Finding Your Inner Content Creator

Mike Kilroy posted on May 4th, 2009

I’ve been a “content creator” since I can remember.  My mom still tells people about the “book” I wrote at age five, and how I was sending articles to magazines by age 10 (at least, my parents claimed they sent them).

I also wrote the lyrics for a band I was in during high school, and later wrote a weekly column for my college paper, writing about everything from Bugs Bunny cartoons to existential poetry.

My reason for relaying all this is that somewhere along the way I entered the journalism field, and then PR, and began including less of myself in the content I created.  In journalism, I had to adopt the “objective” voice as best I could, and in PR I was paid to represent my clients’ attitudes and opinions, not my own.

However, I’m discovering that in this new media world we find ourselves in today, personality counts.  And all those years of submerging my own thoughts and impressions during my work life need to be let to the surface.  Because people don’t follow robots on Web 2.0, they follow people with real thoughts and emotions.  That’s why it’s called “social” media.

And that’s why we urge our clients to find their inner content creators.  Some are natural writers, some are better with a two-minute video, and others with the 140 characters on Twitter.  Some might want to simply relay their thoughts while eating at their favorite breakfast hang out, while others may need a quiet office to reflect. Choose whatever works for you. Heck, play the piano, pull weeds in the garden, or get on the golf course while you explain your latest endeavor! The key is to find your comfort zone where you can be yourself and tell your story with passion. 

It may be a truism now that the Google search engine loves new content, but people love interesting content.  Keep it real and keep it fun.  Because the opportunities offered by this new social media world are only going to multiply.

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