Chapter Five

Content is where rubber hits the road. Much of this book is built on the premise that each of us has mastery in a particular subject, and has ability to leverage that knowledge through social media.

Simply, we can use social media channels to jump across traditional barriers. We can build a personal brand, and then embrace certain networks to reach our targeted prospects. Better yet, properly executed, prospects will be using Google and Bing to seek us out. What could be better than that?

There’s just one small catch. We have to create or compile stuff that people will find valuable and interesting. We have to develop a body of content that attracts interest and adds value in some fashion.

Gary suggests fifty blog posts as a starting point. If you can’t conjure up fifty different points you’d like to share with readers (or viewers, if you prefer video), then you aren’t a strong candidate for success. At least in that particular field. On the other hand, maybe a different topic or hobby incites the “fifty post” passion. Whatever it is, content has to drive the model.

People don’t read encyclopedias for pleasure! One tough point for many of us is Vaynerchuk’s assertion that knowledge, alone, isn’t quite good enough. You need some mastery of the subject matter, of course, but there is nothing more boring than a bland recitation of data and statistics. That stuff is available everywhere, and most of us avoid it like a bad mariachi band!

Take any subject, and most of us can find data from multiple sources. Raw data, alone, though is fairly meaningless. It takes perspective to interpret data and make it usable. Visit a local bookstore and spend some time at the shelf devoted to food and wine. There’s a ton of data. Will spending a few minutes there increase your knowledge or boost your confidence? Despite this abundance of material, I’d guess you’d rather spend fifteen minutes with the author of this book! More pleasurable and more informative.

That’s the difference. Use stories and examples to bring the subject alive for your friends. Use your unique viewpoint to create interest and value. Become the expert you’d like to meet.

Questions for blog discussion:

1. In your field of passion, whom would you most like to meet? What would you ask them if you spent an hour together?

2. If you have a spare hour, and have to spend it in front of your computer, where would you go? What sites would you visit and what are you looking for?

3. What do you think customers most want to know about your business? What are the top three questions they’d ask? How might your answers differ from your chief competitor?