Are you getting left behind?

If your thinking of starting or running an Online Business and don’t have Evergreen content creation in your plans you’re missing a big advantage. In fact, it could be the difference between success or failure. To help explain what I mean let’s start with a subject I love – mental models. Here’s one that, as a budding Online Business owner, you could fall prey to or use to your advantage.

2. Creative Destruction
Entrepreneurs will push to best one another in a never-ending game of creative one-upmanship, in the process destroying old ideas and replacing them with newer technology. Beware getting left behind.

Let’s first look at the part about destroying old ideas and replacing them with newer technology. Normally this type of shift occurs over a long period of time. The shift appears invisible until its everywhere. Think Podcast taking over Radio.

In contrast, Corona Virus has accelerated this destruction. Think Zoom meetings replacing – a cross country trip, a dry sandwich for lunch, standing on the train for an hour even though I’d paid for a seat – for an in-person meeting (I’m over it).

The magic of mental models is, we can apply them to different areas of life and business. With this in mind, let’s apply the mental model, ‘creative destruction’ in the context of content creation for your Online Business.

By the time you’ve finished reading, I want to leave you with, how to:

1. Avoid creative destruction
2. Avoid getting left behind

So within the context of content creation, how do you avoid getting left behind?

Answer: Create evergreen content for a big advantage.

What is evergreen content?

To help understand what evergreen content is, let’s look at what it isn’t. Evergreen content isn’t:

• Trending at the moment – think Harry and Meghan.
• Current Cultural Reference – think ‘flossing.’
• Topical – think Corona Virus.
• In the News – think US presidential election (what do people talk about when there isn’t one)

So what’s Evergreen content?

Gardners will be familiar with this word in the context of plants. A plant that retains its green leaves throughout the year is referred to as evergreen. Regardless of the weather (news), park visitors (trending), season (cultural ref) and insects (topical) – it remains ever-green. 

That’s what your content needs to be. Like an evergreen plant, it needs to stand the test of time. Great examples of evergreen content that come to mind include The Godfather, The US Office, Notorious BIG – Juicy, Rich Dad Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki, How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie, Start Wars.

Before you panic and think – ‘I’m never going to create the next Star Wars’. The existence of evergreen content exists within every niche imaginable.

To prove this point, here’s an example of an everyday YouTuber who switched from ‘current’ to evergreen content because she understood the big advantage.

Why did SSSniperwolf make the switch?

She’s in the game of making money. SSSniperwolf has an Online Business, and her revenues generated from YouTube ads and monetising her audience. She’s not in the game of creating content for the hell of it.

She also identified one major flaw with ‘staying current’. If you stop ‘being current’. Guess what, you’re no longer current.

You fall prey to creative destruction.

You get left behind.

Evergreen Content: Where to start

First get to know who your market is and what needs/desires they have.

This is covered in far more detail in the BATON Business section (A framework we’ve created that helps you start any Online Business). It would help if you spent time here first. Every hour spent nailing down your market and understanding what they need or desire will save you months in wasted content creation.

As you work through this process of getting to know your market. You’ll begin to understand that the needs of your new-found market are just as evergreen as the content you’ll be creating.

I’ll leave you with a working example. We’re currently developing a Improve your Communication Product founded by Dr Rohan Weerasinghe. Here are some examples of the needs/desires of someone wanting to improve their communication: speak confidently, talk publically, improve negotiation, pitch product, resolve conflict.

Do those needs/desires sound ‘current’ or evergreen?

Evergreen! This allows us to produce content that someone can watch today. In a year. Ten years.

This means we’ll sell our evergreen products today. In a year. Ten years.

I want you to do the same with your Online Business.

I don’t want you to fall prey to creative destruction.

Why do you need to take this seriously?

Because of the speed at which ‘creative desctruction’ now occurs.

Go forth and create evergreen content and benefit from the big advantage!