Why Long-Form Content Brings Better Coaching Leads, With Brandon Forbes

This post pulls from the second half of my conversation with Brandon Forbes, where we got into content and funnels. If you want his full story, from going to jail at 17 to building his coaching business, read How Faith Transformed A Failed Entrepreneur Into A 200K/Month Coach.

Brandon helps coaches grow with ads. He runs ads on Instagram, on Skool, and on YouTube. So I was curious about something he told me before we hit record. He said his highest quality leads were coming from YouTube.

Why YouTube Wins For Him

I asked if that was still true. He didn't hesitate.

If you were asking me, Brandon, you could have unlimited calls from one source, what would it be? YouTube, a million percent.

His reason is simple. The people who watch your YouTube videos are your biggest fans. They watch your stuff. He said a podcast would probably be right under it.

The long form content is king. Like you can't beat it with short form.

That doesn't mean he skips short form. He said Instagram is great, but it's top of the funnel. If you use Instagram, you have to move people into some kind of long form asset, like a VSL or your YouTube channel.

Where Skool Fits

Brandon called Skool a close second. He likes that it combines a few things. You can chat with people like you would on Instagram, you can post in a group like Facebook, and he puts his YouTube videos right inside his Skool group.

His free Skool group came out of the same funnel thinking he used on Instagram. Instead of sending ad traffic to a paid community, he offered his notes and his ad training for free inside the group. When we talked, he said it had almost 13,000 members.

How He Uses Email

I asked how email fits in. His answer was refreshingly plain. He gets people's emails, and he uses email to point them back to his content.

Every week he sends an email about his Monday Bible study. Every week he sends out the YouTube video he posted. He invites people into his free Skool group, asks them to follow him on Instagram, and sends some encouragement.

I don't really ever pitch calls on email.

He was honest that he has never gone deep on drip campaigns, and he hasn't seen them work much for him. For Brandon, email is a way to keep people in the flow of his content.

His Weekly Content Flow

The question I hear from a lot of coaches is, I know I need to create content, but when, where, and how? Do I just give value, or do I ask for the sale? So I asked Brandon to walk through his week.

• One to two YouTube videos a week. All value or client interviews, with a call to action at the end to join the free Skool group or book a call.
• Share each video everywhere. An email goes out about it, he posts it in the Skool group, and he puts it on his Instagram story.
• A call to action on his story most days. Client screenshots and wins, or a two step offer like asking people to send him a word to get a free asset.
• Three to five reels a week. He admits that could probably be better.
• A call to action in Skool every day. Usually to start a conversation, like comment a word to get an asset.

He's not doing cold outreach right now. Everything runs on ads, content, and people raising their hand.

What I Took From It

What I like about Brandon's setup is that every piece has a job. Short form brings people in. Long form builds trust. Skool and email keep people close to the content, and the calls to action invite them into a conversation. None of it is complicated. It's just consistent.