Systems ≠ templates (& why the wrong choice kills your growth)

Happy Friday! This is Paige with the B2B Growth Newsletter, where we break down what one of the internet’s favorite creators is doing right so you can use their strategies to tap into your own growth. Think of us like your favorite digital recipe book (we all know your hard copies are hiding in the weird cabinet above the fridge). 

Patrick Bet-David is everywhere, talking to everyone. One look at his YouTube, Valuetainment, gives us a sampling of his wide-reaching content. He talks with world-class athletes, high-profile politicians, today’s biggest media names and… the mafia? 

Each of these things is a massive feat in itself. But the bigger win — none of this content feels out of place. Patrick Bet-David seems just as right standing next to a notorious gangster as he does with Trump’s attorney. 

Now before you try to recruit Kobe Bryant or Mark Cuban to join your podcast, let’s make one thing clear: Getting these big names to collab on content isn’t the key. 

Patrick Bet-David did one thing to build a face so familiar it feels right across these niches, and it wasn’t simply jumping in.

He built a bullet-proof system that allowed him to test channels, ideas and mediums and build upon each piece by piece. 

Think of it like a Lego project as compared to a house of cards: each additional building block is tried, tested and must prove to work to remain. If it doesn’t, it’s removed or replaced. A new block doesn’t send the tower tumbling if it’s a misfit — it’s either a sturdy addition or it's tossed out. 

Now, let’s break it down with an example. Patrick Bet-David had an idea that emerged as a series: 2 Minutes with Pat. Let’s look at the evolution of the series. 

1. Test: Patrick committed to a 2-year testing timeline with this series, one video per week. The set testing period is vital for learning what works and what doesn’t while allowing enough time for the idea to play out. 

2. Have a vision: Patrick’s vision was to build a thought-provoking weekly series of short videos. 

3. Identify a niche: As the series goes on, you can see Patrick find the niche he’s looking for, with testing along the way. It begins vague and general with videos like “Why do people suffer?” and “What is the American Dream?”. Later he shifts to ‘Motivation Monday’ and finally shifts to entrepreneur-centered content. Better yet, he tested each approach on a regular cadence for several weeks to properly test signals. 

4. Get lucky: It wasn’t until week 28 that this series hit views in the hundreds of thousands. Then… viewership went back down. True luck hit for 2 Minutes with Pat around week 57, where the content consistently hit these multi-hundreds of thousands of view counts. 

5. Take a timeout: Patrick stepped back to analyze feedback and adapt. Turned out, a vast majority of the videos in this series were more than 2 minutes… making the title itself a lie. This is where we see the end of the series and the ultimate uptick in mindset-focused and philosophical-based videos outside the series itself. 

The big mistake a lot of marketers make today: 

They create a concept. Templatize it. Put it out in the world. Then copy and paste with another concept. Or worse — they borrow another creator’s template and bypass testing altogether.

And this might seem counter-intuitive given the number of “STEAL this Solve-All Template” posts you see on social media. Truth is: A template works for an individual or company for a reason. 

They’ve put it to the test for:
Their content
Their audience
Their media strategy
Their CTAs and goals

You can borrow bits and pieces from templates. In fact, you should. Growth is repeatable. But it’s a mistake to commit to one template forever and multiply it across different visions.

Wanna give Patrick Bet-David’s system a go? Tuck that template away for now, and try this: 

1. Test: Got an idea? Great. Build out your strategy and put it into the world. Commit to a period of time (months/quarters are better than weeks — more data, more power). Iterate and adapt one piece at a time. Keep what works, toss what doesn’t. 

2. Have a vision: While you should have a vision before launching, keep it flexible as you test. Your 2-minute clips turning into 8-minute clips and working well? Adjust slightly.

3. Identify a niche: Who is your content for? Who is it actually reaching? How can you adapt to reach your ideal niche better or better meet the needs of the audience resonating with the content?

4. Get Lucky: Keep an eye on audience signals. What content gets the most attention? Lean in. 

5. Take a timeout: Dive into the data. Reassess the vision. Take what you’ve learned and put it into action (or cycle back through the system). 

You can build and expand piece-by-piece using Patrick’s content creation system. By continuously building out each content building block, you can become a recognizable brand across the facets of your niche without threatening the entire content ecosystem with collapse. 

The takeaway: If you’re not using a system that allows for testing and adaptation, you’re sinking. Your marriage to the template might also be a death sentence for your growth. Commit to systems, not templates. 

That’s it, ya’ll. Happy creating!

Paige Peterson
Newsletter Aficionado, Sweet Fish

P.S. Don’t just make content. Build your audience’s favorite corner of the internet. Need some help? We’d love to chat.

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