What you need to know about content in 2023

In 2023, content is still such a buzzword. 

Literally every company in every industry has to have it and there’s so much conversation all around why it’s important to your business.

Most of you have probably heard that you’re not posting enough content or that the content you are posting isn’t converting (converting to what, sis).

Gotta love good old-fashioned shame to get everyone motivated to do their best work, right?

I even watched a 1-hour talk given by Gary V and he compared content to working out at the gym. Just because you hate doing it, doesn’t give you an excuse not to do it. I visibly cringed.

Even the king of content doesn’t like content. We’re hustling backward.

So, where does that leave your business? What is content? What purpose does it serve in your business? Most importantly, how do you get started?

Let’s break it down.

Content is communication. It’s that simple. It’s a conversation between your business and your audience.

Just like any other conversation, in order for both parties to feel better off having engaged with one another, it’s important to know why you’re having this dialogue. 

Content can serve a few different purposes, but here are the big ones:

1. It creates brand awareness. So, basically telling everyone, “Hey, I exist and this is what I’m about” 

2. It gives value. There’s another buzzword for you. I define value as something that makes people’s lives a little bit better. This can be in the form of helpful information, a connection with someone else, a sense of belonging, something pleasurable, or something that solves a problem.

3. Content builds your brand. Let’s think deeper than colors, fonts, and logos. If your business were a person, what kind of person would they be? Would they be in the front lines of Black Lives Matter or would they be wearing a Maga Hat? Would they be giving a friend a ride to Planned Parenthood or protesting a clinic at 6:30 a.m.? Would they shop at the farmer’s market or would they be ordering Doordash? Just like you, your business has a soul and content gives you an opportunity to share that spirit with your audience.

4. Content builds trust. When people see how consistently you show up, give value, engage with them, and most importantly adhere to your values…they know that they can trust you. They know what to expect from you. 

5. In some cases, content can directly sell what you offer to your audience. We see this a lot with influencers, brand partnerships, or small businesses that sell directly to their audience through the platform of their choice.

Why is content so important? The girlies are tired of ads, y’all. 

We’ve got ad-block, we’re protecting our privacy, we’ve got encryption going on…we’ll pay extra just to avoid ads.

Mental bandwidth is limited as it is, so content allows people and brands to connect in a way that feels more honest (if you’re doing it right).

So, what does that mean for your company?

I’m going to contradict what Gary V boldly states and say that you don’t need to dominate in a market to be a successful company. That would be operating under the assumption that every company has the same exact goal and measures success in the same exact way. 

The truth is that you do need content in some way, but here’s how you make the right decision for your brand. 

What kind of content do you or your team enjoy creating the most? 

Is it video, photos, graphics, texting, blogging, podcasts? (just to list a few)

Where does your audience like to congregate? 

Is it Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Tik Tok, Linkedin, Pinterest, Spotify, Discord, Patreon, Email newsletter, or another media platform?

What kind of content can you or your team create the most consistently?

What is the purpose of your content? 

Is it to grow brand awareness or to build a community?

Once you get clarity on those pieces, you then put your experiment together. Oh, you thought you could skip that part?

No one can…

Now it’s time to try shit and see what works for you and it might not be what works for the next person. At least this time, you know what you’re testing for and why something works or doesn’t work. 

So, yes, this takes time, but eventually…you’ll get those answers when you take direct action with intention.

The best part is that you can get out of the comparison trap. Instead of looking at what other brands are doing, you can focus on what your brand is testing for.

And…scene.

If you have any questions about content, hit me up @gingerandcarrotprod. 

We’re not influencers, so we’ll respond lol