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Content marketing affected by COVID-19?

I've got lots of great podcast episodes queued up, and lots to write and tweet about as usual… but the coronavirus spread is dominating the airwaves and our attention spans right now.

It feels almost trivial to share a discussion on work-life balance when the markets are crashing, many businesses and even countries shutting down, and doctors are making life and death decisions.

Anyone else feeling this way?

  1. 17

    I do feel this way. Self-awareness is key.

    If I was you I'd get on some entrepreneurs who survived the 2008 crash and do an episode about what to expect and what lessons they learned.

    Or something like that ...

    1. 7

      This is what I want to hear!!!

    2. 1

      On that note, I've got a book to recommend: Upbeat by Rajesh Setty

  2. 7

    I personally enjoy some non-covid content. But I've been pretty covid-focused for like six weeks, so maybe I just feel like I'm getting diminishing returns from new covid discussion...? Not sure every country is there yet, but I'd reckon folks will be ready to return to "regular" content before long. I am. (From Barcelona on full lock-down.)

  3. 6

    There's opportunity in every event - good or bad. More so in times like these where the wheat separates from the chaff more readily. The market will be more demanding and those providing true value should stay afloat.

    It's a good time to evaluate what is actually valuable in your business and what's extra. Businesses have been able to survive much worse (Great Depression, World Wars, etc).

    The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

    • Martin Luther King, Jr.
  4. 4

    Nah, keep it coming I reckon. Life hasn't stopped altogether. We need to keep as much non-health-impacting normalcy as we can.

  5. 3

    I'm looking forward to new IH podcast episodes!

  6. 3

    Yeah...but still keep it coming (as long as it's not another guide for remote working 😄 )

    1. 3

      Omg, this. I've had enough of it, I'm sure most of them mean well, but after a week or so of it, nope.

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        This comment was deleted a year ago.

  7. 2

    I think it's a service to your audience to keep publishing, especially if the content is already produced so it's not taking your time away from what else you may need to spend it on at the moment. Some of us may now have more free time on our hands which we want to use effectively, including consuming more great Indie Hacker podcasts, and others may welcome the distraction for an hour. Either way, please keep them coming, and if the backlog runs dry and production stalls for a while, well, that's fine, we understand. As for being trivial, it might be a side-hack has shifted to a main source of income if the day job has been hit by C-19 so continued guidance, tips, and encouragement is still very welcome.

  8. 2

    I felt that way two months ago. It was really frustrating how nobody on IH seemed to care since it was "just east Asia". People were talking about going to big conferences, acting as if there was nothing to be concerned about, etc...

    Now I just feel burnt out from thinking about it despite the fact that I have to as a 3 year + digital nomad. I'd rather hear about viral marketing than a viral pandemic.

  9. 2

    Yeah I see two strategies:

    • Just proceed as normal. I think many people here just want to continue working on their projects, especially since many of us are spending more time at home.

    • Adjust content to the situation. As others suggested add some content about struggling in business, fighting hardships, innovating etc.

  10. 2

    I will tell you I personally appreciate some good content not related to C19 right now. I know it seems like the world is ending, but I'm getting inundated from all sides. Nice to get a break from it with some good business and dev content...

  11. 2

    If it’s a good piece of content that piques my interest I’ll read it. No need to feed myself C19 news all day.

    Pretty sure most people are still adjusting to C19 and they’re stressed out, but at some point (weeks,months) things will get back to normal.

    Humanity went through far worse things and got back stronger.

  12. 2

    I think it kinda depends on if you're doing B2B or B2C marketing. B2B will be pretty slow as long as the economy is going down and people are working from home.

    B2C on the other hand could be an opportunity now that everyone's at home. Things like audiobooks, courses and all that stuff are probably going up.

  13. 2

    I think it's important to keep going, but to also introduce new things into the mix.

    Most people need to sit down and re-draw their plans. What can we do to help indie hackers navigate the next 12-24 months?

  14. 1

    I think the pandemic literally made content marketing more powerful. People in lockdown became more attached with the internet. Reading, listening and watching were the only thing to do for plenty of people worldwide. So good contents that made sense was more useful. This trend is still continuing. If the content is on point and reaches the right user/customer whatever you call, it will always click.

  15. 1

    I think your content should acknowledge the situation, then continue as normal.

    A nod to the elephant in the room is a polite way to ask it to leave for a moment.

  16. 1

    I totally feel this way. Not shared anything this last week and not really reading any of the usual newsletters that I get. Been personally consumed with COVID-19 content to try to understand what’s happening and how that affects my family and the community around me (currently on a lockdown in Switzerland).

    However, I need to drag myself out of it as in theory I’ve got a newsletter to send out tomorrow.

  17. 1

    Endorsed.

    Even from an insensitive business metrics point of view, your content will be drowned out by everyone’s focus on the virus.

    I’m just working away quietly rather than publishing anything.

  18. 1

    Please keep the interviews coming! I have a routine now where I listen to a podcast while I walk up a hill by my house.

    I focussed on stories involving remote developers today. So instead of a new interview I featured four interviews I've done previously with developers that already work at home to highlight the benefits of being a developer.

  19. 1

    I'm having the same problem with sales. It feels wrong to try to convince people to buy my product when there are probably more "important" things in the world, like healthcare, food etc.

  20. 1

    If the content is good people have a lot more time to listen + will be seeking out entertainment. For a lot of people discussions on work-life balance/other things that may seem trivial now, will always remain interesting. People need distraction and routine and normality. While the world around us changes by the hour focussing on our day-to-day business and routines will help us keep sane.

  21. 1

    I think it's important to be hearing good business advice even more so at the moment - businesses are going to be struggling and facing challenges they haven't seen before - any advice you can offer would be helpful, not trivial 👍

  22. 1

    I am for sure. I think a lot of us are, even if we might not vocalize it yet. I'd love to hear you talk about this, there are other podcasts but mostly about general anxiety or the medical aspects. Would love to hear someone talk about the economic / indie hacker aspect of it.

  23. 1

    Content marketing takes time so you should keep doing what you do.

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    This comment was deleted a year ago.

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      This comment was deleted a year ago.

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    This comment was deleted 3 years ago.

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