Content Is Not King

It’s a pretty bold statement, isn’t it?

Are we making the wrong assumptions about content? What works? What doesn’t work? What makes something go viral? Do you think that BuzzFeed knows the answers to these questions, better than anyone else? Last month, I had the honor of leading a very in-depth conversation with BuzzFeed founder, Jonah Peretti, at an exclusive retreat for senior marketers. He was fascinating (and, I do regret not being able to record that session and turn it into a podcast). While we were hanging out and waiting for the session to begin, I remembered having a very interesting conversation at this past year’s TED event with Ze Frank. Many know Ze as somewhat of an Internet legend. He was making videos go viral long before this thing called YouTube was popular and, more recently, he became the President of BuzzFeed Motion Pictures. Based in LA, his division of BuzzFeed works on all aspects of video creation… and distribution.

What does Ze Frank and BuzzFeed know about making your content work?

It turns out, that Ze knows a lot about what works. His finding will – without question – surprise you. Ze visited the Paley Media Council in Los Angeles last week for a live event moderated by Re/code senior editor, Dawn Chmielewski. Ze speaks about what brands must do to succeed in a world where the consumer has so many content choices. Personally, I started watching this conversation and wondered if I would hear anything new. After about five minutes, I found myself hitting the pause button and scrambling for my Moleskine to take notes. Ze is an amazing presenter and storyteller. He’s also very calculated and date-driven, when it comes to figuring out what works (and what doesn’t).

You have to watch this: BuzzFeed’s Ze Frank talks to Re/code’s Dawn Chmielewski.