Ten Things I Learned at Content Economy #1

These are just a few of the things that Brand Wise social media specialist Molly Millman gleaned from our first Content Economy Event. Imagine how much you will learn at our next one on the Brave New World of Technology!

1. How to combat AI.

“The way that you stand out when you have that many pieces of content to compete with is that you go niche and you go deep and you get to know who you're trying to reach and you create content that directly reaches them.

2. Using an audience resonance map.

Mapping out your audience’s problems to create solutions based on their own wording and phrasing can be used as a way to get directly into your audience’s head and anticipate their problems before they can present them.

3. Creating valuable content.

Valuable content is anything using more than one form of content to reach your audience. Think a blog post with a video attached, or a how-to guide with a step-by-step graphic.

4. Helping your audience expand their expertise.

“You usually want to have about 50% of your content tailored to beginners because the beginner audience is massive, and then about 25% and 25% for intermediate and advanced.” Keeping this in mind for your content calendar each month, in the ratio of 50, 25, and 25 works well to spread amongst your audience’s expertises.

5. Expanding your OWN expertise.

Branch out! If you’re usually writing blog posts, record a podcast. If you’re only sending emails, make some graphics! You can keep your content ‘niche’ while also spreading it amongst platforms.

6. Meeting your ‘unlikely’ audience where they are at.

Levi Ismail, reward-winning journalist for News Channel 5, has taken his news outlet to Tiktok, losing his suit and tie and reaching those who don’t usually tune into the news where they are at. “If you're not finding ways to make yourself more relatable for the general population of people who may not want to watch news on a typical basis, well then you're spitting in the wind.”

7. Reaching a fragmented audience.

Kim Baldwin, digital editor of The Nashville Scene, joined this industry back in 2006, and has seen platforms shift from MySpace, to Facebook, to Twitter, and Instagram, etc. Now, she is finding her audience through Instagram stories, Reddit, Threads, and more.

8. It’s okay not to post every day.

“Save yourself the trouble. It is not worth putting out tons of content that really doesn't have much value. It's just for the sake of getting followers or trying to meet a follower account. People want to watch you because you give them something to watch, not because you give them so many things to watch that they're now just bombarded and they don't know what to do with it.”

9. Talk even if you think no one’s listening, and you’ll find your community.

“One of the most frustrating things with podcasting is talking and not knowing if anybody's actually listening. I mean, you have download statistics and things depending on the platform or streaming statistics, but at the same time, you don't really know, unless people reach out or leave reviews...And then finally, connecting yourself, which gets back to the idea of doing in-person events and things, because finding community is what it's all about. I mean, regardless of your neuro type, you feel lonely. Most people do. It's an epidemic.”

10. Is it ‘Niche’ or ‘Niche’?

It’s ‘Niche’, right?