I’m writing this blog post right now for several reasons.  One is to simply help a friend or two, and the other is, of course, to hopefully help many.  The ones who actually take the time to read this, in my mind, are the ones who deserve to learn everything they are about to learn, and know everything they are about to know.  For those that aren’t aware there is an AWESOME community on YouTube known as the “Picking Community” which it gives me great pride to say that I am a part of, and feel that I’ve done a lot for.  In fact, there are TONS of different communities on YouTube.  Anything from this community which I mentioned, to toy communities, gaming communities, fashion communities, car communities, you name it.

Today while browsing one of my favorite “top secret” groups on Facebook I came across a post from a good friend mentioning the long-brought up topic of whether it’s actually good or not to “share” as much information as we do on YouTube.  In the “Picking Community” this relates to what things you can buy to make the best profits, where to shop, outlets to sell in, ways to build a customer base, and the list goes on.  As for the other communities you can take this information and mold it to suit the needs/make sense overall.

For those that don’t know for over two years now I’ve released a wide variety of vintage/antique buying/selling videos.  Many of those shared TONS of valuable content.  A lot of them are what we ‘Tubers call “haul videos,” in which we show some of our latest finds, mention what we paid, what we expect to get, and so on.  Some others shared places I’ve “picked” for junk, tips on where/how I sell, and more recently a lot of my videos have took a turn to feature more of an entertainment/fun side, while still providing valuable content and lots of buying and selling tips.

Now first off let’s get something straight.  I’m a businessman first and foremost.  I’m a great guy.  A very nice guy, and that’s not just me blowing my own horn.  Many have told me so.  However I don’t do ANYTHING on the Internet without the intent of continually growing it to meet certain needs of my business.  For me when it comes to YouTube I truly do LOVE the interaction with not only my fans, but of course my fellow “Picking Community” contributors who are out buying and selling, and posting videos right alongside me.  First off I monetize every video using Google Adsense, and in pretty much EVERY video I’ve ever released you hear me say one thing almost religiously… “What’s going on everybody? Brent here, OUnitProductions.com.”

Now believe me you, this isn’t because I have a stutter or don’t have anything better to say.  That little sentence leads to views towards my website, which in turn leads to advertising revenue via Google Adsense banners, Amazon banners, Amazon referral sales, merchandise sales, and OF COURSE sales in all my retail outlets such as eBay, Etsy, and all of my antique mall booths.  Not to mention the links on my website which lead to my other websites/blogs/sources of revenue.  This is the Internet, and if you know what you are doing, and you follow along closely in new ways to monetize which are constantly expanding and changing, you can make a very profitable living and continuously grow your passive income to the point where it can eventually take over your other avenues of income.

I absolutely LOVE buying and selling.  As I mentioned I still sell on eBay, Etsy, my co-op booths, and in 2013 I am going to be introducing several new outlets for the sale of physical goods.  Some of these will actually be popping up as soon as this coming week.  However, of course the ultimate goal for anyone who knows anything about business is to generate more income based on less work.  THAT is where I am headed in 2013 and beyond, and that is what I would love to help as many of you as I possibly can also achieve.

To bring this all back to where we started, here’s the bottom line.  It’s fine to share.  There’s nothing wrong with simply putting out content showing others what you know, what you have done, and how they could potentially do it.  The keyword there is “potentially.”  Some people will be able to reach the same level of success that you may have in your particular area, but the honest truth is the majority of people are so incredibly lazy that they won’t even take the first step regardless of how simple that first step may be.  Most people will just watch and hate, or be again what we ‘Tubers call “trolls.”  They’ll do their best to bring you down simply because they don’t have to balls to take the first chance or step to reach their ultimate goals.

Another HUGE factor in this all is that you should NEVER show anyone EVERYTHING.  I feel that over the years I’ve shared a lot of valuable information with my viewers.  However I can honestly say I’ve probably shared less than 20%, IF THAT, of everything I know and have learned about the resale business and especially Internet marketing.  Shit, to this day, EACH day I still learn something new.  I’m constantly learning.  That’s something that you should never stop doing.

Whether you are a part of this great “Picking Community” on YouTube, or ANY other community on ANY other platform for that matter, NEVER share everything, and NEVER put out content without first figuring out how you plan on monetizing that content.  You can of course do Google Adsense if you are on YouTube, but you really have to think deeper than that.  This year I am launching a new YouTube show/podcast known as “Project X.”  With this project I will be showcasing a lot of what I learned and am continuing to learn.  I am actually also in the process of writing a book which will hopefully be out by the end of 2013.  I plan on using my YouTube audience, and for that matter EVERY audience I have carefully built on each Social Media platform, to push those projects even further.

If you are putting out the YouTube videos to monetize in the first place, why not take it to the next level?  Perhaps you could write a book containing all that knowledge you have, and use a portion of your YouTube videos to promote that.  Perhaps you could add Amazon referral links into your YouTube videos.  There are MANY other avenues of potential monetization that so many people just don’t know about, or simply don’t think about when it comes to YouTube videos.  In 2013, for example, I also plan to do a lot more sponsorship deals with both my website & YouTube channel, and as you grow your audience that’s another huge resource that can be tapped into.

With this new year I have also launched something I am calling “How-To Hustle Hangouts Consultations,” which was mentioned in my first blog post of the year right here on this blog.  In these I am going very in-depth in a one-on-one setting in regards to a lot of the things I brought up in this post, but in way more detail.  If you would like more information on these consultations simply email brent@ounitproductions.com

THANKS SO MUCH for your time, and leave some comments and let me know your thoughts!

Brent