I got into the marketing and media space because after a decade of formally and informally studying psychology, communication, and media in all different formats, I believed in the power that relationship building had to change people’s lives. From creatives to business owners. I believed in the power of building genuine connections with people and building digital assets that can do that for you for years down the road no matter what you do or what you sell. Unfortunately, with the rise of short form content and all of the vanity metrics that come with it, people seem to have forgotten all about what the words connection and relationship really mean. Everyone’s chasing some “magic number” of views or likes to feel fulfillment and feel like their marketing is working when, in reality, it’s a race to the bottom. And it’s a race that I don’t want to be apart of. So I won’t be. If you want to feed the short form beast, be my guest. Find one of the hundreds of short form agencies, hire a low budget editor, use one of the thousands of AI platforms, there are countless ways to get it done. This whole chasing trends and looking for the highest volume of videos at the lowest cost is only a bandaid on a much bigger problem that both creators and businesses have. Genuine, authentic, REAL fans. Real connections. Real customers. Does that mean I quit marketing and my business? HELL NO. It just means I wont be offering any kind of short-form only marketing services. If we aren't working on some kind of long form media (video, blogging, emails, podcasts, etc.) or some kind of back end lead nurture system, I wont be helping you with short form. I'm here to build ecosystems and build creators and businesses that want longevity and a real future. My DMs are always open to chat more about this. Cheers and happy RELATIONSHIP and CONNECTION building.

You can be hooked on tiktoks and reels all you want thinking that's your path to freedom but the king of content is and always has been and will be long form. Whether it's YouTube videos, an Email, Blog posts, Audio only podcasts...it doesn't matter. Bite-size pieces of content are great for building awareness but they're TERRIBLE for building real relationships.Disregard this advice at your own peril. This is again just a testament to my whole philosophy behind marketing and branding. People need a means to connecting with you and building a relationship with you. People need a reason to trust and like you so that they buy from you and come see your shows and come to your launch parties and support you. Like REALLY support you. You can't do that with 30 second tiktoks and 100 character tweets being your entire strategy. I use the word "ecosystem" for a reason. Without a way to keep in touch and share more about who you are and why you do what you do, you'll always fall behind the the next cheapest option or the next biggest hype. Want to charge more for your services? Build better relationships Want to sell out more venues? Build better relationships Want to get genuine feedback from your audience? Build better relationships You do it with LONG-FORM content.

I and every other marketer or video maker on the PLANET know that you want reach and you want to go viral. Trust me, we do. There are plenty of "marketers" and video makers that will promise you a million views in 30 days and, to be honest, they aren't lying to you about how many views they can get you. They take the most viral format right now and copy it to a T, wait for one of the virally formatted videos to hit, and then if it hasn't hit the million view mark, they put some of their own ad money behind it and boost it to places with low cost per view so they can get you that promise. woooooo. Now what has that actually done for you? Nothing. The point of content marketing is longevity and relationships. The most common travesty in the space is people that "hit it big" with something viral only to be dumbfound by the lack of engagement just a few short months later. Which brings me to my point...You need to be TESTING YOUR MARKET. That doesn't mean don't try viral formats and trends, it means don't become relient on those things to bring you views and engagement. Learn about YOUR audience by testing content that's relevant to you, your style, your verbiage, your personality. Do things that draw your audience in to you and your authenticity. One of my favorite songs ever starts with the quote "Only real shit is gonna last. All that other bullshit is here today, and gone tomorrow." Make real shit. Real connections. Real relationships. You do that with consistency and testing your market, not by chasing vanity metrics.

Focusing on Facebook ads or SEO or Email marketing wont take you to the promised land. Those are simply tools to convey a message to people. Powerful tools, but tools none the less. Over time and history, new tools have always come and gone. Some have lasted the test of time, like the hammer for example. Other's were replaced by much more effective tools. Think about how many farmers were displaced when the tractor came to be. So you're thinking, "Get to the point, Payam". You need to focus on building SKILLS rather than simply learning to use tools. Facebook ads and email marketing are here today...they might not be in a decade. What will ALWAYS be here are the skills of story telling, knowing how to use persuasion, understanding relationship building. These are the things that actually move the needle. Everything else is simply a tool. I have a marketing systems skool page and I'd love to have you there. This really is a passion of mine

what you're making content about has already been said and that that information can be found ANYWHERE else on the internet. Often times I feel disengenuous because Im not giving any groundbreaking information. Im really just sharing what Ive learned from others and how I've used it. Maybe this is a strange thing to be asking but it really does hold me back from making and posting content. In short, how do you get around the feeling that the content ideas you have and what you have to say aren't valuable? Have a great weekend everyone!