Frequently asked questions

Short answers, each with a link to the page that has the whole story. Can't find yours? Try the troubleshooting guide, the glossary, or write to support@storeswiki.com.

Getting started#

What is ChannelForge?#

A workspace that runs faceless video channels end to end. It researches niches, builds each channel its own look and renderer, animates original narrated episodes on GPU machines, checks every one with quality gates and an independent critic, publishes them on your schedule to the platforms you connect, and learns from how they do. What ChannelForge is.

Do I need a card to try it?#

No. The Trial gives 400 credits once you confirm your email, with no card. They last 30 days. Quick start.

What does the Trial include?#

One project with up to two channels, publishing to YouTube, and the episode pipeline with caption styles, endings that loop, the hook lab, the originality guard, 50 languages, the editor and storyboards, link-in-bio, product channels, a mascot and voice casts — each within its credits. Its credits cover a channel started from a proven format and its first episode; a channel with a renderer built just for it needs more. Credits and plans.

How do I make my first channel?#

Two ways: describe what you want in a brief and let the niche research propose channels, or start from a proven format in one click. Either way the one-click setup drafts the channel, builds what it needs and makes its first episode — for a format channel, in about two hours, with an email when it is ready. Quick start and Proven formats.

Where do I see what is happening?#

Activity lists the workspace's jobs, newest first, with their state; each job's page shows its steps as they happen and its price. A job you start tells you when it ends — a new episode, or one held for your review — and the one-click setup emails you when the first episode is ready. Your workspace.

Your content#

Who owns the channels and episodes?#

You do. The channels, brand suites and episodes made in your workspace belong to you; the Terms of Service set out the details.

Is this stock footage stitched together?#

No. Every channel gets its own renderer, and every episode is animated from code, scene by scene, with its own narration, captions, music and sound design. Episodes.

Will my channel look like everyone else's?#

No. A channel started from a proven format gets its own name, colours and look; a channel built from a brief gets a renderer made for it. The originality guard also keeps each episode apart from the channel's own earlier ones and from other channels' episodes of the same format.

Could YouTube see my channel as repetitive?#

That is what the originality guard is for: it sets aside topics that repeat recent episodes, sends an episode back when its title or opening repeats, and holds the rare episode that is too close to an earlier one. The free originality checker reads up to 50 titles you paste and points out templates, repeated openings and near-duplicates. Originality.

Quality#

What checks does every episode pass?#

Measured quality gates — picture, pace, captions, narration, loudness, flashes, on-screen text, variety, units and symbols, and more — then an independent critic that did not write the episode and scores it for entertainment, facts and platform policy. A short needs 8 out of 10. Quality gates.

What happens when an episode fails?#

It goes back for fix rounds. If it still falls short after them, it is held: not published and not charged. You can read why, and release it anyway for what it cost to make, once. Quality gates.

Can I approve episodes before they post?#

Yes. Tick Ask for approval before each episode posts on a channel and its schedule posts only what you approved — from the approval queue, on your phone if you like, with a morning digest. You can also approve a storyboard before any rendering. Approvals and Editor and storyboards.

Can I change an episode after it is made?#

Yes, with the light editor: rewrite a line, change a caption, drop or move scenes, or ask for changes in plain words. Each edit is a revision checked like a new episode; one that does not pass is not charged and the current version stays. Editor and storyboards.

Platforms and publishing#

Which platforms can I publish to?#

YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, Threads, LinkedIn, Bluesky and Pinterest. The Trial publishes to YouTube; paid plans include every platform. Publish.

Do I need my own accounts?#

Yes. Channels publish to accounts you own, connected through each platform's own sign-in in Settings → Connections. You can disconnect any of them at any time; the sign-in tokens are stored encrypted.

When do posts go out?#

At each channel's posting times, in its own time zone: each platform the channel chose gets the oldest episode it has not had yet. A Bluesky post follows a few minutes later at a minute of its own, carousels go out at a different minute each day, and TikTok and Pinterest posts are made by a person on their own screens. A slot that could not be filled says why on Publishing. Scheduling and autopilot.

Can a post go out twice?#

No. When a platform's answer is lost, the post is marked "may be live" and is looked for on the account before anything is sent again; where a platform cannot be asked, you confirm it is not live first.

Can I post by hand instead?#

Yes. Every episode's Post it yourself has the files, the best time and the words for each platform, fitted to its limits. Post packs.

Why are my TikTok posts private?#

Until TikTok's audit of our app passes, TikTok accepts posts from apps only as "Only me". Each TikTok post is made by a person on its episode's TikTok screen, as TikTok's rules require. TikTok.

Why does an X post cost a credit?#

X charges for every post made through its API, so an X post costs a credit — charged only once it is live. Posts also need X API credits on our side; when they run out, X posts wait and no episode loses a try. X is on paid plans. X.

Can I post to Pinterest yet?#

Not yet: Pinterest opens when Pinterest approves our app. Until then it shows as "setting up". Pinterest.

Why does Facebook get a shorter version?#

Facebook Reels stop at 90 seconds and episodes run 2 to 3 minutes, so every episode has its own edit of 89 seconds or less — cut to tell the whole story, and checked like the rest. Instagram, which takes Reels of 90 seconds at most through its API, gets the same edit. Episodes.

Why do I have to select every Page when connecting Facebook?#

One ChannelForge app serves every connection, and Facebook keeps only the Pages chosen at the latest sign-in: a sign-in that leaves Pages out can end the other connections to them. Select all your Pages, every time. Facebook and Instagram.

Credits, plans and billing#

What is a credit?#

The unit ChannelForge meters work in. One credit is $0.10 of list value. Most jobs are charged what they really used — model calls, narration and GPU time — at your plan's markup (a one-time setup, such as a kit, at a lower one); a film has a fixed price, and an X post a fixed credit. A standard episode typically uses 193 credits on Creator. Credits and plans.

How do I know what something costs?#

Every job that costs credits shows its price before it starts: what it reserves, and what jobs like it typically cost. When it ends you pay what it used and the rest comes back at once. See Pricing for typical costs.

What happens when I run out of credits?#

New jobs need credits to start; nothing you have made is removed. A one-click setup or a schedule waits and carries on by itself once credits are there. Once checkout opens, add a credit pack or move to a larger plan; until then, contact us.

Do unused credits roll over?#

Unused plan credits roll over once, for one more month, up to a month's allowance, while your plan is active. Credit packs last 12 months and the trial's credits 30 days. Credits and plans.

Can I cap what I spend?#

Yes: a monthly cap for the workspace in Settings → Billing and one for any channel on its page. Work that would pass a cap does not start, and owners and admins hear at 80 % and at 100 %. Billing.

Am I charged for failed or held work?#

No. A job that fails on our side, an episode the quality checks hold back and a job cancelled before it starts cost nothing. A job you stop while it runs pays for the work it did. Credits and plans.

What plans are there?#

The Trial, Creator ($49 a month, 600 credits), Pro ($149, 2,000 credits), Agency ($449, 6,500 credits) and Enterprise. Yearly billing gives 2 months free. Credit packs: 500 credits for $55, 1,500 credits for $150, 5,000 credits for $450, 15,000 credits for $1,200. Pricing.

Can I buy a paid plan today?#

Checkout for paid plans and credit packs is not open yet. The Trial works today; to talk about a plan before checkout opens, contact us.

How do I cancel?#

Settings → Billing → Cancel plan, then confirm — two clicks, no offers in the way. Your plan and its credits last until the end of the period you paid for. Billing and the Refund Policy.

Languages and voices#

Which languages are supported?#

50 languages, each with its own narrators, and every script drawn properly — right-to-left, Chinese, Japanese and Korean, Thai, the Indian scripts. A channel's language is a setting. Languages and twins.

Can I translate an episode?#

Yes. A finished episode can be translated: every word a viewer sees and hears, with its timings kept, then checked again. A language twin goes further: a channel of its own in another language. Languages and twins.

Can I choose the narrator, or use my own voice?#

Each channel chooses its narrator from a library of natural voices, and can add a cast of up to three more voices. A brand voice — your own, recorded with your consent — is on Pro and above: the consent and recordings are collected now, and the voice is made once Google opens the service to us. Voices.

Films and other formats#

Can it make long videos?#

Yes: long-form films of 6 to 10 minutes in 16:9, one story from start to finish, on Creator and above with a paid plan. Compilations join 3 to 12 ready episodes into one long video. Films and Compilations.

What does a film cost?#

A fixed price, shown before it starts, the same on every plan. It is charged when the film reaches the quality floor of 8 out of 10, or when you choose to release a held film; while a film is held it costs nothing. Films.

Can films be posted directly?#

Films are made, reviewed and downloadable now; direct publishing of films is being switched on, and until then a scheduled film post is a dry run. Films.

Can I make clips from my own videos?#

Yes, from footage you upload (never a link): it is transcribed, its best moments of 20 to 89 seconds are found, and each chosen one becomes a vertical clip with captions, checked and posted on the channel's schedule. On Creator and above. Clipping.

Can I make videos about my own product?#

Yes: a product channel turns a product's page and specs into cutaway "how it works" episodes, every claim taken from the product's own sources. Product kit.

Growing and earning#

How does ChannelForge learn what works?#

Insights measures your posts on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram from your own accounts and tests what goes with more views, inside each channel, with how sure each answer is. The hook lab tests openings, the retention loop turns where viewers leave into rules for the writer, and the coach turns all of it into a weekly list of one-click actions. Some of their measurements wait on the platforms — Meta's App Review of our app, and YouTube's approval of our derived-metrics amendment — and each page says what.

Why does Insights leave YouTube out?#

YouTube's policies allow figures of our own built on YouTube's data only once YouTube has approved our derived-metrics amendment, which is pending. YouTube's own numbers stay visible; the analysis runs on Facebook's and Instagram's. Platform policies.

What does the coach cost?#

One charge a week, never per question: it is charged what writing the brief used, with the most it can cost reserved first and shown on its page. A week your balance cannot cover is skipped. The coach.

Can it track my progress to monetization?#

Yes, for YouTube: the monetization tracker follows each channel to the Partner Program in YouTube's own numbers, and says what the change of 1 February 2027 means for it.

Can I show sponsors my numbers?#

Yes: the media kit is a page for brand deals — reach, formats, a suggested rate card, and the audience only if you choose — behind a link you can replace or stop. Profit shows what each channel earns against what it costs.

Do you have a referral programme?#

Yes: share your link, and two weeks after a friend's first paid month goes through, you each get 300 credits. Rewards start once paid plans can be bought; links shared now still count. Referrals.

Teams and agencies#

Can I invite my team?#

Yes. Workspaces have owners, admins, editors and viewers, and projects can be limited to teams. Seats grow with the plan. Workspaces and roles.

Can I run client channels as an agency?#

Yes, on the Agency plan: client workspaces under yours, a portal in your own brand, connect links for your clients' accounts, monthly reports and statements with your markup. Agency mode.

Can a client approve videos without an account?#

Yes. A review link lets anyone you send it to watch an episode and approve it or ask for changes; links expire and can be revoked. Review links.

Developers#

Is there an API?#

Yes, a REST API on Pro and above, with keys per workspace, a quote endpoint for prices, and webhooks for the events of its catalogue. It carries ChannelForge's own data, never YouTube's. Developers and the API reference.

Can an assistant such as Claude work with my workspace?#

Yes, through the MCP server, on Pro and above: assistants such as Claude can read your workspace, quote prices and start work, after an owner or an admin approves the connection. MCP.

Can I use n8n, Make or Zapier?#

Their apps are built and waiting to be published; meanwhile, their webhook and HTTP steps work with our REST hooks and API today. Automation.

Privacy and security#

Where is my data stored?#

The service is hosted in the European Union: the app, its database and its media storage run on AWS in Frankfurt, behind Cloudflare. Some sub-processors — for example GPU compute, speech services, payment providers and Cloudflare's network — may process data in other countries, including the United States, under safeguards such as the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses. The sub-processor list names every provider. Privacy.

Do you sell my data?#

No. We do not sell personal information or use it for advertising. Privacy Policy.

What happens when I delete a workspace?#

Its members lose access at once. Its connected accounts' tokens and everything read from the platforms are deleted within 7 days. Nothing is changed on the platforms themselves — revoke our access there if you wish. Your account and the Privacy Policy.

How is my account kept safe?#

Passwords are stored as strong one-way hashes, two-factor sign-in with recovery codes is one click away, every platform token is encrypted, and each job on a GPU machine runs apart from every other customer's. Security.

Support#

How do I get help?#

Write to support@storeswiki.com or use the contact page. Include your workspace's name and, for a job or an episode, a link to its page.

Is there a status page?#

Yes: status shows whether every part of ChannelForge is running.

Related#

• Troubleshooting
• Glossary
• What's new