If you haven’t been watching Breaking Bad, you are missing out on one of the greatest TV shows. It is the story of a struggling high school chemistry teacher who was diagnosed with lung cancer and turns to a life of crime to start producing and selling methamphetamine.
The teacher, Walter White, has the sole intention of securing his family’s financial future before he dies. Yet, as his business starts to develop and progress, he gains a bit of notoriety under the alias, Heisenberg.
Now, if you haven’t watched Breaking Bad, this post might have a few spoilers that give away some of the plot. That said, it also has a few key lessons that can help you in content management.
Here are a few lessons that you can take from watching Breaking Bad:
Create Addictive Content
If – like the writers of Breaking Bad do – you can create appealing, helpful and somewhat addictive content you might be on to something.
Just like Walter’s blue crystal meth you should get your users/readers addicted. The best way to do this is to give some of your content away for free. If your content is good your readers will become addicted and want more.
Differentiate
What made Walter’s product different. It was Blue. Create content that is different from the norm and you will create a brand. Break out of creating the same old stuff everyone else is producing. If you can make your content stand out, your buyers will associate you with that particular “brand” of content and will seek it out over that of your competitors.
Create and Distribute
Once Walt created the product he needed to distribute it, in the series he used his Tuco and Gustavo Fring to help distribute. For marketers, we have a vast amount of distribution/social media channels. If people like the content they will share with their friends and their friends will come to you wanting more. Share it across multiple channels such as Twitter, LinkedIn, SlideShare, email or paid promotions. If that content is relevant to your audience, they’ll share it with their networks, expanding your reach.
Have a Process
Just like Walter and Jesse had a process for creating their own brand of ‘crystal meth’. You must have a process in place to create addictive content. A person who creates the content, an editor and someone to proof/test.
Doing the Wrong Things Always has Consequences
The one overriding theme in Breaking Bad is the way lots of small compromises, in the name of the greater good, can lead you to places you don’t really want to be. That’s an especially good lesson for marketers, who can be tempted to cut corners with things like content creation and search engine optimisation. That might feel good in the short term, but failing to give viewers and prospects anything but the best value for their time and money will always come back to haunt you later.
What else can you learn from Breaking Bad?
