Framework-Driven Sourcing

In the early days of Slow Upload, we discussed reframing the creator opportunity as a consumer one given the extent to which creators influence consumer mind and wallet share. If true, then analyzing evolving consumer needs, behaviors, and demographics must be a productive means of identifying attractive and high-growth opportunities.

While just one component of our broader model, thematic sourcing borrows heavily from the traditional consumer investing world and aims to understand a creator’s significance to their audience – why a ‘fan’ might seek out, follow, and deeply engage with them. Below we share a few (somewhat overlapping) frameworks we employ:

Importance of hobbies: In our increasingly high-stress world, consumers are pursuing skill-based hobbies as a respite from the demands of modern life. They provide an outlet to express creativity, improve a skill, or pursue a goal. Creators share entertaining and educational content for hobbyists; further, they build deep relationships with an audience that has a high propensity to spend on hobby-related goods and services.

Examples: fishing, chess, cycling, beekeeping.

Widening knowledge gap: In specific categories, consumers are in (often desperate) need of guidance but don’t have the resources to effectively make and execute on decisions. They require an expert to distill complex information and provide advice. Creators in these spaces are usually technical, educated, highly skilled, or deeply experienced.

Examples: lawn care, hormone health, sub-sectors of parenting, personal finance.

Taboo topics: Consumers usually approach taboo topics privately or anonymously. Creators have an opportunity to provide a safe, trusted space for their followers to engage in conversations they might not be comfortable having with family, friends, or peers. Trust yields greater attachment and, ultimately, higher lifetime value.

Examples: sex and relationships, mental health, salary and compensation.

Paradox of choice: Modernity has offered an unprecedented level of choice and convenience for consumers. Consequently, many are seeking to shortcut purchasing decisions through reviews, recommendations and, increasingly, individual tastemakers. These curators provide a trusted perspective that is particularly important in large, subjective, and nuanced categories.

Examples: skincare, healthy eating, romance novels.

Cultural milieu: Social media has meaningfully democratized content – anyone with access to a cell phone can share their environment and perspective. For the first time, audiences are able to see their own communities (geographic, religious, ethnic, demographic, etc.) authentically represented and are offered insight into others’. Culture creators’ work can range from evoking a romanticized past to asserting a realistic present, but it is always fundamentally grounded in their lived experience.

Examples: New York culture, Christianity, sorority rush.

While this top-down approach to sourcing is not all-encompassing, it offers one lens through which we can determine areas of interest and evaluate specific creators in an ever-evolving landscape. If you are, or know of, a creator who might fit within an above framework(s), we’d love to connect.