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How to Create Amazing Content with Greg Rollett

By Arel Moodie
If YOU wanted to build a media empire and you were starting from zero, how would you go about it?  What if I told you one of the thought-provoking and thought out pieces of advice you could get came from a former rapper?  Because it does.
In this interview with Greg Rollett, founder of Ambitious Media Group, Arel gets Greg to dish on how you could go from unknown to unstoppable in your content creation and media.  
Quick Rundown:
2:15: From rapper to master marketer.
10:25: An exercise in solving problems.
17:20: Common mistakes people make starting out in media.
24:45: The power of specialization and knowing your market.
34:00: Scared that your product is "too similar to others?"  Tap into an abundance mindset, and perhaps you can subvert those fears!
35:20: Here's the best way to establish yourself and grow your audience...
Click here to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!
A Trip in the Way Back Machine, or how Greg got into Marketing:
Do you remember this?
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Back when MySpace was huge and Greg was touring as a rapper, he would keep his fans in the know through the social media network.  Maintaining his MySpace allowed his fans to keep in touch with his latest travels and exploits, and he did such a good job of it that the creator of Diet Coke noticed him through a Google search on Generation Y marketing.
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Diet Coke wanted to know how to effectively reach out to people like Greg's audience.  There was an untapped market within reach.  To Greg, he was just doing what came naturally to his passion.  He set up bulletins and was able to reach out to his fans.  That was a strength of his, and he played to this strength.
And just like that, Diet Coke got in touch with Greg.  Before long, Greg was hired in an advisory role for Diet Coke's content management.  This was a touring rapper who was sleeping on couches and eating pizza and ramen everyday, and he just found his way to a big check from Diet Coke.
That wouldn't be the end of things, as other large companies like Miller Light and Disney would also request Greg's expertise in content management, and it was through these that Greg moved on from rapper to expert marketer.
Getting to the Promised Land: How to Achieve Your Goals.
Greg provides us with an exercise that you can use to plan your way to solve problems and achieve your goals.
Take a piece of paper and draw a horizontal line from one end to the other.  Label one end the problem, and the other the solution.  In between, you can figure out the steps to get from the problem to your promised land.
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This can show you a list of little things to get to your promised land.  The journey of a thousand miles always starts with a single step, and when you look at it this way rather than as one gargantuan task, it doesn't seem so bad!
Unknown to Unstoppable: How You Can Get Started
But perhaps you want to know how you too can build a media empire, and Greg dishes out some strategy that works especially well for someone beginning in content management!  It can seem daunting to imagine going from an average person to a media mastermind, but just as done in the exercise above, we've mapped out Greg's advice for someone starting out in media to work his way to success.
Establish Your Home Base
So maybe you just released a hit song on iTunes, or you have a particular knack for cooking.  When (not if) people notice your work and your talent, where will they be able to find you to get more of you?  Be it Facebook, Twitter, or your own website, establish some sort of home base for people to come and enjoy your product again and again.
Use Your Personality
How can you stand out from the rest of the crowd who have also released songs on iTunes or also knows how to cook Italian dishes really well?  The answer already lies in something you already have--your personality.  Your personality can make you memorable to others.  Like this guy below:
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Love him or hate him (no in between really, once you think of it!), his personality shines through.  The important thing is that his content creates an emotional connection in his audience.
Now that you know this, do you think Greg used his former rapping reputation to his advantage in connecting with consumers?  You can bet he did.  You too can leverage your personality to create a memorable impression on your followers.
Play to Your Strengths
Know what your strengths in media are.  If you are comfortable on camera, use that and make YouTube videos!  But if instead you are camera shy and prefer speaking mostly, perhaps focusing on podcasts will allow you get into character more easily.
You don't have to be perfect your first time around--it's part of the learning process!  And through repeated practice and exposure, perhaps you expand to managing your Facebook page.  There, you get better and better at engaging your crowd through similar online forums.
Specialize
This part has no shortcuts to it.  Prolific output needs prolific input, and you need to become an expert in your field to build your credibility.  Consume in order to create.
As a financial adviser though Ambitious Advisor, Greg himself consults various magazine, thirty different websites, and sets up 20 different Google Alerts so he can keep in the know of newsworthy highlights.  You can do this too with your field, be it listening to other musicians or going through various Italian cookbooks for example.
Greg even can list you his teachers in marketing and whom they learned (and he does so on the spot in the podcast!).  That's how well he knows his field.
Consistency
And just as you consistently consume, consistently create.  Your followers need to know that they can expect content from you on a consistent basis.  Just like TV shows you watch, you know when to turn on the TV for your favorite shows week to week, because they're consistent.
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If Arrow were to stop playing every Wednesday, where would that leave you with that show?  That could be less reason to keep coming back for more.  So consistency is a virtue, and you can use this engage and develop connections with your audience.
Thanks to Greg for coming on the show!  Check out Ambitious Media Group at ambitious.com, or find Greg on Facebook and Twitter!  If you're a young person with ambition looking to make it in media, entrepreneurship, or travel, Greg can help point the way.  There's more to life than waiting for Friday happy hours.
Stay tuned, and stay awesome!
Questions and comments can be directed via email to [email protected]
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