This is the fastest path from a brand-new account to research you can actually use. Everything here works on the free plan.
1. Open the outlier feed (2 min)
Head to Outliers. You're looking at videos scored against their own channels, sorted by how badly they beat their baseline.
Pick your niche from the niche filter, set format to Longform or Shorts, and set the minimum outlier score to 5x. You're now looking only at videos that did five times what their channel normally does.
2. Find the pattern, not the video (3 min)
Scan ten or fifteen thumbnails without reading a single title. What do the winners have in common — faces, text, high contrast, a single subject?
Now read the titles. Look for the recurring shape: a question, a number, a contradiction, a promise. The specific video is disposable; the packaging pattern is the asset.
3. Save what's worth stealing (1 min)
Bookmark the videos that make you think "I could do a version of that." Saved videos go to your boards, so the pattern you spotted today is still there next week when you're actually planning. See [Save videos to boards](/save-videos-to-boards).
4. Track the channels that keep winning (2 min)
When one channel shows up repeatedly in your filters, track it. Tracked channels are grouped into folders, and you can set an alert so you hear about it when one of them posts something that beats its own baseline. Free plans track up to 5 channels. See [Track channels and folders](/track-channels-and-folders).
5. Package your own video (2 min)
Take the pattern you found and run it through the Creator Tools — generate tags, a description, hashtags and timestamps for the video you're going to make. Then open Thumbnail Studio and design the thumbnail. All free.
Where to go next
- Curious what the score actually means? Read [The outlier score, explained](/the-outlier-score-explained).
- Want to check a topic before committing to it? That's [Niche Explorer](/niche-explorer-score-a-topic-before-you-commit).
- Want to break down a specific channel? That's [Live Analyze](/live-analyze-break-down-any-channel).