How to Build a Tutorial Empire Like Ben Marriott

We got Ben Marriott on the podcast, and honestly, it's about time...

Ben's one of the best tutorial creators out there for After Effects and motion design, and his journey from freelance illustrator to full-time YouTuber happened faster than anyone expected (including him).

Joey sits down with Ben to get the real story on how he doubled his income with one sentence, built a tutorial business that let him quit client work in 8 months, and why he thinks AI "will make art worse." If you've ever thought about teaching, getting better at the tenuous "rate negotiation conversation", or just want to hear someone tell the truth about where this industry is headed, this one's for you.

💬 A few useful takeaways from our conversation:

Be brave for 10 seconds. Ben went into a salary negotiation planning to ask for $55K, got offered $60K, and somehow blurted out "I'm actually looking for $70K." They gave him $65K with a bump to $70K in three months. The same principle applies to going freelance. One awkward conversation about rates can literally change your income overnight.

Teaching forces you to actually understand your craft. You might think you know After Effects, but try explaining why you do something to someone else. You'll realize half your workflow is based on superstitions from a tutorial you watched years ago. Teaching solidifies your foundation and exposes the gaps.

Your "natural" self on camera needs to be scripted. This one's counterintuitive. Ben found he's actually more authentic when he writes things out, edits heavily, and adds graphics. The off-the-cuff approach that seems more genuine often falls flat. Being yourself requires curation.

Don't wait to share your work. The worst case scenario of putting something online? No one sees it. That's fine. Every successful person Ben admires put themselves out there when their work wasn't great yet. The cost of not trying is way higher than the cost of "failing."

Your style is the choices you consistently make. Not the choices you always make. It's not about locking yourself into one look forever. It's about noticing what you gravitate toward across projects and leaning into that. Flowers in everything? Great. Find the clients who need flowers.

You don't need to optimize everything. Ben spent years chasing the "right" career path, then realized he just wants to make art, maybe teach some tutorials, and put on an art show once a year. That's enough. You don't have to build an empire or hustle yourself into the ground.

Looking to ramp up your After Effects skills?

Be sure to check out Ben's tutorial channel:

And if you're looking to take a more structured approach to your mograph education, give School of Motion All Access a try. Get access to every course in our library, covering every major mograph app: After Effects, Cinema 4D, Premiere Pro, Blender, and more.