I've heard 'every brand needs to be a media company' in approximately 400 presentations and I'm here to say: no. Most brands do not need to be media companies. Most brands need to make great products, serve their customers well, and communicate clearly about what they do. The end.
I've heard 'every brand needs to be a media company' in approximately 400 presentations and I'm here to say: no.
The 'brand as media company' advice made sense for a specific type of brand in a specific era. Red Bull can be a media company because extreme sports content IS their brand expression. HubSpot can be a media company because their content directly educates their buyers. But a plumbing supply company does not need a content studio.
What's happened is that 'create content' became universal advice disconnected from any strategic logic. The result: thousands of brands producing blogs, podcasts, videos, and social content that nobody asked for, nobody needs, and nobody consumes. Content for content's sake. Publishing to fill a calendar rather than serve an audience.
The better framework: what does your audience need from you? Sometimes the answer is content. Often the answer is a better product page, clearer pricing, faster customer service, or simply being easier to buy from. The most customer-centric thing many brands could do is STOP creating content and spend that budget on things their customers actually want.
Not every brand is a media company. Some brands are just brands. And brands that accept this and focus on being excellent at their actual job are often more magnetic than ones producing mediocre content nobody reads.
Barnaby just knocked my pen off the desk in what I'm choosing to interpret as agreement.