JUNE 7, 2024

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

Partner Up for Audience Growth

Do these five things, and you’ll get two outcomes – an easy-to-explain business mission and a framework for identifying the best partners to grow your content business.

It’s a process developed by Pamela Slim, author, business coach, and co-founder of K’é Community Lab, that she first shared at CEX a couple of years ago.

1. Do this audience audit method: Describe your audience as a problem to be solved or an aspiration to be attained. So don’t say, “I work with speakers in the financial services industry between the ages of 45 and 55.” Instead, say, “I help business owners become prosperous.”

2. Define the solution: Defining your audience by the problem or aspiration allows you to better define your offer. Think about what the audience needs in their transformational journey.

Complete the phrase: “Helping this audience go from ______ to ______.” Then, think about the solution that solves the problem AND zeroes in on your unique skills and strengths.

Knowing your audience and offering lets you begin to see the natural connections in the ecosystem, those potential partners – organizations, brands, individuals, etc.

3. Put your ideal customer in the center of the ecosystem: Where is your audience? Pam refers to these as their “watering holes” – strategic places where many of your ideal customers have already gathered for someone or something else. It could be podcasts, newsletters, software services, events, etc.

Narrow the options by creating your Justice League – the service providers, thought leaders/influencers, complementary product providers, etc., with whom it would be best to connect.

4. Pick partners for a reason. Know what the ecosystem partnership could bring to your business. Pam shared a formula created by Charlie Gilkey.

Will this partnership bring …

• Cash flow? How much and by which means?
• Opportunities? What kind of opportunities are you looking for?
• Visibility? Where do you want to be seen? What action do you want them to take once they see you?

With that information, you can better identify potential partners and explore specific opportunities.

5. Find partners in your ideal customer’s ecosystem: Break down your list of potential partners into three levels:

• Start – strong partners you know right now
• Cultivate – good partner candidates you don’t know well
• Big dreams – moonshot partners you dream of working with

“Building a business through the lens of community and ecosystem means you do the work of strategy, obsess about problem-solving, and seed with patience regularly,” Pam says.

-Ann Gynn

​Watch and listen to Pam Slim's great advice at this year’s CEX 2024: Your IP—Prepare, Package, and Sell It. It’s among the dozens of sessions available on demand with our Digital Pass.​

supported by: It’s time to take your next step toward membership. As a company committed to empowering creators to thrive with membership businesses, we valued the chance to connect with many of you face-to-face at the Content Entrepreneur Expo (CEX) and answer your questions about membership. As a refresher, here are some key points about Memberful that matter most to content entrepreneurs: Memberful helps you become independent from advertisers and social media algorithms. Memberful allows you to sell access to your online courses, blogs, newsletters, podcasts, and more all while earning sustainable recurring income and building your community. Plus, Memberful is EASY! Quickly integrate with your favorite tools like LearnDash, MailChimp, and Discord to build a membership business directly on your website. ​ Start your membership business today

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