JUNE 4, 2024

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

Finding and following your ‘holy cow’ moment

Your content tilt is the area of little to no competition on the web that actually gives you a chance to break through the noise and be relevant. Your tilt makes your content business so different that your audience notices you and rewards you with attention.

But how do you discover (or refine) your content tilt? We’re sharing stories from content entrepreneurs about how they found theirs. Read on for Marshall Atkinson’s first-person story.

At Content Entrepreneur Expo in 2023, I was hit by a bolt of inspirational lightning. If you were there, you may have heard me exclaim, “That’s it!”

I was laughing to myself at the amazing idea that washed over me. But let’s rewind a little bit to tell this tale.

I attended CEX to learn about starting a newsletter as a tool for my consulting business in the decorated apparel industry. I wanted to know how to set it up, when it should be published, how to get readers, and, of course, how to monetize the effort.

CEX presenter Brian Fanzo went to great lengths to show off the work he had created in a new tool called Midjourney AI. As it happened, I had been goofing around with it, too. As part of my T-shirt industry background, I was a former art director. Art creation is my jam.

Midjourney creates images in less than a minute that cannot be duplicated or repeated. It sounds easy until you stop and think the image results are entirely based on your vocabulary and how well you understand how to use Midjourney. It can be incredibly frustrating and amazing at the same time.

I think I like it so much because it is the art version of golf. Just as you think you have the hang of it, you shank one into the trees.

Brian wasn’t even off the stage when I thought, “What professional graphic designers need is a newsletter to educate them on how to use Midjourney. Let’s reduce the friction of getting good results. THEY NEED THIS.”

From my seat, I Googled “Midjourney newsletter.”

There wasn’t one. Zero. Zip. Nada.

It was my ‘holy cow’ moment. I exclaimed, “That’s it!” Anyone around me must have thought I was odd.

That night, I wrote my business plan for the newsletter in my hotel room. From then on, I was on a mission.

The next day, serendipity showed up again. The CEX organizers set up themed tables for lunches. I sat at the newsletter table with nine other people. All of them used ConvertKit for their newsletter platform.

Research over.

I launched the Midjourney Experience newsletter. I already had a mailing list for drip marketing and social media – about 15K on all channels – so I announced it to them. I decided to publish weekly. Subscriptions are $12 per month or $100 per year.

Forty-three people signed up the first week, immediately making the project revenue positive (a little over $4K). I invested in a website and a ConvertKit expert – the best decisions I made.

Since the beginning, we have also created videos to explain Midjourney creation techniques. We publish them on a YouTube channel that helps drive subscribers. Our latest work is editing these videos to use as Instagram, YouTube Shorts, or TikTok.

Lately, we’ve added a private Facebook group for subscribers as well as affiliate marketing to help expand subscriptions. Also, we’ll experiment with an open office hour for subscribers in the newly opened private groups forum on the Midjourney platform.

The newsletter has also opened up speaking opportunities for me, and I have been teaching individuals and groups about the tool that many recognize as the best among the many AI-image-creation tools.

Last month, I published my 52nd edition of the newsletter. That’s right. One year. We have 352 subscribers and are growing. Though some may say that’s not a lot, it brings in well over $30K a year and only takes me about two hours a week to assemble (thanks to my VA team).

Looking for more ways to use AI in your content business? CEX 2024 has a whole track dedicated to AI. Purchase your digital pass today to learn how AI can up your content entrepreneur game.

Entrepreneur: Jared Polin

Biz: Fro Knows Photo

Tilt: Improving photography skills

Scene: ​Fro Knows Photo, YouTube (1.46M), Jared Polin Photography, LinkedIn (635)

Snack Bites:

• Jared Polin and a photographer friend wanted to create a website called Pro Photo 101. That idea never materialized, but Jared found himself in front of a camera making a test video about his Nikon gear. He failed for 10 minutes and thought he wasn’t an on-camera guy.
• Not wanting to build a YouTube channel with his name, Jared came up with Fro Knows Photo (and yes, his hair did have something to do with it.)
• Jared and his team operate out of the Fro Factory in Philadelphia, where they built sets so they’re ready to record all their video types.
• In 2019, Fro Knows Photo earned the coveted 1M subscriber mark on YouTube.

Why We Stan: Jared loves the rhyme and sees the value of a personal but not personally named brand. We also like his Six Degrees of Photography, where he uses his skills to tell stories of well-known people and get connected to the people they know, too.

-Ann Gynn

​Get the longer story of Jared.​

Know a content creator who’s going full tilt? DM us. Or email tilt@thetilt.com.

• Our dedicated team at Tilt Publishing is here to take the hassle out of publishing so you can keep creating the content you’re passionate about. Whether you’re looking to publish your first book or your fifth, Tilt Publishing is here to ensure it’s a hit.
• ​Win at AI with Content Signals (Content Inc.)
• ​Does the GoogleGate Leak Even Matter? (This Old Marketing)
• ​Determining the Right Retail Price for Your Book (Publish & Prosper)
• We’re talking about celebrations at 12 p.m. US EDT Tuesday during Tilt Your Business: A Mastermind for Content Entrepreneurs.​​

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