For those unaware, Andrew Tate became the most Googled person on the planet earlier this year. Names like Donald Trump and Joe Biden became less interesting to internet searchers than Andrew Tate.
Everyone seems to be talking about how much they love or hate this guy, what he stands for, and where he came from.
But far fewer have posed the question: how did he accomplish this level of notoriety in such short order?
How did one man go from relative obscurity to being more internet famous than anyone else alive?
In this post, I’ll examine the process and methods used by Andrew Tate to achieve monumental success in short order.
Background
First: who is Andrew Tate and why does anyone care?
Andrew Tate is a four-time world champion kickboxer. He once appeared on the UK’s Big Brother, where he got kicked off the show. He’s also appeared on several other reality TV shows throughout his life.
But none of this has much to do with the man’s recent fame.
In little more than six months, this guy took over the entire internet. After being banned and de-platformed from almost all mainstream social media platforms (at which point his success and notoriety skyrocketed even further), he has gone on to appear on national TV shows like Piers Morgan’s Uncensored.
Here’s a screenshot showing Andrew Tate’s Google Interest peaking at 100 during August of 2022:
His controversial takes on masculinity, money, gender roles, and self-improvement are a big part of what got people talking about him. Tate has appeared on many podcasts and YouTube channels which receive millions or even tens of millions of viewers and listeners.
Andrew Tate’s brother, Tristan Tate, also appears in much of the content.
Important Note: Not an Endorsement
First, I encourage readers to proceed with an open mind and objective perspective.
I’m not here to argue for or against anything Andrew Tate has to say. The specifics of his content are not the subject here. Rather, I’m going to look at the marketing methods that made him so successful.
To be fair, Andrew Tate was already successful before his recent fame. The man was a multi-millionaire before anyone knew his name. Details of his past entrepreneurial endeavors can be found online easily, and aren’t relevant for our purposes here.
Money had little to do with Tate’s marketing successes, however. Instead, he employed a strategy that the world has never seen before.
And while certain elements of these tactics were already well-known and widely used, the marketing campaign as a whole represents a massive undertaking that was executed in a way that has never been done to date.
Tate is fond of proclaiming his intent to “conquer the world.”
It only took about six months for him to accomplish that, at least in terms of virality online.
Here’s how it happened.
Step 1: Create Controversy
It began with Tate appearing on many different podcasts espousing his views on money, life, and gender roles.
Most of his conversations were with people who disagreed with his views. He would often be over-the-top with his enthusiastic communication, making for an entertaining show.
A lot of his speaking involved encouraging young men to live up to their potential, pleading for the public to be less manipulated by the media, and bragging about his finances and previous fighting prowess.
But mixed in with these more positive comments would be the occasional sexist remark, unruly rant, or controversial worldview.
This was no accident. Tate has stated publicly that he sometimes uses controversy and deliberate provocation to “emotionally manipulate” people, arousing their anger to make for a more interesting and compelling conversation.
This element was key in setting the stage for a rise to radical fame.
Step 2: Get Banned
Perhaps the most crucial and ingenious part of Tate’s strategy was this: most of his content doesn’t exist on his own channels.
Instead, he appeared on dozens of other people’s podcasts and YouTube channels. This way, even after being de-platformed, he’s still everywhere. YouTube, Instagram, and other social media networks still have tons of Tate’s content all over them.
It may seem counterintuitive, but getting banned was the best thing that ever happened to Tate, at least in terms of his popularity.
Here’s how it worked:
- A large portion of Tate’s content is inspirational, motivational speaking aimed at a male audience between the ages of 18 – 27.
- But a portion of that content also contains ideas about masculinity and traditional gender roles that many people find offensive.
- So, when he was banned, these potentially offensive words were mostly weeded out as platforms sought to enforce their terms of service.
What does that leave us with?
A whole bunch of videos and podcasts that make the man look like a saint. Everything he says (that remains online and uncensored) encourages young men to become the best version of themselves, strive to get more out of life, and refuse to settle for lesser expectations that others and society may have placed upon them.
YouTube channels have popped up devoted to “Tate Inspiration” or “Make Money Like Tate,” or similar names.
These are not things that Tate paid for. Why would he have to do such a thing? He’s already rich and famous.
Rather, because his content has seen so much engagement, other people have every incentive to try and piggyback off it.
Take this blog post and related podcast episode, for example. There’s a good chance I’ll get traction with this topic simply because the name Andrew Tate appears in the title.
The only difference is that I’m offering a unique marketing perspective that no one else has shared to date, at least as far as I know (if you know of others who have broken down this process in a similar way, please say so in the comments below).
Step 3: Make a Comeback
After being banned, Tate’s popularity skyrocketed.
Personally, I never knew this guy existed until I heard about him being banned.
Within just a few months of being banned, Tate began appearing on even bigger shows than ever before. He’s gained an audience with people he never would have without executing the first two steps.
All of this had led to his net worth increasing by at least ten-fold. By some estimates, the man is said to be worth $350 million dollars.
Great job, social media tyrants – your efforts to silence someone backfired spectacularly.
Of course, it would be almost impossible to erase Tate from the internet at this point. There are too many different channels with his content on them.
And even if they all disappeared tomorrow, within a week, new channels would pop up with re-purposed content from the Tate brothers.
Andrew Tate’s Master Plan
Tate has said that this whole process was “step 1 in part of a 3-step plan.” The three steps I’ve described here constitute a breakdown of what he describes as the first step.
What his next steps might be remains to be seen.
One thing’s for certain: it will be big, and it will be entertaining. This man was raised by a chess grandmaster, and he seems to view everything through the lens of a chessboard.
Now that the playbook has been revealed, others have already started employing this strategy in their own ways, whether they know what they’re doing or not.
There are a growing number of examples where an individual has said something controversial, gotten de-platformed, and subsequently seen their popularity and success shoot to the moon.
What do you think of Andrew Tate?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below.