Meet RV Odd Couple: The YouTube Couple on the Road
John and Mercedes started their YouTube channel back in December 2018. While it hasn’t been even a year, their YouTube channel, RV Odd Couple, has exploded with views and subscribers. When John and Mercedes sold their company and decided to take on the RV life full-time, they also decided to vlog their lifestyle on YouTube without much expectation. However, their honest content and engaging talks are attracting many viewers, especially in the RV space. Make sure to head over to their YouTube channel (RV Odd Couple) to learn more about their RV life, and hear tips and tricks. Check out what they had to say about starting a YouTube channel below!
Q: What are your thoughts on how Rizzle can be effective for short vlogs and storytelling?
Mercedes: Well, I would say it’s going to have to be a really short story. This is not going to be like a three climactic part story where it’s really complicated and has all these sub-stories. It’s really going to force you to get to the point.
John: Get clear on what your message is about with the content you’re trying to deliver. You got to say it quickly. You got to get to the point and you can’t ramble. So we think this is an excellent tool and we wish we had this when we started our YouTube channel about 11 months ago. We just passed 55,000 subscribers and we are having an absolute blast.
Q: How long does it take you to make a YouTube video, including scripting, filming, audio, editing, thumbnail, and SEO?
John: This was brutal. When we started we would spend 50, 60 hours to do all those things and now we’ve got it down to about 20 hours, right? So we actually wish we had had Rizzle when we started because it would have helped us make our message more concise.
Mercedes: The answer is way too long for a 15-minute video.
Q: Do you think Rizzle can be a good place to start for new creators?
Mercedes: I think it’s an excellent place for new creators to start and the reason being is that you have to deliver your message quickly and succinctly. One of the biggest mistakes that people make is they take too darn long. They tell too many backstories, especially at a point in their channel where no one even knows them yet and no one cares yet.
John: They think they’re important and the truth is no one’s important. People are there for themselves. You got to offer content. So get clear on your message and say it quickly and accurately.
Mercedes: And I think another piece here, too, is that this is very good practice in extemporaneous speaking. So looking at yourself and going, “Oh, that was horrible. I didn’t even get to my second point!” Well, that means you’re talking for way too long. So get to the point quickly.
Q: What was the biggest challenge you faced when you started as a creator?
John: For me, it was getting comfortable in front of the camera. Right? It’s the strangest thing when you fire up the camera with no one around but yet it feels like everybody’s watching. So it just takes a lot of practice and consistency.
Mercedes: And for me, I would say it’s knowing what I should be spending my time on. You know, I took a bunch of classes and there was all this information and this person says work on this, this person says work on that and I was spending time like spinning my wheels working on stuff but was not really getting stuff done. You know like the website the logo, Instagram, this and that. So learning how to focus on one thing at a time and identifying what was most important.
Q: What advice can you give to people who want to become a video creator in the future?
John: We would say number one get consistent, have a solid plan and know who your audience is and what your channel value proposition is.
Mercedes: I would say don’t do it. No, I’m kidding. It’s actually very rewarding but it’s a lot more work than people think. Because people see a 15-minute video and, I think, sometimes people assume it took you 16 minutes to make that 15-minute video. So I would really say go in with a plan, make sure you have the time. If you’re working full-time and trying to do a YouTube channel, you know, you really have to have the time and set it up so that you can succeed as opposed to starting something and not being able to finish it.
John: Exactly. And it’s really important that you have a passion for the topic or the niche you’re getting into. It’s so much work and if you don’t like it, it’s going to make it a lot harder. So love what you do.
Q: What’s the hardest lesson that you’ve had to learn from developing your channel?
Mercedes: I would say it is “Trust no one”. I know that sounds horrible. But we’ve had people that we met in person that knew about our channel, they had their own channel and they were totally nice to us in person. And then they ended up making a video about us saying that we’re actually nice people but they called it “RV Odd Couple Exposed”. It was like, I don’t know, it was just slimy and so you got to be so careful because you’re representing the brand. You are the brand and you’ve got to be photo-ready all the time.
John: We’re blessed. Our YouTube Channel exploded and we grew super, super fast. There’s been a lot of jealousy in the space, especially for those operating in the RV space full-time. So we took a lot of heat on that. But now we’ve learned to just be very careful with everything we say to anybody even if it’s an email because people want to ride in our coattails, so I think [Mercedes’ answer is] a great answer.
Q: What are the things you need to start a successful YouTube channel?
John: You need passion and you need a lot of time.
Mercedes: Surprisingly, we’re not listing expensive cameras, you know, you would assume that would be on the list, but it’s really not because I think people are really more into community; they want to connect. And so if you think of YouTube less as a computer and more as a way to connect with people, it is totally possible to just sit down in front of the camera and talk and people will relate to that. So we get all sidetracked with all these fancy gadgets and all this cool stuff, but make sure you have a solid message. Otherwise, the rest of it doesn’t really matter.
John: And I would say define that message. One of the beautiful things about YouTube is that there is an audience for everything. So pick something you really love to do. Send a message out that only you can send. Deliver it in a way that no one else but you can.
Q: How often do you think new creators should upload videos to YouTube?
John: Consistently. Whether you tell your audience once a week or once a day, just do what you say you’re going to do and be consistent. Deliver what you promised.
Mercedes: But do not set yourself up for failure. Just because you have one instance where you can do the video the same day— you know, upload it the same day — be real with yourself. Life is going to happen. You’re going to want to take a vacation. So it’s far better to do a bi-monthly video or a once-a-month video than to commit to it weekly and just be all over the place.
John: Because let’s be honest guys, there is a ton of work in building a successful YouTube channel. It takes a lot of effort to deliver content in a way that people want to consume. So, you know, be consistent and deliver your promise.
Mercedes: Yeah, because once you get them, you don’t want to lose them.
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