Creed: The Best Content Comes From Individuals Rather Than Organizations

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At Shortcut Content, we believe that the best content comes from individuals rather than organizations. In fact, it’s the first point in our Content Creator’s Creed. There are so many companies that just send information on the company letterhead without anybody’s name on it. You see press releases like that. Well, I don’t think that’s the best way to share important information. I believe that it’s best heard straight from the mouth of the face of your company.

Apple is probably the greatest example. It’s a tradition that they have carried on, even after Steve Jobs’ passing. They don’t announce things in press releases; they do keynote speeches, they do live stage product unveiling. When you think of how you heard about the iPhone or the iPad, it’s typically going to have been because somebody shared a video of Steve Jobs on a stage, pointing at it and talking about it. They always have a person, whether it’s Tim Cook or somebody else from the company, standing on a stage, showing you and sharing it.

Think about the White House. When they have something really important to say, it’s never in a press release; the President comes out, stands in front of a camera and says it. That’s how the information is relayed. And, in general, you get the best content when the President of any organization comes out and directly relays the information.

The content we remember that’s endearing, inspiring, motivational, and life-changing has got a name attached to it…not a company. We remember how it made us feel, we remember who it was and I think there are very few companies that can get away with an exception to that rule. They’re typically really big companies. Nike is a good example. We’ve seen Nike ads with the “just do it” message that can move us, that can bring emotion to the story, and we don’t necessarily have to have a name attached to it. But when Nike does attach a name to it, it’s usually not somebody from the Nike corporation; it’s somebody that’s using their product. It’ll be a shoe on the foot of Tiger Woods. So it may not be the company, but it will be an individual.

Google is another good example of that, because if you use Google, you know they’re everywhere; they’re on your phone, they’re on your computer, they’re on your iPad, they’re everywhere. And if you’re a user, you’re going to know about things. People share it all over the place. So it doesn’t necessarily have to come from a specific person at Google and, in fact, you probably couldn’t name somebody that’s ever come out from Google and talked about a specific product. But, in a way, we’re all the face of Google, and we are the ones relaying the information.

Press releases have never made someone’s heart skip a beat. I think that unless you’re a clear-cut exception, your company needs to follow the rule that the best content is going to come from individuals, inside your company or users of your company, rather than out of the mouth of your corporate voice. It never feels like you are being spoken to one-on-one. Our job at Shortcut Content is to help you put a face to your content so that you can share information that moves your customers. Find me at ShortcutContent.com to get in contact and start that process.


I’ve written a post about each line of the Creed. If you’d like to see them, just click on the links below:

We believe…

…the best content comes from individuals rather than organizations

…your work’s meaning and your company’s purpose are best shared through a human voice of storytelling

…communication derived from story transcends communication derived from product features

readers deserve first-hand stories from experienced experts

stories are best shared by experts who have lived to tell the tale rather than vicariously through writers and researchers

…the strength of your company rests in the personalities of your leaders

…sharing your wisdom through story is your best legacy

And the BEST way to write your story is whatever method gets the job done.