Hello Reader!

Scrolling online is starting to feel like Groundhog Day.

A morning doom scroll (or happy scroll if you're an optimist) is one big déjà vu loop. B2B brands are recycling the same ideas, AI writing patterns are everywhere, and every post feels like a remix of a remix of a remix. (And the origonal mix wasn't that good to begin with).

I call it copy-and-paste content, or content you could take from one brand, paste onto another brand's website or social account, and no one would know the difference.

I think we're all getting tired of Nothing Burger content and we're scrambling to connect with our audience. Right now is the perfect time to get more creative about the content we produce.

I recently wrote an article for Viral Nation about five new types of creator-led content I'd love to see brands experiment with. But I keep coming back to the first idea because I think brands are overlooking a massive opportunity.

The idea? Stop trying to build every audience from scratch and start partnering with creators who've already done the hard work.

Idea #1 - Adopt a creator's newsletter

Newsletters are hot right now, but building a successful one from scratch takes years of consistency, a distinct voice, and a whole lot of trust.

So why are brands spending years trying to build an audience when they could partner with someone who already has one?

Let me give you an example.

My friend Amanda Natividad is THE marketing influencer. You know her. She's brilliant, she coined “zero-click content,” and she's built an incredible reputation in the marketing world. She also has 16,000 subscribers to her newsletter, The Menu.

Last week, she published a post titled This newsletter is not sustainable and it's a problem.

In it, Amanda explains that between her weekly podcast, consulting projects, role at SparkToro, and the launch of her new book, maintaining a regular newsletter schedule isn't sustainable.

Think about that for a second.

SIXTEEN THOUSAND people have signed up to hear what Amanda has to say about marketing. She's already built the audience, earned their trust, and established herself as one of the most recognizable voices in the industry.

And she's telling us that maintaining the newsletter isn't sustainable.

But you know what could make it sustainable?

A marketing/B2B brand adopting her newsletter and allocating a (meaningful) slice of their marketing budget to keep doing what she's already doing.

Imagine a marketing technology company partnering with Amanda to fund the newsletter and support production, design, distribution, and growth.

Amanda would continue doing what she does best: sharing smart marketing insights with people who genuinely want to hear from her.

The brand would get access to something that's extraordinarily difficult to build from scratch: a trusted media property with an established audience.

And Amanda would get paid for the value she's already created.

Now, I should clarify that I haven't asked Amanda about this idea. She's my friend, but I'm volunteering her for a hypothetical business partnership without her permission. Sorry, Amanda!

I have no idea whether she'd be interested, but I genuinely can't figure out why more brands aren't pursuing partnerships like this.

Amanda isn't the only example.

Kaleigh Moore runs Context Window, a fantastic newsletter on all things AI visibility, creator content, and writing. Why hasn't a brand snatched her up? Profound? AirOps? Ahrefs?

Carol Ortenberg runs Checking Out with Carol, where she shares insights on the grocery and CPG industries. A food or retail brand could partner with her to build an incredible industry media property.

And, we also have Content Connect. Hi!

I've spent years building this newsletter (14K subs) and a community of more than 145,000 writers and marketers. Like Amanda, I argue constantly with myself about whether this is sustainable. I run a business, a newsletter, a community, have a family, and my dog is currently (and always) asking me to give her treats. It's a lot!

The opportunity is sitting in front of brands. Why aren't more brands with boring ol' content programs opting for something better?

This is getting long, so I'll be back next week with the next content idea to rock your world.

Thanks,

Ashley

Partner

Every click supports Content Connect. #sustainability

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