Handing over the scariest task so far

…and how I did it

I’ve done it. I’ve handed over what I’ve always believed to be the biggest and most important task in my business.

I’m no longer editing the main videos on the Mark Ellis Reviews channel. That task is now residing on the desk of our General Manager, Niall, and there’s a good chance it’ll extend to others in the future, too.

Let me explain why this is such a big deal - and how we’ve done it.

My business can only exist if I obtain clicks and attention online. It’s why, whenever a passing troll accuses me of “just doing it for the clikz and 💰💰💰”, I can’t help but crack a wry smile. That’s exactly why I’m doing this. It’s just a bonus that I happen to love the work, dearly.

To gain those clicks and keep the audience’s attention, I need to tell stories. When it comes to video, that story is developed entirely in the edit. The writing and filming of the video are simply methods by which I gather the individual pieces of the story. Some of it is retained, a lot of it is reordered and moulded, and a colossal amount is discarded entirely.

This is why I’ve always loved the editing part of the video-making process more than anything else. It allows me to take a half-baked bullet point script and mountains of footage (much of which, when it comes to a-roll, I don’t particularly enjoy shooting) and turn it into something coherent, entertaining, and enjoyable.

Imagine giving that task to someone else. No matter who that person is, how much you trust them, or how skilled they are at the craft, it’s a super scary thing. The best analogy I can think of is Jony Ive handing over the keys to Apple’s industrial design office to someone else. It’s almost like handing your child over to a stranger.

I’m not over-egging this particular pudding, I promise. If the long-form videos for the Mark Ellis Reviews YouTube channel are poorly edited, it could bring the entire business crashing down. It would also erode four years of tireless work building a style that my audience has come to know and (in some cases) love. It’s why I’ve waited so long to hand over the reins, despite being told by numerous peers that it’s the right thing to do.

It is, therefore, rather ironic that I’ve so swiftly and completely handed over the role of video editor to Niall. There was very little easing in (bar a couple of b-roll edits) - he was handed the keys almost immediately and with very little prior warning.

There are a few reasons I was able to do this. Firstly, I trust Niall, implicitly. That’s vitally important when handing over a task like this. Secondly, I know how brilliant he is as a video editor - he’s been editing the short form videos for this business over the last few months, and they’re superb. Thirdly, I know that he really wanted it - and he won’t mind me saying that. I’m always drawn to people who want to work on something within my business; it usually means they have ideas that I either don’t have the time to devise or simply can’t. More importantly, I know that their outward desire to do something means they’ll really enjoy the work. I’ve worked enough soul-destroying jobs with enough soul-destroying people to know that this is the ultimate form of remuneration.

Since taking this big step, there are a few things we’ve had to work on. The first was matching the existing editing style of the channel as closely as possible. It didn’t need to be an exact science (there’s nothing wrong with evolution, after all), but the points at which footage is cut, how the b-roll makes its appearance, and all of the minutiae such as the audio treatment and graphics, are the main ingredients of any editing style.

Secondly, the process needed to be super tight, efficient, and malleable. If you’re wondering, I still shoot all of the footage (unless I’m unavailable, in which case Niall will step in), therefore the first challenge is to ensure swift transportation of that footage to Niall. But beyond that, there needs to be first-pass edit reviews by me, the gathering of stills for social use, and the final edit, polish and upload. It isn’t a small operation, as I’m sure you can appreciate.

The good news is that everything, thus far, is working beautifully. We’re only having to make small tweaks to edits, and I don’t think anyone (certainly, those who leave comments) has noticed that the most important role in the video production process has changed hands.

As for yours truly, I’m already noticing huge swathes of time being reclaimed. I have, obviously, reinvested that time almost immediately, but it’s going into stuff that will help me push this business even further forward, and I can’t wait to show you what that will mean over the next few years.