OCTOBER 29, 2021

Welcome to The Tilt, a twice-weekly newsletter for content entrepreneurs. Each edition is packed with the latest news, strategies, and tactics, plus inspiring creator stories and exclusive education, all to help you create, grow, and monetize better.

Features in this issue (view online):

Full Tilt: No Tricks, Just Treats for the Holidays
Entrepreneur: Still Being Molly Blogger Evolves with Audience
Stan: YouTuber Looking to Connect Finds Content Business

full tilt

Get Through the Holidays and Make More Money

It’s time for a few treats so the upcoming holiday season doesn’t trick you.

The block of time between Thanksgiving in the U.S. (Nov. 25) and New Year’s Day, the business world seems to slow down, if not come to a screeching halt. People take time off to celebrate the holidays or use up their vacation, want to use up money left in their budgets, and celebrate clients and colleagues at end-of-year parties.

Are you ready?

Tilt Advice

Now’s the time to prepare from a revenue, audience, and production perspective. Here’s some help to do just that:

People always want to know what to buy their family, friends, colleagues, and customers. Why not have them buy something from you?

Merch is an obvious and simple choice. Think subscriptions, shout-outs, course gift certificates, or even sponsored posts, which would be a truly unique client gift.

Think about your audience. How do the holidays affect them? Consider this from two perspectives: topics and timing.

As you fill out your editorial calendar (or revise it), identify subject matter that might be more relevant in this season. End-of-the-year wrap-ups and goal-setting (i.e., resolutions) are often relevant. You also can go a little deeper.

Next, figure out if your audience will have more, less, or the same amount of time to consume your content. Consider upping, decreasing, or staying on the same publishing frequency.

Now, let’s make it about you and your content business. Are you planning to take time off? We highly recommend it. Block out the time on the calendar when you won’t be working. Then, pull out and update your production schedule. Adjust the deadlines.

If you operate a community, whether it’s accepting comments on social media or managing an interactive platform, decide how you will handle them on the days when you’re not working.

As the calendar turns to November, it’s the perfect time to take steps to make your business shine in the holiday season, from adding a new revenue stream to giving your audience what they want. And finally, to give yourself a gift of time away from the day-to-day business.

– Ann Gynn

For specifics on how to implement this holiday-related advice, read the full story.

exciting tilt news

The moment you have all been waiting for (at least we have been waiting for) is here. The Tilt merch store is OPEN!

Visit our merch store to get your goodies (and maybe some holiday gifts as well). T-shirts, mugs, hoodies, and more are available.

We accept all major credit cards and $TILT coin! (Hint: refer more friends, get more $TILT coin for merch.)

content entrepreneur spotlight

Ethical Fashion and Lifestyle Blogger Pivoted and Found Bigger Success

Entrepreneur: Molly Stillman

Biz: Still Being Molly

Tilt: Ethical fashion and lifestyle

Primary Channels: Blog, Instagram (25.9K)

Other Channels: Podcast, Facebook (7.8K), Pinterest (13.8K), Twitter (5.9K)

Year of First Dollar: 2009 for sponsored content

Rev Streams: Sponsored content, advertising, affiliate revenue, workshops, speaking engagements, freelance writing and photography

Our Favorite Actionable Advice:

It’s OK to evolve: It can be tricky to pivot your content tilt when you have an established audience. Molly’s done it successfully because she knew her audience and evolved in a way most of them would continue to follow her blog.
What works now may not always work: Like many content entrepreneurs, the pandemic affected Molly’s business as brands cut back their budgets and in-person speaking became impossible. So Molly began writing a book.
Hire a professional website designer: Given it takes only a few seconds for a visitor to decide if they want to stay on your site, it’s important to invest in a well-designed, easily navigable site from the very beginning.

– Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

To learn more about Molly Stillman’s journey, first paid post, and more, check out the longer story.

Know a content creator who’s going full tilt? DM us or reply to this email.

quick talk

Caught on … USA Today

“Some days it’s OK to just rest.” – Noodle the Pug on Jonathan Graziano’s TikTok

things to know

Money

That’s a lot of money: Of the $3.7B+ raised for creator economy startups in Q3, the top five subsectors are creative services, creator platforms, shopping, crypto, and music. Gaming, education, and social media reach received less than 0.5%. (The Information; h/t Cory Cachola)
Tilt Take: More proof that content businesses and related services can be attractive to investors.
Content business or marketing: Electronic music producer Lorenzo Mitchell dropped out of college in hopes of earning a fortune on TikTok. “I have followers. I don’t have the money. That’s all right,” he said. “It’ll come.” Later, he says he’s just using TikTok as a way to go from making videos at home to performing on stages and having his music played on the radio. (The Wall Street Journal; h/t Ashley Stryker)
Tilt Take: Lorenzo doesn’t seem clear in his mission. Is he using TikTok as a revenue source or as a marketing tool to grow his audience? The distinction matters.

Audiences

Going young: Mark Zuckerberg says Facebook will retool its team to make young adults the company’s North Star rather than optimizing for a large number of older people. (Axios)
Tilt Take: Um … that ship probably has sailed and is unlikely to return.
Badge me: Even if your audience isn’t into NFTs, they like to collect and get exclusivity. POAPs are a tool to do just that. The NFTs are digital badges or stickers for community members. (Community Coach; h/t to Michael in Tilt Discord)
Tilt Take: Well, you know we see a future in NFTs for creators and like a good community tool too.

Tech and Tools

Links for all: Forget 10K, all Instagram creators can use the new link sticker to easily share links in their stories. (Instagram)
Tilt Take: Finally.
Twitter help: Creators on Twitter who work with brands (or who want to) should know Twitter is ready to help with a playbook, Twitter business tips, video checklists, and more. Though its resources are labeled for agencies, they’re just as good for content entrepreneurs. (Twitter Business)
Tilt Take: Even if you’re not building on Twitter, some of their help may be useful in building your media kit.

And Finally

Going Meta: Formerly known as Facebook, Meta is the new name for all things Facebook, Instagram, and more. It’s a direct nod to the metaverse Mark Zuckerberg intends to create.
Tilt Take: It’s good that they already acquired Meta.com, but it’s puzzling that the site directs to a Facebook URL: https://about.facebook.com/meta.
Look at me: “New To You” – YouTube’s new personalized home page – will help users discover new creators beyond the standard recommendations. (Lindsey Gamble)
Tilt Take: It’s always better to have more opportunities to reach people who are interested in your content tilt.
Partner with me: Instagram is testing Collabs, a tool for Instagram creators to co-author feed posts and Reels. On the tagging screen, you can invite another account. Then, the content you create will be shared with both creators’ followers. (Facebook; h/t Matt Navarra)
Tilt Take: This tool presents some interesting potential for creators and brands to collaborate in real-time to both their channels.

we’re a stan for Marina Mogilko

Marina Mogilko is one woman with three YouTube channels: linguamarina, Silicon Valley Girl, and a self-titled account. Her language channel, Linguamarina, has amassed the largest following (4.5M) and teaches ways to master English.

In 2014, she started her YouTube career, sharing her journey to get into an American MBA program. After Maria saw her first video earn 1K views, she continued to use YouTube to develop relationships with other students online.

Why we’re a Stan: Marina knows what brands want – conversions. Awareness is good, but bigger names want to make sure they receive a return on their investment.

– Shameyka McCalman

Read more about how she delivers what brands want in the longer version.

the business of content

NFT as Never-Ending Ticket (Content Inc. podcast)
The Platform Wars Heat Up (This Old Marketing podcast)
16 Tips for Starting and Succeeding in Your Own Business (ZenBusiness)
In Wake of Pandemic, Microbusinesses Are Booming (Technically)
The Preferred Online Payment Methods for Small Businesses (PaymentsJournal)

the tilt team

Your team for this issue: Joe Pulizzi, Ann Gynn, Laura Kozak, Marc Maxhimer, and Dave Anthony, with an assist from Sarah Lindenfeld Hall, Shameyka McCalman, and Don Borger.

Gifting New Revenue – October 29, 2021