YouTube Video Ideation
The output of this skill is not a topic list. It's a set of packaged, ready-to-make ideas - each one something the user could open a camera and film tomorrow, with the title, thumbnail concept, and hook already decided, plus an honest reason it will earn clicks and watch time.
On YouTube, the idea is only a third of the job. Packaging (title + thumbnail + first 30 seconds) is what actually gets a video watched. A great topic with weak packaging dies; an ordinary topic with great packaging can carry a channel. So every idea this skill produces is packaged, never bare.
Step 0: Calibrate scope (before generating anything)
Match effort to the ask. State your mode in one line so the user can redirect.
| Signal in the prompt | Mode | What you deliver |
|---|---|---|
| "quick idea," "a few titles," one narrow topic | Quick brainstorm | 3 - 6 packaged ideas, inline, conversational |
| "ideas for my channel," a niche + goal given | Ideation set | 8 - 15 packaged ideas grouped by pillar, inline or short file |
| "content plan," "series," "next quarter," client deliverable | Full package | Pillars + 15 - 25 ideas + priority order + series arcs, as a file |
Before generating, know three things. If they're not in the prompt, infer from context or ask ONE combined question - don't interrogate:
- Niche / channel topic - what the channel is about.
- Audience - who it's for (beginners vs pros changes everything).
- Goal - views/growth, or leads/sales, or authority. This changes whether you chase browse-y entertainment ideas or search-y evergreen ideas.
If the user gives a channel URL or existing videos, look at what's already worked before ideating (see "Model what's proven").
Step 1: Research the demand (light but real)
Don't ideate from imagination alone - sample what the audience actually wants. Use web_search to check:
- YouTube search language: search
<topic> youtube, note the recurring title patterns, and mentally run autocomplete (how to <topic>,<topic> for beginners,best <topic>,<topic> vs). These reveal the exact phrasing the audience uses. - Proven concepts (outliers): look for videos where views far exceed the channel's size, or that got unusually high engagement. An outlier is a validated concept you can adapt - not copy. Note what made it work (the angle, the promise, the format).
- Pain and questions:
site:reddit.com <topic>, forum threads, and comment sections surface the real questions, frustrations, and "I wish someone made a video on…" moments. These are gold - a stated request is pre-validated demand. - Trend momentum: is interest rising, flat, or fading? Rising topics reward speed; evergreen topics reward depth.
Keep this proportional: 3 - 6 searches for a brainstorm, 8 - 14 for a full package. If the user already pointed you at a gap (e.g. from youtube-gap-finder), skip most of this and ideate straight into the opening.
Step 2: Generate ideas across the demand types
Great channels mix two engines. Deliberately generate for both:
- Search / evergreen ideas - answer a question people actively type. Compounds for years, lower ceiling per video, needs solid titles matching search phrasing. ("How to X," "X for beginners," "X vs Y," "Why X.")
- Browse / suggested ideas - entertainment, story, curiosity, timeliness. Higher ceiling, algorithm-driven, lives or dies on packaging and retention. ("I tried X for 30 days," "The truth about X," "X is a lie," challenges, transformations, reactions.)
Pull from these idea engines - don't just list topics, twist each into an angle:
- Transformation / stakes: before→after, "I did X for N days," results people want.
- Contrarian / myth-busting: "Stop doing X," "X is overrated," "The truth about X."
- Curiosity gap: a promise you can't resist ("This changed how I X," "The X nobody tells you about").
- Listicle / ranking / tier list: "Top N X," "X ranked worst to best," "N X mistakes."
- Specific-audience angle: take a broad topic and aim it ("X for [profession / beginners / people who Y]"). Underserved sub-audiences are the easiest wins.
- Versus / comparison: "X vs Y - which should you actually buy."
- Story / documentary: a narrative arc around the topic. High retention when done well.
- Reaction / teardown: react to a thing, break down why something works.
- Fresh take on an outlier: an adapted proven concept, aimed at this channel's audience.
Step 3: Package every idea
This is the part most brainstorms skip and it's the part that matters. For each idea, produce:
- Working titles (2 - 3 options) - different angles, not rewordings. Keep the strongest promise up front; front-load the payoff; avoid clickbait you can't deliver on. See
references/packaging-playbook.mdfor title patterns. - Thumbnail concept - one sentence describing the visual: the subject, the emotion, the ≤3 - 4 words of text, the contrast/hook. Title and thumbnail must not repeat each other - they should combine into one irresistible promise.
- Hook (first 15 - 30s) - one or two lines: restate the promise, raise the stakes, and tell them what they'll have by the end. This is where retention is won or lost.
- Format + length - long-form / Short / tutorial / story etc., and a rough runtime.
- Search or Browse - label which engine it's built for (affects title phrasing and expectations).
- Why it works - one honest line tying it to the demand you saw. If you can't justify it, cut it.
Use the compact template in references/packaging-playbook.md unless the user wants prose.
Step 4: Organize into pillars and a shooting order (Ideation set / Full package)
One-off ideas don't build channels; clusters do. Group the ideas into 3 - 5 content pillars (recurring themes the channel owns). This makes the channel legible to both the algorithm and the viewer, and makes future ideation easy.
For the full package, add:
- Series arcs - ideas that chain (Part 1→N, or a themed run) to pull binge-watching.
- Priority order - sequence to film, weighing: packageability, demand strength, effort to produce, and how well it fits the channel's current momentum. Lead with a couple of high-ceiling, low-effort "get a win" videos.
- Repurposing note - which long-form ideas cut into Shorts, and which Shorts could expand into long-form.
See references/formats-and-series.md for format specs, length guidance, and pillar/series structure.
Quality bar - before delivering, check each idea
- Could the user actually film this without needing something they don't have? (No fantasy productions.)
- Is the title a promise the video can keep? (No bait.)
- Does the thumbnail add information the title doesn't? (No redundancy.)
- Is it differentiated from what already ranks/gets suggested, or is it just another copy?
- Does it fit the audience and at least one pillar?
Cut anything that fails. Ten strong packaged ideas beat thirty topics.
Output format
Quick brainstorm - conversational, each idea as a tight packaged block (title options / thumbnail / hook / why). No file.
Ideation set / Full package - group by pillar; for full packages, save as a markdown file with pillars, packaged ideas, series arcs, and priority order, and present it. Keep prose minimal - creators skim.
Always end by pointing to the natural next move: run these through youtube-gap-finder to confirm the openings, or hand a chosen idea to a thumbnail/script step.