Is Video Editing Really a Time Sink?

Let’s be honest: video editing can be a massive time suck. From cutting clips and adding transitions to syncing audio and perfecting color, it often feels like you need a dedicated studio and a team of experts to produce anything decent.

For many, the sheer complexity is a barrier to creating the engaging video content that’s essential for today’s digital landscape.

So, when someone tells you AI can simplify this entire process, making professional-grade video editing accessible to anyone, your skepticism is probably at an all-time high.

Mine too.

But what if the tools have finally caught up, allowing you to create stunning videos without the steep learning curve?

🎁 FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

I always try to add more value to my readers, and here are all the resources I have share:

AI Solopreneur Toolkit - Download
Giant list of 1,500+ AI tools and websites - Download

🔍 PROMPT OF THE WEEK

Wanna improve your prompts and create precise ones? USE THIS MASTER PROMPT.

🖼️ IMAGE OF THE WEEK

🧰 AI TOOL OF THE WEEK

Kapwing

What is Kapwing?
Kapwing is an online collaborative content creation platform that empowers users to create and edit videos, images, and GIFs with ease. It's particularly known for its intuitive interface and a suite of AI-powered tools that simplify complex editing tasks, making it accessible for creators of all skill levels. Think of it as your go-to browser-based studio for quick, high-quality content production.

But does it actually work?
Here’s the messy truth: Kapwing is designed to remove the friction from content creation. It offers a wide range of features, from basic trimming and resizing to advanced AI capabilities like automatic subtitling, background removal, and smart cut. This means you can quickly repurpose long-form content into short, engaging clips for social media, create professional presentations, or even produce polished marketing videos, all without downloading any software.

Key Features that Matter:

• AI Smart Tools: Automatic subtitling, background removal, smart cut (removes silences), text-to-speech, and more.

• Intuitive Online Editor: A user-friendly interface for trimming, cropping, resizing, adding text, images, and music.

• Collaborative Workspace: Work with team members in real-time on projects.

• Extensive Template Library: Start with pre-designed templates for various platforms and content types.

• Stock Media Integration: Access millions of royalty-free images, videos, and audio tracks.

• Repurpose Content: Easily transform videos into different formats and aspect ratios for various social media platforms.

Mini Tutorial: Auto-Generating Subtitles with Kapwing

1. Go to Kapwing.com and sign up for a free account.

2. Click "Start editing" or "New Project."

3. Upload your video file (or paste a link from YouTube, TikTok, etc.).

4. Once your video is in the editor, look for the "Subtitles" tool in the left sidebar.

5. Click "Auto-generate." Kapwing's AI will transcribe your audio and create subtitles.

6. Review and edit the subtitles for accuracy. You can easily adjust timings and correct any errors.

7. Customize the appearance of your subtitles (font, size, color, position).

8. Once satisfied, click "Export Project" to download your video with embedded subtitles.

Pro tip: Kapwing's "Smart Cut" feature is really powerful for podcasts and interviews. It automatically detects and removes silences, making your content more concise and engaging. Experiment with different AI tools to see how much time you can save on repetitive editing tasks.

Bottom line: Kapwing is a powerful, accessible tool that leverages AI to make video editing faster and more efficient. It's ideal for content creators, marketers, and anyone who needs to produce high-quality video without the traditional headaches.

💸 AI INCOME USE CASE

Self-Publishing Low-Content Books on Amazon KDP

Self-publishing on Amazon KDP isn't new, but one entrepreneur has been consistently growing their income, hitting over $2,300 in profit in March, by focusing on low and medium-content books. This isn't about writing novels; it's about strategic niche selection, quality production, and smart advertising, proving that consistent effort in a proven market can lead to significant income.

The Problem:
The KDP market can feel saturated, and many new publishers focus on pumping out low-quality books for quick sales that don't last. The real challenge is to create books that sell consistently over the long term and to effectively reach the right audience.

The Playbook:

• Focus on Quality & Long-Term Sales: After two and a half years of publishing fiction with limited success, the entrepreneur shifted to "higher quality" low and medium-content books (puzzle books, coloring books, activity books). The goal is "long-term sales for years rather than pumping out books and trying to get those initial sales."

• Set Monthly Goals: To stay motivated and reduce procrastination, the entrepreneur sets clear monthly goals (e.g., publish three books, hit 1,500 book orders, achieve $2,500 profit).

• Diversify Marketplaces (Foreign Languages): Beyond the US and UK, the entrepreneur started adapting existing coloring and activity books for the German marketplace, seeing 65 sales in March—a significant jump from the usual 6-7. This taps into less competitive markets.

• Track Growth Over Time: Don't get discouraged by month-to-month fluctuations. Zoom out and look at year-on-year growth. The entrepreneur saw over 500 more orders than March 2024 and over 1,500 more than March 2023, indicating consistent upward trajectory.

• Strategic Amazon Ads:

  • Budgeting: Ad spend was $1,449 in March, a significant increase, but it generated almost 600 orders at a $0.30 cost per click, with an ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sale) under 25%.

  • Profitability Metric: The entrepreneur aims for a royalty of around $2.50 per book, knowing that the estimated cost per sale through ads is about $2.48. This ensures ads are profitable or near break-even.

  • Testing & Learning: New marketplaces (like Germany) require testing. Initial German ads had a higher ACoS (37.1%) due to aggressive bidding on broad keywords. The lesson: dial back bids, focus on longer-tail keywords, and avoid overly broad search terms.

  • Broad vs. Exact Match: Broad match types can be "scattergun" and expensive. Focus on "exact and phrase match types and on slightly longer tail keyword strings" for better targeting and lower costs.

• Know When to Pivot: If a book isn't selling well after a month of ad testing, it might be time to "give up on that book completely and focus on creating a new book." Alternatively, translate it into other languages to test different markets.

• Transparency: The entrepreneur shares all income, ad spend, and expenses, providing a realistic view of KDP profitability.

The Messy Truth:
While the entrepreneur hit book order goals, the profit target was missed due to increased ad spend, particularly in the German market. This highlights the constant need for testing and optimization. KDP is a long game, requiring continuous learning and adaptation.

Actionable Takeaway:
If you're considering self-publishing, focus on creating high-quality low/medium-content books that solve a specific need. Don't be afraid to test foreign marketplaces. Use Amazon Ads strategically, focusing on profitable ACoS and precise keyword targeting. Track your growth over the long term, and be prepared to test, learn, and pivot when necessary.

🤑 AI INCOME Q&A

Q: "How do I price AI-generated artwork when it takes minutes to create?" - Leila T.

A: Price based on commercial usage rights, not creation time. A basic personal-use image might be $25-50, while commercial usage starts at $100-250, and exclusive rights for business use can command $500+. One newsletter subscriber creates AI-generated product photography backgrounds and charges $75 per image or $350 for a package of 5. Clients happily pay because professional photography would cost them thousands.

 🌱 LIFE BEYOND AI

Heading to Austin, Texas in a month’s time. Any recommendations? I’m interested in food and the outdoors, and I really prefer to avoid the usual tourist routes!

🛠️ TOOLS THAT MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER

1. Abacus.ai → Use all the latest LLMs and build custom AI applications for an extremely low cost

2. Later → All-in-one platform to manage social media content, track performance, and grow online presence

3. beehiiv → Build, grow, and monetize your newsletters (use my link to get 30-day trial + 20% OFF for 3 months)

4. Recraft → Create high-quality images and vector graphics, with features like background removal and style customization

5. LumaLabs → Create high-quality images and videos from text and images, including 3D models.

6. Beacons → Customize link-in-bio pages + building your online store

7. Descript → AI-powered video and audio editing platform to create professional-looking content

8. ElevenLabs → Create ultra-realistic text-to-speech voices in multiple languages

🕵️‍♂️ A SURPRISE INSIDE

This might hold something you didn’t know you wanted to know…

And that’s a wrap for this week.

If you have any questions, feedback, or just want to say hi, please hit “reply”. I do my best to respond to every single email.

Thank for so much for your support!

☄️ Let’s make moves,
Keith
Chief Human Officer, Optimizing With AI