Should You Blog, YouTube, and/or Podcast?

or, as the panel was called at Imaginarium 2022,

Why We Need Podcasters, Bloggers, and YouTubers

These days, social media is king, and everything else is old school. If you’re not on TikTok (or whatever the next big thing is), why do you even bother? But there’s something to be said for creating original content and controlling your own platform.

At the titular panel, Scott Cox, J.D. Blackrose, John Peacock, Sean Burton, and moderator John Pyka helped validate a set of activities I spend a lot of my waking hours participating in.

What purpose does your blog, youtube (or twitch) channel, or podcast serve?

• To celebrate your own niche
• To provide content to underserved niche audiences
• To deliver on-demand accessibility
  • As digital downloads, people can consume the content when they’re offline
• To share targeted messages
• To participate in an unregulated market! (as long as you don’t infringe on Disney’s copyright)

First steps for creating a blog, youtube (or twitch) channel, or podcast

1. Decide on a purpose
   Not your life’s purpose. Just — what do you want to talk about? What do you think you can create at least a year’s worth of posts on?
2. Do your research
   Watch others in your niche, or a sibling niche and see what sort of content is popular. Figure out what you can bring to the audience that isn’t already there or your own unique twist. Don’t just do the exact same content you see on all the other beginners’ feeds.
3. Create your brand
   Have a consistency in the tone and content for your feed. Try not to make it so much of a gimmick you can’t maintain it.
4. Post consistently
   Whether it’s five times a day or twice a month, find a rhythm you can maintain, and your audience will come looking when your content is “due.”
5. Collaborate with other creators in your niche
   It’s a great way to get noticed when you’re getting started, and an excellent way to give back to the community once you’re established.
6. Remember who the content is for
   While it can be tempting to make your content all about you, what really appeals to an audience is when you make THEM the “hero”. Framing content, even if you’re talking about things you’re done or are planning, on how the audience can apply those techniques to their own practices (or avoid your mistakes) makes it more accessible, and gives people — other than your mother — a reason to check out your content.
7. Think about hosting your own content
   While videos might be harder to get off of youtube or twitch, I’d suggest backing them up. Social media platforms rise and fall, monetize and hide smaller creators with a flick of their algorithms. Having your own host that you can control can give you a small level stability not found elsewhere.

Do you have your own blog, youtube (or twitch) channel, or podcast?
Do you have any favorite content creators?
What niches have you found work for you?
Any tips the panelists missed?