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Everything you need to know about SummarizeShark. If Herald hasn't answered it here, email us at support@summarizeshark.com.

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"I've read more books than most people have watched cat videos, and I still find these questions refreshingly direct. Let me answer them with the precision of a hammerhead and the warmth of a shark in a tuxedo who genuinely wants you to learn faster and waste less time."
— Herald Hammer Sharkington, Chief Knowledge Officer

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⚡ How It Works 💳 Pricing & Plans 📄 Transcripts ⚙️ Account 🔧 Technical 💰 Affiliates
How It Works 8 questions
What exactly is SummarizeShark?
SummarizeShark turns any YouTube video into a structured 6-section executive summary delivered to your inbox. Paste a URL, and within minutes you receive a full breakdown — key ideas, verbatim quotes, actionable takeaways, hidden gems, and recommended next steps. No watching required. Herald handles the hard part.
How do I submit a video for summarization?
Two ways: (1) Use the free sample form on the homepage — paste any YouTube URL, enter your email, and click submit. (2) Log in to your dashboard and use the "New Summary" tab. Both routes deliver the summary to your inbox and save it to your account.
What's included in the 6-section summary format?
Every summary includes: (1) BLUF — the bottom line up front in 3-6 bullets. (2) Executive Summary — a 6-9 sentence overview. (3) Verbatim Quotes — the top 10 most important direct quotes with timestamps. (4) Actionable Takeaways — ranked by revenue/impact potential, not chronologically. (5) Hidden Gems — insights most people miss. (6) Recommended Next Steps — what to do with what you just learned. Structured for people who make decisions, not just consume content.
How quickly will I receive my summary?
Most summaries arrive within 5–15 minutes depending on video length. Power and Dangerously Consistent subscribers get priority processing and are typically first in queue. Free samples are processed in the standard queue. You'll receive the summary as a formatted HTML email — no login required to read it.
What types of YouTube videos work best?
SummarizeShark works on any publicly available YouTube video with audio. It excels at: expert interviews, earnings calls and investor presentations, online courses and lectures, conference keynotes, podcast recordings, and long-form educational content. It works less well on music videos, non-English content (English only currently), or videos with no meaningful spoken content.
Can I summarize a full YouTube playlist?
Yes — playlist batch mode is available on the Dangerously Consistent plan. Submit a playlist URL and we'll process all videos sequentially, delivering each summary to your inbox as it completes. Perfect for online courses, conference recordings, or that 47-video backlog you've been meaning to get to.
Is there a free trial?
Yes — your first summary is completely free. No credit card required. Just go to the homepage, paste any YouTube URL, enter your email, and Herald will deliver a full 6-section executive summary to your inbox within minutes. One free summary per email address.
Where are my summaries saved?
Every summary is saved to your account dashboard, accessible at summarizeshark.com/dashboard. Advanced plan: 90-day history. Power plan: 1-year history. Dangerously Consistent: unlimited history, forever. Free sample users can see their most recent summary. Summaries are also delivered to your email so you always have a copy regardless of plan.
💳 Pricing & Plans 9 questions
How are minutes counted?
Minutes are based on the video's runtime. A 60-minute video uses 60 minutes from your monthly balance. A 90-second short uses 1.5 minutes. It's a 1:1 ratio — no penalties, no rounding up to the nearest 10. Unused minutes roll over for one month so you never lose what you've paid for.
What happens if I exceed my monthly minutes?
You're never blocked from submitting. Overage minutes are charged at your plan's overage rate: $0.15/min (Advanced), $0.10/min (Power), $0.07/min (Dangerously Consistent). Overage is billed at the end of your billing period. If you're regularly going over, it usually means upgrading is cheaper than paying overage.
Do unused minutes roll over?
Yes — unused minutes carry over for one month. So if you have 500 minutes left at the end of January, you start February with your normal allocation plus those 500. Rollover minutes expire after one month — they don't accumulate indefinitely. This prevents the "I've been paying for months but never used it" regret.
Which plan does Herald recommend?
Herald recommends the Power plan for most professionals. At $29.99/month for 4,000 minutes (66 hours of video), it covers a serious professional's content consumption with room to spare. You get priority processing, PDF downloads, and a year of history. If you're a fund manager, researcher, or prolific content creator — Dangerously Consistent is your plan. You know who you are.
What's the difference between monthly and annual billing?
Annual billing gives you 2 months free — you pay for 10 months and get 12. The monthly minute allocation stays the same either way. Annual plans are billed once per year upfront. If you cancel an annual plan mid-year, access continues until the end of the paid period — no partial refunds.
Can I upgrade or downgrade my plan?
Yes. Upgrades take effect immediately — you get the higher minute allocation right away, prorated for the remainder of the billing period. Downgrades take effect at the start of your next billing cycle. You won't lose access to existing summaries when downgrading, though history access may be limited based on your new plan's retention policy.
Can I cancel my subscription anytime?
Yes, cancel anytime with no penalties, no cancellation fees, no guilt trips. Your access continues until the end of your current billing period. We don't do hostage subscriptions — Herald would never stand for it. To cancel, go to your dashboard → Account & Plan → Manage Subscription.
Is there a Teams or multi-seat plan?
A Teams plan is coming soon at $199/month — 3 seats, 8,000 shared minutes, and a shared knowledge dashboard. If you're interested in early access or have a larger team (5+ seats), email support@summarizeshark.com and we'll work something out.
Do you offer discounts for students or nonprofits?
Not officially yet — but email support@summarizeshark.com with your situation. Herald has a soft spot for people who are genuinely trying to learn. We'll see what we can do.
📄 Transcripts 5 questions
What makes your transcripts better than YouTube's auto-captions?
YouTube auto-captions regularly garble technical terminology, drop filler words that reveal intent ("I mean, technically..."), and miss speaker context entirely. Our transcription captures near 100% verbatim audio — every qualifier, every hedge, every "actually, let me correct that." In earnings calls, expert interviews, and technical lectures, the nuance IS the insight. Caption tech misses it. We don't.
Can I access the full transcript, not just the summary?
Yes — full transcripts are stored and accessible in your dashboard under the "Transcripts" tab. Power and Dangerously Consistent subscribers can view, copy, and download full transcripts. Advanced plan users get transcript access for their 90-day history window. Transcripts are also included in your summary email.
Are transcripts stored permanently?
Transcript retention follows your plan's history policy: Advanced — 90 days. Power — 1 year. Dangerously Consistent — unlimited, forever. If you need a transcript beyond your retention window, you can always re-submit the video URL and it'll be re-processed using your current minute balance.
Do you support non-English videos?
Currently SummarizeShark supports English-language videos only. Multi-language support is on the roadmap. If there's a specific language you need urgently, email support@summarizeshark.com — high demand languages will be prioritized.
What's the maximum video length you can process?
There's no hard cap on video length — we've processed videos over 4 hours. Very long videos (3+ hours) may take slightly longer to process. They also use more of your monthly minutes proportionally. A 3-hour video = 180 minutes from your balance. For reference, the Advanced plan's 1,800 minutes covers about 30 hours of video content per month.
⚙️ Account 5 questions
How do I sign in to my dashboard?
Go to summarizeshark.com/login. You can sign in with Google (one click) or use a Magic Link — enter your email and we'll send you a passwordless sign-in link. No passwords ever. Herald thinks passwords are so 2015.
I submitted a free sample but don't see it in my dashboard. Why?
The free sample form uses your email address to match summaries to your account. Make sure you sign in to the dashboard with the same email you used on the free sample form. If you used a different email, your summary was delivered but won't appear in dashboard — check your inbox instead.
How do I manage my subscription or billing?
Go to your dashboard → Account & Plan tab. From there you can view your current plan, minute usage, and access the Stripe billing portal to update payment methods, view invoices, or cancel. Billing is handled securely through Stripe — we never store your card details.
Can I change the email address on my account?
Email support@summarizeshark.com with your current and new email address and we'll update it manually. Full self-serve email changes are coming in a future update.
How do I delete my account and data?
Email support@summarizeshark.com with the subject "Delete My Account." We'll permanently delete your account, summaries, transcripts, and all associated data within 30 days. This is irreversible — Herald will be sad to see you go, but he respects your decision.
🔧 Technical 5 questions
What AI model generates the summaries?
Summaries are generated using OpenAI's GPT-4.1 family models, guided by Herald's proprietary prompt framework (v4.1). The prompt is engineered specifically for executive-grade knowledge extraction — not generic summarization. The result is structured, actionable, and ordered by impact rather than chronology.
Is there an API I can use to integrate SummarizeShark?
API access is available on the Dangerously Consistent plan. This lets you submit YouTube URLs programmatically and receive summaries via webhook or polling. Documentation is available to API subscribers. If you have a specific integration use case, email support@summarizeshark.com.
Does SummarizeShark work on private or unlisted YouTube videos?
No — SummarizeShark only works on publicly accessible YouTube videos. Private videos require authentication we don't have. Unlisted videos (accessible via direct link) generally work if the URL is valid and the video has audio content.
My summary didn't arrive. What should I do?
First, check your spam/junk folder — our emails occasionally get filtered. If it's not there after 20 minutes: (1) Check your dashboard to see if the summary shows a "failed" status. (2) Try resubmitting the URL. (3) If the issue persists, email support@summarizeshark.com with the YouTube URL and your email address — we'll investigate and won't charge your minutes for failed summaries.
How is my data protected?
All data is stored in Supabase (SOC 2 compliant). Payments are processed by Stripe (PCI DSS compliant) — we never store card details. Transcripts and summaries are stored encrypted at rest. We don't sell or share your data with third parties. See our full Privacy Policy for details.
💰 Affiliates 4 questions
How does the affiliate program work?
You get a unique referral link. Every time someone subscribes through your link, you earn a recurring commission for as long as they remain a paying subscriber. Commissions are paid monthly. Track clicks, conversions, and earnings in your affiliate dashboard powered by FirstPromoter.
How much can I earn?
Commissions start at 10% and increase with performance: Starter (10%) → Growing (15%) → Power (20%) → Elite (25%). Since commissions are recurring, a single subscriber referred at the Elite tier on the Dangerously Consistent plan earns you $37.25/month for every month they stay subscribed. Build a list, build recurring income.
How do I sign up as an affiliate?
Apply at summarizeshark.firstpromoter.com. Setup takes under 2 minutes. You get your dashboard and tracking links instantly. No approval delay, no minimum audience requirement.
When and how do I get paid?
Commissions are paid monthly via PayPal or bank transfer (minimum $50 threshold). There's a 30-day hold on new commissions to account for refund periods. Login to your FirstPromoter dashboard to set up payment details and track your earnings in real time.

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