In a Nutshell: To stand out from all the fake news and clickbait cluttering your audience's inboxes, you have to produce content that's authentic, entertaining, interesting, and above all, human.
Guest: Brooke Southall, the founder of RIABiz. Back in 2009, Brooke built his online-only news publication on traditional journalistic values like using multiple sources and editorial analysis. Brooke and his team captured the rise of new models for providing client-first financial advice against the backdrop of Wall Street's decline during the Great Recession. Today, RIABiz is one of the go-to sources for deep, sophisticated analysis of the most important issues affecting the RIA business.
My Key Takeaways: To create engaging, authentic content:
- Don't be boring. Before you even start writing, ask yourself, "Is this an article I would click on or swipe past?"
- Slow down. Brooke believes that the race to be first has really hurt online journalism. Working important news into your regular communication rhythm will result in better content than a rushed newsletter.
- Keep your eyes open. Brooke says the key to writing good articles isn't great writing ability, it's curiosity about the world and other people.
Also Learn:
- Why hiking with his dogs is an integral part of Brooke's writing process.
- How to use other people's stories as a jumping-off point for your next blog or newsletter.
- What separates a compelling headline from pure clickbait.
- Why Brooke believes showing weakness is more important to good writing than demonstrating success.