Welcome to Creators Going Pro, where in partnership with Semaphore — a creator-focused family of companies providing business and financial services to social media professionals — we profile professional YouTube stars who have hit it big by doing what they love. Each week, we’ll chat with a creator about the business side of their channel, including identifying their Semaphore Moment — the moment they truly went pro.
When Tal Fishman started his main YouTube channel, Reaction Time, he did so because he was inspired by the platform’s top creators. Now, just two years later, he is one of YouTube’s top creators, with Reaction Time counting more than 10 million subscribers and netting between 100 million and 200 million views every single month.
Even in the early days of Reaction Time, Fishman attracted a constant influx of new subscribers — often more than 100,000 per month — by regularly posting videos where he’d react to some of the top trending videos on the web. Over the years, his content strategy has shifted slightly to include more videos that are 100% Fishman’s own content, and that’s proved popular, pushing his average subscriber gain to 297,232 per month in the last year.
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His solo success made him want to see what he could achieve in a more collaborative creator setting, too. So, for the past few months, he’s turned his focus to the more recently created Free Time, which co-features his brother, Adi Fishman, and five of Tal’s closest friends: Nick Mayorga, Cenna Rashidi, Anthony Rivera, Michael Rosillo, and Joseph Sim. Together — and with heaps of effortless BFF chemistry — they tackle challenges from fans, playfully call one another out, and sometimes pay each other $1,000 to eat scorpions.
Free Time has 1.4 million subscribers, with an average gain of 65,000 per month — which means Tal, who’s 21, is balancing constant content creation for two fast-growing channels. Check out our chat with him below about his YouTube origins, how he grew his audience, how he combats burnout, and the future he envisions for Free Time.
Tubefilter: Tell us about your background! What did you do before YouTube?
Tal Fishman: Nothing too crazy — I was just an average full-time student with lots of free time on my hands. Whenever I had this free time, my brother and I would film a YouTube video for our channel, where we would post comedy skits! The original name for the channel was “Tal and Short” pertaining to the fact that my brother was way shorter than me at the time. Oh how things have changed!
Tubefilter: What made you choose YouTube as the place to share your content? What was the catalyst for you deciding to start a channel?
Tal Fishman: YouTube, for me, was always an aspiration inspired by my favorite creators. I would watch YouTube videos every single day after school for hours on end. Seeing commentary, comedy skits, and even vlog channels with their entertaining and engaging video content made me want to do the exact same thing with my own twist!
Tubefilter: Your first channel Reaction Time grew very popular very quickly—it’s only two years old, and you’ve got 10 million subscribers. How did you find your audience?
Tal Fishman: To be honest, I had no real expectations for Reaction Time. Being the YouTube addict that I was, I simply wanted to contribute and overall thoroughly enjoyed the process of reviewing popular videos and sharing them to hopefully get a laugh or two from anyone who would stumble upon them. As time went on and my channel progressed, my overall content style has changed, but I still find that many people enjoy hearing another person’s commentary on the most popular videos circulating YouTube.
Tubefilter: When did you get your first check for online video revenue? How much was it?
Tal Fishman: The first check I ever received from YouTube was around $600. It was right around Mother’s Day, and I was so excited to finally be able to take my mom out for dinner. As small as it seems, it was always something I’d wanted to do for her, and I am still grateful to this day that my fans made it possible.
Tubefilter: What made you decide to take the plunge and start your newest project (also a fast-growing one!), Free Time? What’s it all about? Who’s involved?
Tal Fishman: While Reaction Time is pretty much my own, I wanted a collaborative channel that my friends and I could all be a part of. We all have so much fun together, and I just really thought it would be awesome to come together on a new channel with new ideas and new content.
Including me, there are eight people in Free Time, and we do a variety of things, from challenges suggested by fans to trying weird experiments, and lots in between. My favorite aspect is the fact that we are just a huge group of best friends that came together. We genuinely enjoy creating the content and have so much fun doing so, which I think really shows in the videos.
Tubefilter: When was that Semaphore Moment for you—the first time you realized you were a professional YouTube creator?
Tal Fishman: It was about four months after Reaction Time started getting more consistent viewership compared to “Tal and Short,” which was around for about two years with little viewership. It couldn’t have been better timing, either, because my dad had told me I had to find other work to help pay the bills. I really, truly owe everything to my fans.
Tubefilter: Do you see Free Time as the next step in your career? Are you planning other similar projects? How do you split your time when producing content for multiple channels?
Tal Fishman: Free Time is what I refer to as a “freebie” channel, where we do anything we find enticing! It is definitely my favorite, and while we all love it, it has become a major focus of mine. With that being said, the most difficult thing for me is finding time to balance these different channels, editing, and all the other behind-the-scenes tasks. There’s much more work than people even realize. One tactic that I’ve adopted in order to make the most of my time is filming multiple videos in one session, rather than one at a time.
Tubefilter: How did you come together with the large group of people collaborating on Free Time? What’s it like running a channel with so many other people and being part of such a large project? How are decisions made about what kind of content to produce?
Tal Fishman: All the members of Free Time are my friends from high school — a few, I’ve even known since we were kids! We run video ideas about two weeks before they are filmed, and then my brother runs to the store to get everything we need! Keeping the channel running and managing seven other guys can be daunting, but as long as everyone puts in the work and has a good time, it is something we can all look forward to.
P.S., cleaning up after filming is the worst!
Tubefilter: What’s production like for Free Time? Do you have a budget? Do you have a set filming schedule/upload schedule?
Tal Fishman: We try to film between three and six videos per filming session, and each video takes about one to two hours to complete. One time, we finished at four a.m.! We don’t base it off a set budget, but we do take cost into account and try not to go too overboard. We’ve found that the funniest videos were actually the simplest to produce, anyway!
Tubefilter: Have you ever struggled with creator burnout? What do you to combat it?
Tal Fishman: Burning out is something I think every creator constantly deals with. For example, I don’t go out on weekends due to my work schedule, but I find these losses to be minor compared to what I gain through these sacrifices. I can honestly say I have burnt out many times, but the best remedy is just to take a day off and let your mind refresh.
Tubefilter: Can you let us know how many people are on your behind-the-scenes team, both for Reaction Time and Free Time? What about a manager or network?
Tal Fishman: The crew behind my daily operations consists of a team of six talented editors, a network manager with Studio71, and my personal manager, David Rose.
Tubefilter: What’s next for you and your channels? What are you building toward?
Tal Fishman: As for Free Time, we are about to break that 1.5 million mark. We have really high-set goals for this channel and are determined to get there. I’m also majorly stoked to announce that with my clothing line, Timeless Brand, will be releasing a collection called “No Clout” very soon! While the collection basically just pokes fun at myself, I think it’s also a great message for my younger viewers to understand that needing something as superficial as “clout” isn’t necessary to achieve your goals.
Bottom line, over the next few months, I plan to put more focus on connecting and engaging with my fans, because without them I would not be where I am today.
Semaphore Business Solutions provides customized services for clients across the country, taking an all-encompassing approach to meet all your financial needs. Whether you’re a veteran YouTube entertainer or just starting out, managing your business correctly is crucial to avoiding major headaches down the road. The sooner you call us, the sooner we can help you put a plan into motion to grow, as well as to keep more money in your pocket, with advanced tax strategies. Semaphore Brand Solutions has established itself as a leading influencer marketing agency representing our exclusive talent relationships and services to the most recognized brands and agencies.
