PixelUp Agency L3 — What If I Went Viral?
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Slide 01 / 06
The Viral Effect
One video. Everything changes. But by how much?
PixelUp — L3
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What "going viral" actually looks like
A normal @ZaraPlays gaming video gets around 80,000–120,000 views. Then one video — a reaction to a major gaming controversy — gets 11 million views in a weekend. Monthly views go from 1.9M to 14M.
Monthly views comparison:
Normal month
1.9M
1.9M
After going viral
14M
14M
The question PixelUp needs answered: If views multiply by 7×, does revenue also multiply by 7×? (Spoiler: no — and the model will show us exactly why.)
What we'll model today
  • A Growth Multiplier input cell — change it from 1.0 to 7.0 to simulate going viral
  • A Projected Views column — monthly views × multiplier
  • A Projected Revenue column — based on projected views
  • An IF function to automatically flag whether each creator is on track to hit their target
  • MAX and MIN to instantly identify the top and bottom performers
Teacher Notes
This slide works best if you have a real example ready. MrBeast's "I Spent 7 Days Buried Alive" got 100M+ views in a week. Closer to home, UK creators like Soph Aspin or various gaming channels have had overnight viral moments students may know. The key teaching point: views are only one revenue stream — sponsorships and merch don't automatically scale with views (a useful surprise discovery in the worksheet).
Slide 02 / 06
The IF Function
Make your spreadsheet make decisions
PixelUp — L3
IF syntax
IF
Projected Revenue > Target Revenue
← The condition to test
THEN
"On Track"
← What to show if TRUE
ELSE
"Needs Work"
← What to show if FALSE
=IF(H3>E3, "On Track", "Needs Work")
Reading the formula
  • H3 = Projected Revenue for this creator
  • E3 = Their Target Monthly Revenue
  • If H3 is greater than E3 → show "On Track"
  • If H3 is not greater than E3 → show "Needs Work"
IF uses comparison operators:
> greater than  |  < less than
>= greater than or equal  |  = equal to
<> not equal to
Teacher Notes
Common error: students write =IF(H3>E3, On Track, Needs Work) without the quote marks — Google Sheets will error. Text values in IF must be in quotes. Also: =IF(H3>E3,"On Track","Needs Work") with no spaces works fine, but encourage readable spacing. Ask: "What would happen if we used >= instead of > in our condition?" — it changes the behaviour only when revenue exactly equals the target.
Slide 03 / 06
MAX and MIN
Instantly find the top and bottom of any dataset
PixelUp — L3
🏆
MAX — Find the highest value
Returns the largest value in a range.
=MAX(H3:H7)
"Find the highest projected revenue across all 5 creators." Use this to identify who's performing best.
📉
MIN — Find the lowest value
Returns the smallest value in a range.
=MIN(H3:H7)
"Find the lowest projected revenue." Use this to identify who needs the most support from the agency.
Combining MAX with IF
We can use MAX to find the best revenue, then use IF to label that specific creator:
=IF(H3=MAX(H$3:H$7), "⭐ Top Earner", "")
Note: H$3:H$7 has a locked row but not column — this is a "mixed reference". Only the rows are locked so the range doesn't shift when copied down.
Quick challenge: How would you write a formula to find the creator with the highest watch time rather than revenue? Which column would you change?
Teacher Notes
The combined MAX+IF formula introduces mixed references ($3:$7 with locked rows). This is a good stretch concept — don't require it from all students, but mention it exists. The challenge question at the bottom ("highest watch time") tests transfer of knowledge — students should identify changing H$3:H$7 to the watch time column. This is a good cold-call question for the class.
Slide 04 / 06
Sorting Data in Google Sheets
See your best performers at a glance
PixelUp — L3
Sort by Projected Revenue
  • 1Click anywhere inside your data table
  • 2Go to Data → Sort range → Advanced range sorting options
  • 3Tick "Data has a header row"
  • 4Choose your Projected Revenue column in the "Sort by" dropdown
  • 5Choose Z → A (descending — highest first)
  • 6Click Sort
Why sorting matters
At PixelUp, when a client asks "who's our biggest earner?" you want to answer in seconds, not scan every row manually. Sorting makes patterns immediately visible — especially useful with large datasets.
Important: In Google Sheets, sorting reorders the actual data rows. After sorting, your IF and MAX formulas still work correctly — they reference the data, not the row position. Try sorting both ways to check.
Alternative — SORT function: Google Sheets has a =SORT() function that creates a sorted copy of your data without changing the original. This is useful when you need to keep the original order intact.
Teacher Notes
Students sometimes sort a single column instead of the whole dataset — this scrambles the rows so creator names no longer match their revenue data. Demo this mistake first, then show the correct approach (selecting all data before sorting, or using Data → Sort range). The SORT function is an extension concept — mention it but don't require it in the worksheet.
Slide 05 / 06
Scenario Modelling
What if? Ask the question — the model answers it
PixelUp — L3
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Scenario A — Normal
Growth Multiplier = 1.0

Business as usual. Revenue based on typical monthly views. Some creators on track; some need to improve.
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Scenario B — Growth
Growth Multiplier = 1.5

Modest growth — maybe a new series is launched or posting frequency increased. How many creators now hit their target?
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Scenario C — Viral
Growth Multiplier = 7.0

Going viral. Views explode. But notice: sponsorship and merch revenue doesn't multiply — those deals are already signed. The model reveals the real impact.
The power of a model: Without the spreadsheet, a creator asking "what happens to my income if I go viral?" would have to guess. With the model, they get a specific, realistic answer in seconds — and they can test any scenario by changing just one cell.
Teacher Notes
This is the conceptual payoff of the last three lessons. The model is now genuinely useful — not just a formatting exercise. Point out: in Scenario C (viral), only ad revenue multiplies by 7; sponsorship and merch don't change because those deals were agreed before the viral moment. This is a key real-world insight. Ask: "What would @ZaraPlays need to do AFTER going viral to convert the attention into higher sponsorship rates?" (Negotiate better rates for future deals, using the viral moment as leverage).
Slide 06 / 06
Garbage In, Garbage Out
A model is only as good as the values put into it
PixelUp — L3
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Why realistic inputs matter
If we set Growth Multiplier = 100, the model will happily calculate that @ZaraPlays earns £1.5 million from ads next month. The formula is correct — the input is absurd. The model can't protect you from your own bad assumptions.
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How to make inputs credible
  • Research real benchmarks (YouTube CPM tables, typical creator growth rates)
  • Use historical data to validate your assumptions
  • Build in multiple scenarios (best case, worst case, most likely)
  • In Lesson 4, we'll add validation rules to prevent impossible values being entered
Real-world consequence: The 2008 financial crisis was partly caused by financial models that used unrealistic assumptions about US house prices. The models were mathematically correct — but "garbage in" produced catastrophically wrong outputs. Understanding model limitations is as important as building them.
✅ Your tasks today
  1. Import the L3 starter.csv — it includes current revenue and targets
  2. Add a Growth Multiplier input cell (name it Growth_Rate)
  3. Add Projected Views column (Monthly Views × Growth_Rate)
  4. Add Projected Revenue column using Growth_Rate
  5. Add IF Status column: "On Track" or "Needs Work"
  6. Find MAX projected revenue with a formula
  7. Sort by Projected Revenue descending
  8. Test Scenarios A, B, and C by changing one cell
Teacher Notes
The 2008 financial crisis reference is worth expanding if students are engaged: the models used assumed US house prices could never fall nationally. When they did, every output was wrong. This connects computational thinking (model limitations) to real-world consequences — and is genuinely curriculum-relevant for some exam specs. Exit ticket suggestion: ask students to name ONE assumption in their PixelUp model that might be unrealistic.