilization, whatever. Hit record. Capture that content with the file from your phone. You're saying upload it into Sub Magic.
B
Absolutely.
A
And now it's going to get captions and even B roll that and. And it does a first pass for you.
B
Yes.
A
It just kind of. It knows what you're saying. It's listening to the transcript.
B
Yeah.
A
And I mean and, and I think a competitor, like you said, pre. Pre filming this podcast, Opus Clip is similar to something.
B
Opus Opus Clip is similar. But what it's really good is if you already have your YouTube video, your podcast already recorded, that's what you give Opus Clip.
A
You give it the full length, it chops it into clips.
B
Absolutely.
A
Sub Magic. Are you saying it's better? It's better for a 45 second video on your phone and then polishing that video, getting it ready for social.
B
Yes, perfect. It they're great, but they're opposite.
A
So and so for your workflow from scratch, I have no idea what to post today. I'm doing my research. I'm picking my, my format as well as my 1 idea.
B
Yep.
A
I filmed that on my phone. I put it in Sub Magic. If we're going video.
B
Yep.
A
I could put it in chat GPT if I want to generate some images. And then what are your favorite design softwares and are you using the AI expanded abilities of these softwares like Canva added AI, Adobe added AI. You know. What does that mean?
B
Yeah, Everybody has for one, everybody has AI. Two, I like the whole like whether it's ChatGPT or whether it's Claude, however your preference is I like how it is connected to Canva. Right. Because you can.
A
Meaning these softwares.
B
The softwares. Right. It's like if you take the idea that you have and you go, okay, I need a quote. Right. I need a carousel. I need some type of graphic in some way, shape or form. It can either one create it inside of there. Right. Or take it to Canva directly and you can manipulate it and customize it a little bit more. But also what's good with Canva is now they have this like magic layer that you know how with when you generate an image, it's hard to edit. It'll just completely mess it up. But with Canva, it now allows you to customize certain parts of each of the layer. So like, let's say you don't like the color of your hat, but cat and tie. But everything else was fine. You could change that in Canva. And that's all done through Claude. That's all done through ChatGPT. I like that workflow there. But one of the things I will say that we didn't cover is faceless content. Right. Agent Opus. We mentioned Opus a little bit, but Agent Opus. Yeah, that's something that will allow you to stand out. One, because it doesn't have. You don't have to be in front of the camera, but your voice can still be very primary. Meaning it can take audio from your clips. Right. Let's say you did the like a front facing video or a clip of yours, but you don't like it. Like you just don't want that style. It will make it into a whole
A
AI video, meaning it'll generate video from scratch that will pair with your audio.
B
Yes, yes. And it's good. You pick the style. They have Seed Dance 2.0, which is now the latest and greatest. That's where we've been seeing the Brad Pritt, Brad Pitt fight scenes and all of that. Now they have that. So now it's starting to look a little bit more realistic to what you want in your vision. So faceless content is going to take a whole new level. If that's part of your workflow.
A
That's crazy. Yeah, we right now we're in Anaheim together. Last week our team was in Vegas for NAB Show. We talked to Opus Clip a long time. Agent Opus is crazy.
B
Yes.
A
And yeah, Think Media podcast. Definitely something worth checking out. We'll put a link. You might know Opus Clip for clipping, but this is AI video generation. There's different players in that, but that's going to be a major one and they're cooking up some big things. All right. You're sharing a lot of value. And I actually do want to talk about some very interesting YouTube strategies that you have. You've had a couple breakout videos and some things we could get to, but a little bit more on tools.
B
Yeah.
A
If somebody could only use one tool to start, what would it be and why Higgs feel. Really?
B
Yes.
A
What is Higgs Field and why do
B
you recommend Higgs Field? AI is an all in one like creative studio. So all the latest Everything that we've been saying as far as, like, C Dance and ChatGPT Image 2.0, nano, banana, that's all. All inside of Higsfield. So my biggest fear is that people catch FOMO when they hear this, this episode, and they're going to subscribe to everything that's okay. We got Chat Claude this, that, and it's like, okay, let's reduce that. Higsfield has everything in one subscription. So your image and your video is taken care of. Now you just have to worry about, like, the clawed or chatgpt side of things. But the creative side, where we're creating the thumbnails, where we're creating the. The AIB role, where we're creating maybe even just faceless content with AI, that's all inside of Higgs feel.
A
So to clarify, though, would you say that that actually would be. If you could only pick one AI tool, would it actually be Claude first, and then if you were expanding into video, it would be Higgs?
B
I would say, okay, yeah, if you put it that way, yes, I would say Claude, yeah. Because like I said, if you had
A
to cancel your ChatGPT subscription or your Cloud subscription, you would cancel ChatGPT. If you had to narrow down.
B
Oh, that's. So I have. I have attachment issues. So. So like, I. In this season. In this season, I would cancel Chachi bt, stick with Claude. And then from a visual, creative side, I would get Higgs feel. Yes.
A
In general, there is AI tools fatigue.
B
Yes.
A
And people are burned out on AI tools. What do you think matters most? I mean, the ones you've listed. Assuming in the modern era we're gonna have a tech stack. Any digital entrepreneur has a tech stack, meaning at some point they'd have Kajabi, their email CRM. And in today's world, like, these tools are becoming very real productivity essentials.
B
Yes.
A
So at the end of the day, is there any others that you think, like, actually matter? Like, they're just so worth it? Like, you happily pay every month on your credit card for that AI tool.
B
I mean, I think it just depends on the where you're at. Right. Like, for me, poppy AI is essential for me. Right. What is that Poppy? I. I call it kind of like the plug and play canvas for creators, meaning how we look at Claude, and we could do a lot with Claude, but it takes a lot of time after a while. Where with poppy AI, if I want to look at different outlier videos and then learn from that, get the Playbook and then have my own Playbook of what Scripts I need, what titles and thumbnails I may need, what hooks I may need. I'm going to Poppy because I'm able to take my competitors and thought leaders, put them in a board, get say and only it already, it already takes care of the top videos right now I can pick as many as I want, but it gets their top outlier ones. And then I train AI into my voice and say hey, based off what they're doing, what is my gap and and create me a new script outline. Give me the formula of how my hooks are supposed to be, how's the body supposed to be and how call to action supposed to be based off these top performing videos. For me to do that in Claude and chatgpt I would have to transcribe all of these things. That's a whole nother tool that I would have to use, upload it, hopefully have the right prompt. It takes too much time. So Poppy AI saves me time. And then once that workflow is done,
A
kind of like an agent because it goes and does this for you or does it whenever you push the button.
B
No, it does it when you push the button.
A
So you, so you push the button but it's pre programmed. You don't have to pull the transcripts. It will go analyze. You put in a YouTube link of your competitor.
B
You could do YouTube link, you could do a website, you can upload videos there, you could upload audio. It it's taking all types of.
A
So it's kind of like an agent, but it's not an agent.
B
Exactly.
A
That's interesting. So how many tools can you rattle off the top of your head that are part of your personal tech stack, AI or not that you use at least once every seven days in your business?
B
Claude chatgpt Notion with notion AI which is a sleeper Poppy AI Higgs feel submagic opus clip.
A
Hey Jen, what's heygen compared to Higsfield?
B
So hey gen is solely for AI avatars.
A
Okay.
B
Right. And the thing that they have an advantage of right now is from your likeness they get it completely together. So those cinematic videos that you see people do of their own likeness, that probably takes them about I would say a good 10, 15 renders where hey Jin has this thing called avatar shots that will take you one prompt to you having a whole cinematic video.
A
I had one where making all the clips consistent. So you look consistent across.
B
Absolutely. I had one where I was on stage, cops came in, I looked like I was scared. I ran into a car, I called somebody and this was. But it looked exactly like me. Whereas if I was to do that in Higgs Field, it would take me forever because it's just different renders for all these different shots.
A
Interesting. So quite a few tools and you're doing this full time. Obviously. What is interesting and this is I want to pivot to a YouTube strategy that applies to everybody listening to this. Now, they can personalize it, but it's something you figured out. Now, what we're talking about here is a little bit meta. I don't mean the company meta. I mean that you're an AI expert. Your YouTube channel covers a lot of AI tools. And one of the things that people have been burnt out on is, you know, go back 12 or 24 months and we loved clicking on videos of like 30 must know AI tools.
B
Yeah.
A
I feel like those videos are dead now because we're just all exhausted and we're like, okay, I don't need a huge list.
B
Yeah.
A
And so then we were talking about. You're like, yeah, you definitely saw that pivot and you created a formula. And I think this is so powerful, the concept for the listener, by like having formulas now break down the formula because it's like three elements. And I think what I want to encourage listeners to do is to create their own formulas.
B
Yeah. So one thing that I've noticed was that the best performing videos that I was getting was one tool, one outcome, and how long did it take? Right.
A
So I want podcast listeners to think about that. That's a repeatable process, which is amazing. Insert tool, Higgs field, insert problem it solves, which could be like quickly AI video generation, simply maybe something more specific. And then in 10 minutes or in less than. And so it also could be. You might have to really work the words, but it could still be pretty concise.
B
Yes. I get them all down into less than 70 characters.
A
Like 10 minute hack or you know, 10, like write a job resume with chat, GBT in 10 minutes.
B
Yep.
A
Three elements, incredibly powerful. And those started doing better. It makes sense too, because we're giving. And so I love this because it's like pain point speed, which is the most valuable thing in today's world is like, you know, obviously results, speed, we're all busy. And then obviously a searchable tool or a tool someone's looking for, which is pairs perfectly for your channel. But you want to expand on the strategy at all.
B
Yeah, no, because what I've realized is one, like you said, we're just fatigued of so many, like, don't, don't give me A video where I have to do so much.
A
Yeah.
B
Give me one. One thing I can open up right now. Do right now. I know the transformation that I'm going to get and I know how much time I have to a lot for this. So it made it very easy to click on because I know exactly what I'm getting. Where before it was, you know, five tools that can help you create AI videos and then you're still not knowing which one to to pick.
A
Yeah.
B
Because now it's a preference thing. But what do you like? I came to your channel because I need you to guide me on which one to pick. So now I'm like, okay, even though all these things came out, we're only picking one. What is the pain point that our audience has the most with? Okay. How to create viral videos. Okay, cool. How to create brand assets. Okay, cool. Like whatever your the they need the most. And the time doesn't even matter per se as far as like a form, a specific formula. It's just that they know. Okay, this is a quick bite or is this a masterclass for me? Like if this is going to be over 15 minutes, I've got my pen pad. I know I have to stay locked in. I got it on the tv. We're ready. If you're saying this is five minutes. Oh, I can watch this on my phone. I could do this real quick. It just helps the audience like know what to expect and easy.
A
Super powerful. And again, I'm not suggesting that, you know, everyone's doing reviews of products or even software but I do think what are your video formats title templates but insinuate. And I feel like it's needed. It almost feels like the net, the in and out strategy. Meaning in today's world there's like too much choice.
B
Yes.
A
AI tools, there's too much choice. But almost in every industry. What's powerful about the in and out menu is it's so simple and it eliminates choice. There's some off menu items but like how with all of the overwhelm what is like maybe a simple clickable, repeatable, highly clickable. Repeatable because now you really. There'd be unlimited videos for you to make. Yeah, it's actually unlimited.
B
Yeah.
A
Pain point plus amount of time plus tool.
B
Yeah.
A
You can make videos for the rest. I mean which is actually true for everybody listening. The world is actually expansive and so is YouTube. But that's exciting. Well, in just a second I actually want to land the plane on some of the YouTube strategy. You had a breakout video I think there's some lessons from it.
B
Yep.
A
We'll get to that in a second. But I do want you to shout your stuff out first. If people want to follow you, connect with you, give a roll call to what you're up to, and we'll put that in the show notes.
B
Yeah. Nikki saunders on. On YouTube. This is Nikki's everywhere else. Find it. Find. Find me there, Love me there, and you'll find. You could go into my links. I'm not gonna go into that. Just get to know the channel, learn it, and then we'll talk about the next steps.
A
So check all that out in the show notes. You had a breakout video just four months ago. It got 135,000 views. The title is why Introverts make the Best Content Creators. Parentheses Nobody talks about this.
B
Yeah.
A
The video was nine minutes. It broke out. What I find fascinating is, and I'm curious, why do you think that video broke out on your channel that normally talks about tech and tools.
B
Yeah. So the opposite of what people think of content creation. Right. So, of course, with my channel, I do attract a lot of content creators or people who want to create content. They just use the AI tools to do that. But the. This cast of, like, to create good videos, you need to be an extrovert, you need to be out there. You need to be on camera all the time, ready to go where. I talked about it in a different way, where this is a world of introverts, because the camera is just you and the camera. There's no crowd, there's no anything.
A
You're actually alone. Yeah.
B
Right. And so saying it in a different perspective made a lot of my audience felt seen and heard, to where it's like, hold on, that you're speaking to me now. And then also, what was cool about that video, it wasn't my typical, like, straight to camera talking and then B roll. It was a compilation of other podcasts, finding a specific theme and then putting it all together. So we found all the podcast clips that we talked about introverts and put it together. So it just told a really dope story.
A
That's fascinating.
B
Yeah. And it was one of those, like, okay, we don't know what else. I think it was around the holidays too. It was like, oh, we don't know what else to do. Let's find just a common theme. And it worked out really well. We didn't even think it was gonna go that crazy. But there is a yearning for creator identity.
A
Yes.
B
And so that's why that did great.
A
I Like that word. And I think that it's very smart of individuals that made it this long in the podcast. This one strategy could change their channel. Tapping into identities. And that's a double identity. Cause an introvert is an identity and so is content creators. So you paired them.
B
Yep.
A
You know, working mom, mom's an identity. Right. So pairing these identities and it would seem almost like a contrast or, or like wait, those things like you said, nobody talks about this. The assumption is that if you're introverted, you might not be a content creator. So you're stepping into that. It's fascinating that you also pulled clips and ended up getting 135,000 views. Essentially repurposing content.
B
Yes.
A
Wow, that's a little underrated.
B
Right?
A
Cause sometimes we think of repurposing as maybe like squeezing a little bit of extra juice. That's like the main juice. Anything else you learned from that video or more macro on the identities concept of how creators of different channels could tap into that?
B
I, I think one thing that, that really stood out for me with that video was once that did well, it's the, the follow up of how else can we make sure that audience is still being seen? Right. Because we could get very quick to going right back to what was working before, but we looked at it as like, okay, cool, you came, you saw that. Cool. Now let's show you examples of other creators who are introverted. Now. You, you saw that, you can create it. Let me now show you different examples. So we showed like a Mr. Beast.
A
So you did in this video or
B
you did a separate one? It was the, it was the follow up kind of thing. And understanding that now when we have a breakout video, it's going to attract an like a deeper depth of audience. The same kind of audience, but like, like a specific group. And how are we now adding that as part of our content pillars?
A
Yeah, like it's clearly introverts is something that resonates as an extension of your message. So it's was something you'd hit more.
B
Yeah, so that, that was something that, that made us think a little bit different with our strategy. But the ease of whenever you don't know what to create, find the common theme. That was, that was a eye opener for us of like sometimes we don't always have to create the new. Find a new idea, find a new idea, create. Okay, let's turn on the camera. It's. Let's look back, let's find. Is there a common theme? Is there. Okay. In maybe on your lives. Did you talk about a specific tool in five different ways that could be its own video in an interview that you did, like two interviews, you can put it back to back and it gives two different perspectives on one topic. I think repurposing content with themes doesn't get talked about a lot.
A
Powerful stuff. Nikki Saunders, Think Media Podcast if you got value today, like rate, share, review wherever you watch or listen, and my name is Sean Cannell, you're a guide to building a profitable YouTube channel. I cannot wait to connect with you in a future episode of the Think Media Podcast. Until then, keep crushing it and we will talk soon.
Date: June 6, 2026
Host: Sean Cannell (A)
Guest: Nikki Saunders (B), Social Media & AI Expert
This episode delves deep into how small content creators are outperforming larger channels in the ever-evolving world of online video by leveraging cutting-edge AI tools and streamlined workflows. Sean Cannell is joined by Nikki Saunders to discuss specific, actionable AI tactics, optimal tool stacks, and formats that empower individual creators to compete with, and sometimes surpass, the giants of YouTube and social media. The conversation offers step-by-step workflow breakdowns, tool recommendations, advanced strategies, and insight into content identity and repurposing.
“The truth is, this AI is separating winners and losers… very few people are sharing actual tactics on how to apply this today to get more views, to get more subscribers, and do specific things.” — Sean Cannell [01:00]
“Where most of us were stuck in chat... now it goes from chat to actual content... the actual emails being sent, brand deals being read, evaluated, and actually followed up in a couple of seconds. This is your teammate.” — Nikki Saunders [04:44]
“AI removes the barriers of ‘you can’t do this’... but now it really forces us to level up our creativity... The foundation is there. But how do we make this thumbnail look better, this copy sound more authentic to us?” — Nikki [08:05]
“Anybody at this point can set up these AI workflows. So what is your unique point of view? What’s your hot take? Because if you’re going to be different, it can’t just be the facts, because those are at the fingertips of everybody.” — Sean [10:58]
“Chat just, like, agrees with you and reinforces that kind of thinking all day. It’s very flattering.” — Sean [19:24] “I love talking to chat in the morning… Tell me I look great… But when I get into strategy mode, I’m going to Claude.” — Nikki [19:36]
Higgsfield (Higsfield) AI: An all-in-one creative suite (images, video, faceless content), ideal for creators feeling FOMO or burned out from subscribing to dozens of tools.
“Higgsfield has everything in one subscription—image, video is taken care of. Now you just have to worry about Claude or ChatGPT for your strategy.” — Nikki [31:43]
If forced to pick: Nikki would keep Claude over ChatGPT for core content workflow, Higgsfield for all creative/visual needs [31:58–32:23].
Other Must-Haves in the Stack:
“For me, Poppy AI is essential... able to take my competitors and thought leaders, get the top outlier ones, train AI into my voice, and say: ‘what’s my gap and create me a new script outline’... it saves me time.” — Nikki [34:43]
Old format is dead: “30 Must-Know Tools” style videos = fatigue.
New formula:
“The best performing videos I was getting was one tool, one outcome, and how long did it take.” — Nikki [37:49] “Write a job resume with ChatGPT in 10 minutes… Pain point + amount of time + tool. You could make videos for the rest of eternity.” — Sean [38:18, 41:10]
Why it works: Immediate clarity, solves a pain point, communicates speed (which is valuable), improves click-through rates.
Content Identity: Tapping into identities attracts deeper, more loyal audiences (e.g., “Why Introverts Make the Best Content Creators”) [42:04].
135,000 views, 9 minutes long.
Different from Nikki’s normal straight-to-camera content—this was a compilation of podcast clips, all exploring a common theme (introverts in content creation).
Resonated because it challenged the stereotype (“you must be an extrovert to be a creator”), made her audience “feel seen and heard.”
Key Lesson: Repurposing (finding thematic commonalities across existing content and compiling) can drive breakout performance.
Quote:
“There is a yearning for creator identity… Whenever you don’t know what to create, find the common theme.” — Nikki [43:48, 46:05]
Strategic Follow-up: After a viral video, serve the new segment of your audience with more content that speaks to their newly uncovered identity/interest.
Connect with Nikki Saunders:
Host Tip:
If you’re feeling burned out or lost in the AI content arms race, focus less on subscribing to every tool, more on mapping your workflow, training your “digital teammates,” and infusing every post with your unique POV—because that’s what algorithms (and audiences) can’t replicate.
For all Think Media audience:
Check out additional resources mentioned (e.g., [Claude Cowork], Higgsfield, Poppy AI, SubMagic, Agent Opus) and test building a simple, personal workflow using one of the repeatable formulas outlined in this episode.
Summary by Think Media Podcast Summarizer. Structured for clarity, depth, and easy “next steps” for creators at any level.