AUGUST 9, 2022

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Welcome to The Tilt, a twice-weekly newsletter for content entrepreneurs.

BROUGHT TO YOU BY:

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In This Issue: Joe Pulizzi says exit strategies are necessary for creators at any business stage. A creator found a content tilt after an injury ended his football-playing days. TikTok, Instagram, and others are still trying.

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It doesn’t matter what your industry is, where you live, or how many people are involved in the business. Content entrepreneurs almost always lack an exit strategy.

Maybe you dream of selling big someday. Or maybe you don’t think your content business is worth anything.

No matter the reason, you need to get an exit strategy on paper immediately.

In 2008, a year after I started the Content Marketing Institute, I wrote in the financial section of my goals list: “My wife and I sell the company in 2015 for more than $15M.”

That year, the business generated about $60K in revenue and took a $50K loss. The business was worthless. In that context, my goal was laughable.

Visualize yourself and your family in 10 years. Where are you? What are you doing? What’s different? How are you making the world a better place?

How will you build your grand vision?

The Edward Lowe Foundation shares several steps in creating an exit strategy:

• Pick a target date for a change in your role.
• Get feedback from your family or investors. They need to be aware of your thinking (even those who don’t work in the business.)
• Create the plan. You can sell the content business to your children, employees, or a strategic or financial buyer. You also could merge with another company.
• Publish the plan. Your partners and family members should know your intentions. One of the best things we did when we sold our company was to make sure the management team knew ahead of time and was compensated for any transaction.
• Implement the plan.​
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Identify potential buyers: By 2010, the Content Marketing Institute business model started coming into form. Revenue opportunities presented themselves, and I could envision the company we would become. I also could envision the types of companies that would want to buy it. Over a few months, I listed them. I included only strategic buyers (not financial buyers) since I did not want to stay with the business too long after the sale.

I narrowed the list to six. How? I chose companies that I believed (1) would keep the mission of the organization strong and (2) had the money to pay at or over the asking price.

Flesh out the details: Create a spreadsheet with these columns: parent company, acquiring brand (for example, Alphabet/Google is the parent company, but its Nest brand would be in the negotiation room), rationale – why would each company want to buy your business, key contacts (i.e., decision-makers and gatekeepers).

Meet and greet: Your quest over the next 12 to 18 months is to meet and/or chat with each key contact. Don’t mention anything about selling the company. At this point, just get to know them and form a business relationship. Stay in touch every other. It doesn’t have to be much, but “Thought this report would be of interest. Check out page four” goes a long way.

Grow toward the goal: By the end of 2014, we did not have the financial numbers to justify a $15M valuation. (I explain more on valuation in How to Sell Your Content Creator Business.) Because of this, we made multiple decisions in 2014, including purchasing two small properties and an email database. It worked.

Get started now: If you don’t have an exit strategy, don’t worry. Take a few weeks and think about what you want your business to become. Remember, you are a small business entrepreneur first and foremost.

– Joe Pulizzi

Get more advice from Joe in the longer story.

Ready to sell your business? Joe explains how he did it.

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Entrepreneur: Dylan Lewis

Biz: Dyl

Tilt: Madden YouTuber and streamer

Primary Channels: YouTube (8.1K), Twitch (2.8K)

Other Channels: Twitter (757), TikTok (4.6K)

Time to First Dollar: Few months

Rev Streams: YouTube and Twitch ad revenue, Twitch subs

Our Favorite Actionable Advice:

• Don’t see what sticks: Dylan started his channels by publishing all kinds of content before he realized no one knew who he was a creator. Find your content tilt first by doing research and emulate what works for you.
• Watch the dropoff: The retention rate is the essential stat. It can help you evaluate when and why viewers drop from watching your videos. Dylan no longer introduces himself in every video because that was one point where viewers dropped off.
• Don’t follow for follows: Don’t fall for follow-for-follow schemes where you promise to follow one content creator if they follow you back. Get followers who want to consume your great content.

– Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

Read how his football-ending injury led to his content entrepreneurial plans.

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• There is nothing inherently wrong with putting all your chips into Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube. It's just not a business model I could EVER recommend. [Content Inc. podcast]
• Joe and Robert are shocked that payola is happening on podcasts. What needs to be done to combat this? [This Old Marketing podcast]
• You need a plan to start a business. (Reading Eagle)
• Do you know this secret to building a lasting business? (Inc.)
• How to grow a business AND have a life. (Fast Company)

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Your team for this issue: Joe Pulizzi, Pam Pulizzi, Ann Gynn, Laura Kozak, Marc Maxhimer, and Dave Anthony, with an assist from Sarah Lindenfeld Hall.

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