Topical content may last a day or week, but this video is still circulating on Instagram, just found that it was shared by 186,000 people recently.. (https://www.instagram.com/reel/C9ohYnvvCgW/)
To create timeless content:
1.. Focus on the basics, storytelling above all else, more real it feels the better.
2.. Dive deep into audience research, get to the tiniest micro-moments and pain points. Your products solves for one pain point of the audience, for all other pain points on the orbit.. use your content to solve them, your brand exists to make the lives of the audience better, through your products and content.
3.. Create authentically, no fancy graphics were used in this video.. actual book was printed and a top shot, oh and those are my hands
During the lockdown days, there was a crisis on the streets. While we were tucked away in our homes, a lot of migrant workers were going back to their native places, walking all the way, scrambling for any resources to get home, without food or help.
A friend of mine, Dev Amritesh, CEO of a company which had big industrial kitchens, called me. They had sprung into action. Just like any other company during that time, they were working in crisis mode. They started creating simple meals since all the offices were closed, and these meals were being fed on the ground by local NGO support.
They created a landing page where for ₹30 per meal, anyone could contribute. They would prepare it at no profit and get it delivered on the ground.
He called me to see if I could create a video. Me and my wife made this, and spent ₹350 making it. One of those lockdown moments of just teaming up after washing the dishes and cooking the food to create this video.
This video sent 10,000 people to the landing page (from instagram) with-in days and 1.5 million people were fed. I look back on this with a heavy heart and hope.. something I always remember – the power of content and storytelling to inspire action, which directly helped someone in need.
Aashish what an inspiring story! This is such a powerful reminder of how meaningful impact can come from simple actions, especially in times of crisis. The fact that a ₹350 video could help feed 1.5 million people shows the true power of storytelling and the impact of collaboration. It’s heartwarming to see how creativity and purpose can come together to drive real change. Kudos to you, your wife, Dev, and everyone involved for stepping up when it was most needed. Stories like this restore faith in humanity
Always remember: when you’re creating content, you’re not creating for yourself or the client, but for the audience of the client. Be obsessed about figuring out what’s in their interest first.. walk in their shoes, do research, deep dive into their pain points and micro moments.. make sure you have a lot of dots to connect for that one killer idea.
The goal of the video isn’t just for them to watch it. The goal is to make it so compelling that they share it. Make it worthy of sharing first.
When your audience is happy, & content is being organically shared.. stakeholders are happy. It’s win-win-win. If you start focusing solely on your client, you’ll be stuck in the race of pleasing them.
Stop pleasing your stakeholders, stop pleasing your clients & start creating genuinely authentic content for & about your audience. When you give them value for every second they watch, you’ve cracked it.
In my experience, in digital marketing – per-person efficiency needs to be exceptionally high. We don’t need people skilled in just one area, We need full-stack marketers – people who can be creators themselves, understand copywriting, video production, analytics, experiment with AI, produce ideas under pressure and more…
Everyone on the team should, apart from doing their primary job, invest time in learning new skills and collaborating with peers in the industry. We need small teams of ninjas or superheroes.
This way, the dependency isn’t on one person but on the team and the process. When need arises, we have more perspectives, skills and worldviews, leading to on point and faster execution.
In simple terms…
1. Understand the one true metric: engagement
2. Learn and acquire as many skills around it as possible
3. Collaborate and share knowledge within your team
4. Stay adaptable and ready to wear multiple hats
This approach creates a high-performing team that can tackle diverse challenges. Remember, in the fast-paced game of digital content, it’s not about who you are, but what you do that defines you. So, suit up, and create some magic!
