The spine: The rubric and the scoring card are fixed. The submissions are the variable, and they come from outside.
Rate My X is the only format on this list with an external supply line, which makes it the most durable one to run — and the most fragile to start. Week one has no submissions, so you have to seed it, and week two either has a queue or the format is already over.
The mechanism that makes it work is the rubric. Scoring against three named criteria every week turns an opinion into something the audience can argue with, apply themselves, and predict. Without the rubric you are just reacting, and reactions don't accumulate into a format.
The second mechanism is the fix. Every episode has to hand back something specific and actionable, because that is what people are paying you for when they submit. A series that scores without fixing gets one round of submissions and no more.
Best for: Expertise brands whose audience makes something they can show
The episode skeleton
Same beats every week. The timings are a starting shape, not a rule — what matters is the order and that no beat gets dropped.
- 10-3s
The rubric
State the three criteria before showing anything. Same three every week — they are the format. A score without a stated rubric is an opinion, and opinions can't be argued with or reused.
- 23-12s
Submission one
Show it, score each criterion, give the number. Keep the pace hard; the interest is in the verdict, not in the examination.
- 312-21s
Submission two
Identical structure, identical length. Varying the treatment between submissions makes the scores incomparable, which quietly destroys the rubric.
- 421-30s
The fix
One specific change for the lowest scorer — something they could do this afternoon. This is the value the whole format runs on and the reason the next batch of submissions arrives.
- 530-35s
The call
How to submit, phrased identically every week. Changing the wording resets the habit you are trying to build.
Decide once, then never again
This split is what makes a format cheaper every week instead of the same price every week.
Fixed forever
- The three criteria and the order you score them in
- The scoring card layout and the score range
- One fix per episode, for the lowest scorer
- The submission call, word for word
Changes each episode
- The submissions themselves
10 episodes to start with
Adapt each one to your own category. At the stated cadence this is roughly two months of the series before you have to think of anything new.
- 01Rate my workspace or setup
- 02Rate my first three seconds — hooks only
- 03Rate my product page above the fold
- 04Rate my pricing page
- 05Rate my portfolio piece
- 06Rate my packaging
- 07Rate my one-line pitch
- 08Rate my email subject line
- 09Rate my thumbnail
- 10Rate my before photo — lighting and framing only
How to build it in Versely
Every format on this hub is honest about how close the published library gets. This one has a workflow that already runs in this shape.
This workflow is built as verdict-then-reaction: two scenes of an expert giving a considered opinion, two of a reaction to it, with expert, product and reactor as separate locked assets. The rubric goes in the first pair and the submitter's material in the second.
The pieces
Caption preset
SnapWord-level emphasis that scales each spoken word suits a format whose payoff is a single number — the score lands on one word and the caption punches it rather than sliding past.
Once the first episode exists, the series itself is a schedule rather than a task: Run a recurring video series. Set it once. It writes a new version every time it runs.
Keeping it honest
Never invent a submission or attribute one to a person who didn't send it. If the queue is empty, run the episode on public examples and say plainly that these weren't submitted. Also get explicit permission before showing anything identifiable — a submission is not a licence to publish someone's name, business or address.
When to kill it
A format that has stopped working and keeps publishing is worse than no format at all. These are the signals to stop.
- Submissions stop arriving. That is the format telling you it's finished — do not keep it alive with invented entries.
- Every score lands in the same narrow band. Scores that never vary carry no information and viewers stop waiting for them.
- You catch yourself inflating scores to avoid awkwardness. A rating series with no low scores is a compliments series, and nobody submits to one twice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get the first submissions?+
Ask directly, in a place where people already talk to you — an email list, a community, a comment thread on an existing video. Seed the first episode with two or three examples you gathered by asking individuals, be transparent that you asked, and run the submission call at the end. The first queue is built by hand; only after that does it self-sustain.
How harsh should the scores be?+
Harsh enough that a high score means something, kind enough that people keep submitting. In practice that means being specific rather than severe: naming the exact thing that cost two points is useful, while a low number with a vague reason just reads as unkind.
Do I need permission to show a submission?+
Yes, and get it in the submission form rather than afterwards. Say clearly what will be shown, whether names are used, and that you may critique it publicly. Anything identifiable — a face, a business name, an address in a screenshot — needs explicit consent.
Can this run without an audience yet?+
Not really, and that's the honest answer. It is the one format on this list that requires a supply of other people's material. If you have no audience yet, run a format that generates its own supply first and switch to this once people are watching.
Other formats worth running
Customer Question of the Week
The most durable format on this list, because the supply is your support inbox and it refills itself.
WeeklyThis or That
Two options your audience already argues about, one frame, and a verdict you're willing to defend.
Weekly, or whenever you can genuinely test a pairBudget vs Premium
Answer the question every buyer in your category is actually asking: does the expensive one earn it?
Missing something you’d need to shoot this?
No camera, no studio, no presenter, no script — each gap has a route that still gets the episode made. The all-in-one AI studio for creators. 60+ models for video, image, voice, music and lipsync in a single app.