Category: Social Media

A Near-perfect Example of Outrage Marketing

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Brandon Sanderson is one of America’s most successful writers.

In fact, he’s probably the biggest fantasy author in the world right now.

I’m not joking, this guy is massively, massively popular. Looking at the stats, he’s sold something like 20 million books and makes a reported $10,000,000 per year. What’s more, his 2022 Kickstarter is one of the biggest of all time, with over 100,000 backers pledging more than 8 figures.

Not bad for an overweight nerd from Salt Lake City…

Part of the reason for this success is his incredible work ethic. Sanderson is known for churning out material at the speed of light. For example, during the COVID-19 quarantine, he wrote five new books. Another reason is his outrageously rabid fan base. As it turns out, these people are OBSESSED with Sanderson and often refer to him as “God.”

That being said, not everyone is a fan.

One of these people is Jason Kehe, journalist and author of a recent Wired profile on Sanderson.

To put it politely, this profile can only be described as unflattering.

In it, he trashes almost everything about the man, including his way of dressing, dietary habits, weight, city, religion, and also his fans. As you can imagine, this has sent the fan base into a state of total frenzy. They’re riled up, angry, and baying for blood.

It’s this anger which has also made the article go viral. Dozens of online outlets have now mentioned it, plus it’s also been shared and written about extensively on places like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit (Then you have the usual YouTube reaction and commentary videos.)

All of this brings us neatly to the point.

Whether intentional or not, the article is basically a work of genius.

You see, Jason Kehe had a choice: write another fluff piece or trash Sanderson. By trashing the guy, he pissed off thousands of nerds and generated millions of clicks. This makes the whole thing a near-perfect example of both viral content and also outrage marketing.

Bottom line:

Don’t be afraid of attacking people bigger than you and creating controversy.

By doing this you’ll manufacture curiosity and most importantly attention…

…two things which are sorely needed to succeed in todays overcrowded marketplace.

Until next time,

Alastair Walton

P.P.S. Feeling curious? Want to read this controversial article? You can go here for that.

Why Mr. Beast earns $54 million a year

Posted on by Alastair Walton

I recently read an article about Jimmy Donaldson a.k.a Mr. Beast.

In case you don’t know, this guy is now one of the biggest stars on YouTube.

(Bigger even than PewDiePie.)

According to reports, he earned an incredible $54 million in 2021 alone. What’s more, he’s now the fourth most subscribed channel on the platform, with 125 million subscribers, and a whopping 18.2 billion views. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s also developing apps, and even has a virtual restaurant he calls “Mr. Beast Burger.”

Not bad for a guy who just turned 24.

Now, what’s the point of all this?

Well, as I read through the article something jumped out at me.

It turns out this guy is far from an overnight success.

In fact, he’s actually posted videos since all the way back in 2012, when he was just 13.

This factoid contains an important lesson.

You see, what a lot of people don’t realize about making money online, copywriting, running a business, or anything in life, is that success takes time. It can often take years, or in the above case decades. This is really the point I’m trying to make. The overwhelming majority of internet entrepreneurs give up way too quickly. They want fast, easy success, and when it doesn’t happen they quit.

Now, I’m not saying persistence is the magic key to success.

Some people persist their entire lives and get nowhere.

So persistence is not the only factor.

Obviously there are other things like luck, or simply being in the right place at the right time.

But what I am saying is that most people give up far too easily…

…and unless you’re willing to persist you’ll never get anywhere.

Here endeth the lesson.

Alastair Walton

P.S. Another reason why this guy is so successful is because of his content. Mr. Beast is famous for something known as “expensive stunts.” For example, some of his videos have titles like:

“Last to Leave the Circle Wins $50,000”

”Would You Rather Have $100,000 or This Mystery Key”

“Would You Rather Have a Lamborghini or This House?”

“Last to Leave $800,000 Island Keeps It”

“I Ate a $70,000 Golden Pizza”

This type of content is extremely compelling. People will always sit up and pay attention when there’s money (especially big money) involved. The competition and curiosity factor also draw viewers. The point is that unique, killer content will always put you ahead of the crowd.

P.P.S. One more thing before I go. Just because success takes time, doesn’t mean you have to work hard, or put in long hours. Consistency is far more important. For instance, if you spend just an hour a day reading, you can easily get through more than a dozen books per year.

MARK ZUCKERBERGS BILLION DOLLAR GAMBLE

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Many years ago there was a restaurant in my neighborhood.

This place did business like crazy.

Almost every night there was a queue out the door and down the block.

Then…disaster struck.

What happened was this:

Whoever owned the place decided to shut it down for remodeling. I have no idea how long this took…must have been a month or two. When it opened back up, the momentum was gone and the magic could not be recaptured. The crowd had moved on to somewhere else. And just over six months later this restaurant closed for good. Yes, I’m sure they were making money, but the ripple effect of shutting down eventually took them out.

This example reminds me of what’s happening with Facebook right now.

By all accounts the social media giant is circling the drain.

To start with, their share price has fallen by about 70% during 2022.

What’s more, the company is now planning to begin large-scale layoffs.

(According to reports, thousands of people are being let go.)

But why is all of this happening?

Well, it all goes back to the example I gave at the start of this message.

You see, Facebook isn’t actually Facebook anymore, is it?

Oh no, Mark Zuckerburg decided to “remodel” his business and turn Facebook into Meta…

…and now the magic is gone.

The point here is that you should never up-end your business too much.

Don’t make too many sweeping changes all at once.

You want to avoid altering your core business model or entirely rebranding the business.

Don’t replace what works with something completely untested.

(Does anyone actually want the Metaverse, I don’t think so?)

Make too many sweeping changes too quickly and you’ll upset the apple cart.

Anyway, most of this will be of very little use to you.

Just wanted to share my thoughts on something you may find interesting.

Alastair Walton