Earnings examples
Worked examples in accepted hours: a small crew, a mid-size company and a book of ten companies. Multiply any total by $2.00 per accepted hour to get your fee.
On this page
How to read these
Each example starts with recorders, shift length and shifts a week, then assumes how much of the recorded time is accepted. These are examples, not forecasts. Every company's hours are its own.
Example
The formula
Recorders × hours per shift × shifts a week = recorded hours a week.
Recorded hours × the share accepted = accepted hours a week.
Accepted hours × $2.00 per accepted hour = your fee for that week.
Example 1: a small crew
Example
Three recorders on four-hour night shifts, five nights a week
3 recorders × 4 hours × 5 shifts = 60 recorded hours a week.
Say about two in three recorded hours are accepted: about 40 accepted hours a week.
Over four weeks at that pace: about 160 accepted hours.
Your fee: 160 accepted hours times $2.00 per accepted hour.
Three phones on four-hour shifts use about half of what the phones could record. That leaves room to grow without new phones: longer shifts, or more nights a week for the same recorders.
The first four weeks are lower
A new company ramps up. Colby's ramp-up plan has week 1 at about a third of the planned hours, week 2 at about two-thirds, and full pace from week 3. First-week videos are also the most likely to get notes, so acceptance often starts lower.
| Week | Recorded hours | Share accepted (example) | Accepted hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 20 | About half | 10 |
| Week 2 | 40 | About two in three | 27 |
| Week 3 | 60 | About two in three | 40 |
| Week 4 | 60 | About two in three | 40 |
| Total | 180 | About 117 |
That is about 117 accepted hours in the first four weeks, against about 160 at full pace. Plan for the first stretch of every new company to look like this.
Example 2: a mid-size company
Example
Eight recorders on six-hour day shifts, five days a week
8 recorders × 6 hours × 5 shifts = 240 recorded hours a week.
Say about three in four are accepted: 180 accepted hours a week.
Over four weeks at full pace: about 720 accepted hours.
Over a year at that pace (48 working weeks): about 8,640 accepted hours.
Your fee: accepted hours times $2.00 per accepted hour.
A bigger company takes more setup. More places need a written OK, and more recorders need accounts and a first check. Plan for its ramp to run longer than a small crew's.
Example 3: a book of ten companies
| Companies | Like | Accepted hours a week, each | Accepted hours a week, all |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Example 1: three recorders | 40 | 200 |
| 3 | Example 2: eight recorders | 180 | 540 |
| 1 | New, in its second week | 27 | 27 |
| 1 | Stopped recording | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | About 767 |
That is about 767 accepted hours a week. Over four weeks at that pace, about 3,070 accepted hours, times $2.00 per accepted hour.
In this example, three companies carry most of the hours. Keeping those three recording matters more than any single new sign-up, and getting the stopped company going again is worth a phone call.
What changes the math
| Change to Example 1 | Recorded hours a week | Accepted hours a week |
|---|---|---|
| Example 1 as it is | 60 | 40 |
| One more recorder (4 in all) | 80 | About 53 |
| Six-hour shifts instead of four | 90 | 60 |
| Six shifts a week instead of five | 72 | 48 |
| One phone sits unused | 40 | About 27 |
| Acceptance drops to about one in three | 60 | 20 |
| Acceptance rises to about nine in ten | 60 | 54 |
Acceptance moves the number as much as a new recorder does. Getting a crew from one in three accepted to two in three doubles its accepted hours without a single new phone. In Example 1, one phone that sits unused costs a third of the company's hours.
What moves your earnings covers each of these and which ones you can influence.
Using numbers with owners
For your own planning, use your real numbers once you have them. Companies and Earnings in your portal show recorded and accepted hours for each company.
Questions
Why two in three accepted?
It is an example. Acceptance depends on the crew and the camera setup, and it usually starts lower in the first week. Use your own companies' numbers once you have a few weeks of them.
Can one phone record more than 40 hours a week?
Colby's company hours page counts 40 hours a week per phone as full use. Plan around that.
Can two people share one account?
No. Each recorder makes their own account in the recording app, with their own email and the company's invite code. The owner tells Colby before a phone goes to a new person.
Do the examples include the ramp-up?
Only the table under The first four weeks are lower. The other examples are at full pace.