The hierarchy of differentiation
Unsurprisingly, the content itself is the best way to differentiate a media brand
This is the eighth edition of The Rebooting. This week, I’m taking a look at how to differentiate as a media brand, assessing the Substack revolution, the game of putting too much mayo on the sandwich, and the power of resilience. If you’re enjoying The Rebooting, drop me an email -- and please forward this to someone who would find it valuable. Thanks for reading.
The hierarchy of differentiation
The past decade in media has been defined by commoditization. The shift from analog to digital distribution and monetization has been unkind to many publishers, none more so than those in the middle. All markets have middling players who struggle. The media business has seen even more pressure thanks to the rise of distribution chokepoints and data eating advertising. In a world of “find a cookie, hit a cookie,” content became a commodity. In a race to make up for declining ad rates, publishers adopted scale strategies that depended on serving the whims of algorithms. Inevitably these growth hacks became widely known and deployed. The result: A lot of sameness.
