This 1 Simple Content Change Skyrocketed Humans Of New York To 12.9M Followers

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🗽 Humans Of New York (HONY)

Not Getting Engagement? Try This 1 Simple Content Change - (It Grew HONY To 12,900,000 Followers)

Little-known fact: Humans Of New York was initially just a photography project.

A photoblog showcasing simple snaps of the city.

It would eventually skyrocket to a 12.9 million-follower Instagram Page with massive engagement.

Its success can be attributed to a single change in content strategy.

One that plays on a simple psychological effect that any writer or content creator would benefit from using too:

Bridging the Empathy Gap.

What Is The Empathy Gap And Why Is It Important In Content?

The “Empathy Gap”:

People struggle to understand the actions and feelings of those in situations or emotional states different from their own.

Humans Of New York bridges that gap better than anyone in the content game.

The content taps into the human desire for connection and understanding.

Through his storytelling and intimate portraits, Stanton allows his audience to empathize and connect with the content deeply.

It’s been the driving force behind the huge levels of engagement.

How You Can Bridge The Empathy Gap With Your Own Content

Tactics that work no matter what niche you’re in or what type of content you create:

• Narrative Interviews: Focus on the emotional journeys in interviews, not just the facts.

• Audience Story Sharing: Feature audience stories regularly on your platforms.

• Interactive Storytelling: Engage your audience with polls and Q&As to shape stories.

• Behind-the-Scenes Content: Reveal the real stories behind your content's creation, including challenges and successes.

• Themed Story Series: Create content series on emotionally charged themes like adversity and dreams.

• User-Generated Content: Motivate your audience to share their themed stories.

• Visual Storytelling: Combine stories with visuals (eg. infographics or photos) to make them more impactful.

Other Creators And Brands Who Bridge The Empathy Gap Well

Ira Glass (This American Life) [link]

A radio program and podcast that combines investigative journalism with deeply personal stories.

Nike:

Their campaigns like "Just Do It" narrate inspiring stories of athletes overcoming adversity.

StoryCorps [link]

They share heartfelt personal narratives and interviews similar to HONY.

Your 3-Step Actionable Summary:

1. Embrace Personal Storytelling: Shift your content strategy to include more personal and emotional stories.

2. Engage Your Audience with Empathy: Regularly feature real-life experiences from both your perspective and your audience's.

3. Use Different Formats for Greater Impact: Combine storytelling with powerful visuals.

🐰 rabbit holes and resources

🍫 Today’s link candy for content creators:

• He built the $50M company that changed YouTube forever (5 billion views and 9M subs) [link]

• “Fast-vertising” - how North Face racked up 4M views by responding to a viral complaint [link]

• 7 simple steps to turn “meh” ideas into marvellous content [link]

📣 “Look At Hooks” (By The Pen Pivot)

Before you click publish…

Take an extra 30 seconds to write a headline that’ll actually get clicked. 

Sad truth: People spend hours creating awesome content that doesn’t get read or viewed because of a terrible headline.

That’s why we created ”'Look At Hooks”:

• 100 Psychology-Backed Headline Templates: Based on actual pieces of content by huge creators and publications like MrBeast, Condé Nast, and Motley Fool. 

• ChatGPT Prompts For Content Ideas: Each headline template comes with a ChatGPT prompt to turn it into ultra-clickable content ideas for your niche.

• Filter By Content Type: Headline templates for how-to content, listicles, product reviews, and more.

• Filter By Emotion: Choose headlines based on emotions such as FOMO, relief, empathy, frustration, and more.

• Each Template Works In Any Niche: Fill in the blanks for your specific piece of content and you’re good to go. 

Click here to get access to 100 proven headline templates (limited-time launch sale)

Cheat Sheets For Content Creators:

✨ 47 ChatGPT Prompts For Hundreds Of Instant Content Ideas (That Your Competitors Would Never Think Of) [Link]

🖋️Online Writing Checklist: 20 Little Changes To Keep Readers Hooked And Get Any Piece Of Writing 5x More Engagement [Link]

📱 48 Quick And Easy Social Media Post Ideas (So You Never Run Out Or Feel Stuck) [Link]