The Aud Dev Digest / June 15, 2021
Every(ish) week: three things and a tweet
Audience development is more than just writing social copy. (Read that sentence as many times as you need).
For others working in the field, trying to balance all of the channels, strategies, and platforms that make up the world of audience, I’m going to share things I’m reading and enjoying that helps me understand where this industry is and where it’s going.
Would love to hear from you if you’re reading something good! Hopefully will write weekly. Wish the name was better. Anyway!
1️⃣ I love the On Brand email from The Atlantic. I thought this nugget on “what is audience development?” from content strategist Uzra Khan was just, well, perfect. (Emphasis mine)
The foundation of true audience engagement is deeply considering your audiences and their needs first. For example, it’s moving from “let’s talk about what we’re doing” to “let’s give our audiences something valuable to think about, talk about, or do.” It’s moving from “this is a great idea!” to “this is a great idea for this audience, and here’s why.”
2️⃣ Adriana Lacy👩🏾💻 is one of the smartest audience minds out there, and is a brilliant and creative thinker when it comes to how brands can engage with new audience platforms. She’s been leading some fun conversations on Twitter Spaces around journalism and audience, and it’s great to see her thoughts laid out here on how publishers can use these channels well.
3️⃣ The Algorithm™️ hasn’t learned how to reward innovation. And TikTok was a shiny new kid on the block until it fell prey to many of the issues other platforms continue to struggle with: creator burnout, a singular aesthetic, a lack of trust in the platform and its algorithm. Highly recommend giving this piece from Rebecca Jennings at Vox a read.
TikTok fame celebrates a different kind of mediocrity, though, the kind where “relatability” means adhering to the internet’s fluctuating beauty standards and approachable upper-middle-classness and never saying anything that might indicate a personality.
And to close, a tweet from the audience hive. See you next time!
