According to the latest statistics from YouTube, the video giant has more than two billion users and is reaching more people in the US than any other TV station with no signs of slowing down. More than a billion hours are viewed every day, with more than 70 percent of the time coming from the mobile phone.
The very first YouTube video was uploaded on April 23, 2005, and I’m pretty sure Reed Duchscher couldn’t have cared less then – mostly because he had no idea that a video revolution was coming and changing his life in just a few years. Duchscher was likely engaged in high school soccer practice as a promising young wide receiver and linebacker who played both ways as a top varsity athlete. He was also a two-time all-district basketball player and competed in athletics.
Reed worked hard and earned himself a walkable seat as a D1 soccer player at North Dakota State University. But it would be his no-nonsense competitive style and poor off-field work ethic that would ultimately pay off. “When I was thinking about my career, I was inspired by the Jerry Maguire movie,” says Reed, referring to the iconic sports film / rom-com, written, produced and produced by Cameron Crowe starring Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr. was staged. and Renée Zellweger.
In the beginning, for Duchscher, the appeal of being a sports agent may have been to regain some of the fame and rush he felt when he got touchdown passes in the big game. But thanks to his parents and good upbringing, he managed to stay humble about the price.
He put the same focus on winning in business as he was in the field. To make his dreams of becoming an agent a reality, Duchscher flew spontaneously from North Dakota to Los Angeles and turned up unannounced with his résumé at several major agencies. “My philosophy wasn’t just picking up the phone or sending an email on my resume … I thought it would be best to actually show up and try to meet in person.”
One of those destinations was the office of Leigh Steinberg, one of the world’s most prolific agents who is believed to be the inspiration for Jerry Maguire.
Reed sat and waited patiently in Steinberg’s lobby, waiting for the opportunity to meet his hero while fending off interns who strongly suggested he give up and leave. After a while without success or with Steinberg in sight, Duchscher was led out and asked to vacate the premises. Instead of giving up, he drove 50 miles south to sunny Orange County and made his way to meet Ryan Tollner of Rep 1 Sports, who has been negotiating active deals worth nearly $ 800 million (according to Forbes’ 2019 agent list).
“One of the guys in Ryan’s office took my resume and couldn’t have been nicer … he said Ryan wasn’t there, but that he had put it on his desk.” The day after, Duchscher receives an email from Tollner apologizing for missing his surprise visit to the office and praising Reed for his busy mentality. He promises to keep an eye on Reed’s résumé when something is available and holds the door open to keep in touch with the young newcomer.
Flash forward two years later and Duchscher receives a call from the father of a good friend and former teammate at NDSU, Carson Wentz. The family had narrowed down their agent choices to sign Wentz, who was slated to be number 1 on the NFL draft picks this year. Yeah you guessed it. These included Leigh Steinberg, Todd France, and Ryan Tollner. Call it fate or karma, Duchscher gave the Wentz family all of the pros and cons of any agent, but the turning point was likely the kindness and personal touch of Tollner, reminiscent of the character of Jerry Maguire ready for the little one Guy show.
Wentz signed with Rep1 Sports and Tollner had five of the NFL’s leading quarterbacks: Carson Wentz, Jared Goff, Ben Roethlisberger, Marcus Mariota and Mitchell Trubisky. There are many lessons here, but mostly … the person you misjudge as “nobody” today may be tomorrow’s “someone”, so be kind to everyone no matter what. Reminds me of one of my favorite Abraham Lincoln quotes: “Almost all men can endure adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”
About 7 years after YouTube’s historic first video post in 2005, another random high school kid in North Carolina named Jimmy Donaldson aka MrBeast uploaded his first video in 2012. He’s goofy … a gamer … bored in his room and making videos when he should be studying videos for a social science test. MrBeast would slowly expand his channel to over a million subscribers with rabid fans related to his lifestyle over the next few years.
Reed Duchscher continued to take steps and found a way to mix his love for sports and talent management by partnering with another up and coming group of guys who called themselves Dude Perfect via a job at an NFL sports agency in Las Vegas.
Realizing the potential for influencers to grow on YouTube, Duchscher started working on branding and monetization strategies with DP (one of the highest paid YouTubers on the platform). He had the feeling that changes would come and that influencers and digital / social media marketing would take over traditional advertising channels and found his company NightMedia.
NightMedia started out with management, branding, and business development and has since grown into a full service agency working with clients providing strategic market plans, digital strategies, talent management, and more for some of the biggest players on YouTube.
A simple DM note from a mutual friend introduced Duchscher to Donaldson and the rest is history. NightMedia is helping a small number of channels generate an incredible amount of attention and engagement – an estimated 1 billion views per month, per climb. By the time you read this, Duchscher and Mr Beast are likely to have surpassed 50 million subscribers.
It’s not just about looks and fame, though. In fact, it is the opposite. Duchscher selects clients who not only have a passion for what they do, but also show the potential to become entrepreneurs when NightMedia invests and shares equity with developers creating new businesses and products.
Nothing has really changed about Duchscher’s core business philosophy and the values he has learned as an athlete. Yes, he works with the top talent and makes a lot of money in his field, but he still has the Jerry Maguire mentality that forces him to show up for his clients in very personal and meaningful ways every day.
You can watch the full episode of Behind the NightMedia Co. Brand below and read a very educational case study at school about how to do branded business, attract attention, and do talent management the right way. Enjoy!
Comments are closed.