JANUARY 3, 2023

Welcome to The Tilt, a twice-weekly newsletter for content entrepreneurs.

Today’s click: What to expect from the creator economy in 2023.

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Focus on These Things in 2023

Building a content business isn’t easy. What should you spend your precious time doing to deliver bigger results? Some of the experts presenting at Creator Economy Expo 2023 share what they think you should do this year.

Plan for bigger bucks: “The biggest unlock for me this year is that businesses have more money than individuals. Going after sponsors and high-ticket, done-for-you customers has led to massive revenue growth in a short period of time (two months). With my upcoming event, one sponsor represented three times the total revenue of all (individual) ticket sales.” – Daren Smith, founder, Craftsman Creative​

Power up for Web3: “In 2023, content creators should focus on leveraging the power of Web3 to create immersive and interactive experiences for their audience. This could include using decentralized applications (dApps) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to provide followers with unique and exclusive content. Furthermore, content creators should consider using Web3 technologies to monetize their content and provide new and innovative ways for their audience to support them.” – Gianina Skarlett, founder, CEO, and lead engineer, W3 Learn Academy and Crypto Tech Women​

Round up partners: “This advice is mostly for early content creators: Find one or two (but no more than three) places/platforms with which you can align to amplify your voice. I don’t mean a social media network; I mean a like-minded partner that has your audience where you can invest in building your audience. It might be a publication you write for, an author you offer to co-write something with, a podcast on which you appear as a regular guest, or a community that needs an influencer.” – Robert Rose, founder and chief troublemaker, The Content Advisory​

Own your path: “Take ownership of your journey. Find a home base (platform to build your contact/subscriber lists) that will remain neutral and then adopt a growth mindset in order to own all aspects of your business. Maximizing profits from content, owning your customer (fan) data, and scaling your business should never be at the mercy of an eccentric billionaire or the Chinese government.” – Matt Briel, vice president of marketing and communications, Lulu.com​

Wean community from social media: “Try to find a way to grow a community away from your social media platforms. I always get a lot of funny looks when I tell clients this (because I work in social media), but it is so important to have a way to connect with your community without Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk being involved. Find a way to connect with your audience to make them feel a part of your community. Maybe it’s starting a Discord or Mighty Networks group. Maybe it’s focusing on them through a weekly email. You’ll know the way you feel most connected to your community members. Grow that and nurture that in addition to your social media channels.” – Katie Brinkley, social media strategist, Next Step Social Communications​

Take a chance: “Experiment! It’s impossible to learn how to navigate new technologies without getting your hands dirty. You’ll discover more from trying and failing than you will while reading yet another blog post about the topic.” – J Thorn, host, Writers, Ink podcast​

– Ann Gynn

​Get more advice on what to do in 2023 from Brian Piper, Wave Wyld, Justin Moore, Honarvar, and others in the full version.

Learn in person from these great creators at Creator Economy Expo in May.​
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Monday, Dec. 19, 2022: For many in social content creation, this day sits in the heart of “Seriously? We’re using Mariah Carey in another Reel?” season. But for musicians like myself, it is the day when the thing every content creator fears finally happened.

​Victoria Gordon tells her story and warns all creators of the one piece of advice she wished she had taken earlier.

New feature: Do you have a tale to share about your life as a creator entrepreneur? Reply to this email or let Ann know.

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Entrepreneur: Peter Keep

Biz: Jewellery Training Solutions

Tilt: Jewelry training from a master jeweler

Primary Channels: Website, courses (1.5M), YouTube (70.2K)

Other Channels: Instagram (2.4K), Facebook (4.8K)

Time to First Dollar: Peter sold his first course soon after launching in 2015, earning $25 Australian. He and his wife went out to celebrate. “We probably spent 10 times more than that,” he jokes.

Rev Streams: Online courses, some commissioned jewelry pieces, and repairs.

Our Favorite Actionable Advice:

• Use your knowledge: Peter used the knowledge gained in his career in jewelry-making and turned it into a thriving educationally focused content business.
• Pick a lane: All of his content revolves around a single format – video. From his free lead-generation basic how-to’s to his monthly subscription services, the format is consistent.
• Stay in touch: Peter hears from students who have turned the training he provided them into their own jewelry-making businesses. That feedback is essential to propel you to keep going and can help you develop important social proof in the form of testimonials.

– Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

All the Story: Find out what coaching his son’s soccer team had to do with launching a content business.

Know a content creator who’s going full tilt? DM us. Or email [email protected].

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• Now is the absolute best time to lean into YOU. (Content Inc. podcast)
• Joe and Robert review their missed 2022 marketing predictions … and then unleash 10 new marketing predictions that are sure to be wrong. (This Old Marketing podcast)
• Everyone reads customer reviews. So why not add reviews for your content? It’s incredibly easy with Testimonials.to. Your fans can rave about you to attract new subscribers. And with this link you get 15% off the first year! *
• Drive to locations for your content business? Find out the 2023 U.S. IRS mileage rate. (Small Business Trends)
• Conflict avoidance can be the silent killer of your business. (Forbes)

*The Tilt receives a small commission if readers (at no additional cost) make a purchase using this link.

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Share The Tilt Newsletter with other content creators and get free $TILT coin, swag, and more.

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Your team for this issue: Joe Pulizzi, Pam Pulizzi, Ann Gynn, Laura Kozak, Marc Maxhimer, and Dave Anthony, with an assist from Sarah Lindenfeld Hall and Victoria Gordon.

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