Content Creation for the sake of Content Creation?
Nails in my 50-million-viewer coffin
First of all, I acknowledge that content creation is a really important part of marketing a business. It’s something Vessels is investing time and effort into. But the philosophy behind it is worth mulling over some times.
If you’re not putting out something new, something valuable, and something worth paying attention to, every single day, then you’re losing.
This is what Nicolas Cole wrote a few days ago. He’s apparently a really big deal in the blogging-entrepreneur-self-promo world. He’s also a former Number One in World of Warcraft for North America… maybe there’s some correlation; and maybe he’s written about it. Oh, look at that — he has!
Hey, I like writing, and you’re probably on here because you like writing too. Honestly, hooray for blogs, and medium and the whole social network thing for providing forums for people to really have an honest say.
But I have to admit, when I read Cole’s ‘hack’ to get 50 million views really just lies in the sheer volume of work you put out, it just seemed bizarre to me. Not because I disagree with his method — if you want 50 million viewers, then by all means, Cole is your dude. But is that really the only goal?
When we produce content, are we really only concerned with how many people are going to see it? And look, I know Cole wasn’t really advocating pushing out crappy content over volume — instead he suggests that you need to be producing heaps of worthwhile content. So that means you are going to be putting a lot of creative energy into your content.
But what is our intention? Perhaps you know you’re a good writer; you can be funny, you can be insightful, you have a few good life hacks people can learn from — but what is it that we want to promote when we think this way? Oh, that’s right, the self.
Look, I realise the worth of the YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat star is all in the following — and as Cole says, only a handful of people can be influencers because it is a marathon producing that much content which will get you mass recognition.
But my question is: what exactly are we influencing? What culture are we propagating? Are we producing information we really think will be of any genuine use or service, or merely worthy of someone’s limited attention?
And if we’re producing all of this content, do we have time for reflection? To really learn and take stock of all that we post? To actually have the authority to write stuff like, “10 Things I’ve learnt from ya-di-ya-di-ya-da”? Because, you know one thing that needs more than volume to succeed, is wisdom.
Perhaps producing a ridiculous amount of work for the sole purpose of getting followers is not only a misleading goal, but is selling yourself short.
And look, obviously I’m not saying that we should all take 3-month research sabbaticals before writing each blog post — but perhaps our culture of self-promo needs to be balanced with a bit of shutting up for some wising up every once in a while. I think producing lots of content is an absolutely fantastic way to practice your craft, hone your skill, and yes — it is an effective way of building a following. Perhaps producing a ridiculous amount of work for the sole purpose of getting followers is not only a misleading goal, but is selling yourself short.
Wouldn’t we want to do it because we want to incite the passion we have in somebody else who shares the same interest? Wouldn’t we want to be talking about ideas, themes, concepts, innovations larger then ourselves? You’d agree that the wisdom that comes from self-experience is limited, and perhaps, a little overrated, right?
It’s hilarious, because this post will probably be read by less than a handful of people. But to whoever you are, at Vessels, we want to affirm your passion in technology or development, or both! We want to connect with people who see that there are some screwy inequalities in the world that need to be fixed, and maybe have an idea, or questions, or even an inkling of what could be done.
It’s not about how many people we talk to, how many people we reach, or even the old adage of ‘quality over quantity’. It’s about pursuing things that are bigger than us, that take us to the end of ourselves, and encouraging one another to keep on keeping on — regardless of how many people are following you on the journey.
Vessels Tech is a company that realises and actualises the potential for ICT to lift the lives of others. To find out more about our work, visit: https://vesselstech.com/.
