It’s hard to understand why so many people are spending so much time investing in making “free content” when there are so many other things to do in building a business.

Have you ever made a product and wondered why it didn’t go anywhere, or feel like you’re spinning your wheels at your company throwing content at the wall to see what sticks?

For a long time, I felt like content creation was a mystery.

It made me wonder: how do some people grow audiences quickly and generate revenue so fast? Why do some products get made and launch to the sound of crickets? How do you build an audience and community that trusts you, wants what you have to offer, and looks forward to sharing your work?

When I was starting out, I wrote and wrote (more than 100 essays!) and nothing seemed to work. That was before I realized how to start sharing my work in ways that actually spread my message. (It turns out pushing “publish” on WordPress and waiting for people to show up doesn’t really work.)

Let’s stop making products that don’t go anywhere, and let’s start making work that matters.

This month, I’ve had the chance to sit down and document everything I know about content marketing, building an audience, and creating work that is useful and meaningful to other people. It falls under this term “content marketing” — which sounds like a buzzword, but really means something deeper.

Content Marketing is part science, part inspiration. It’s a blend of using your intuition and creativity, and also getting real about what it takes to grow an audience. You have to wear the hat of both a scientist and an artist, leaning on hard data as well as on your intuition.

In short, Content Marketing is the beautiful art of making work that matters — and then finding ways to share it with people who want to see it.

I’m jumping up and down to finally write about this — and share the work I’ve been putting together. It’s my most recent baby, and we already have a list of nearly 4,000 people (3,801 and counting!) signed up to be notified when the class opens up.

For the last two months, I’ve been interviewing folks, putting together the curriculum, and recording videos for my next course: One Month: Content Marketing. I’m making this class with One Month — the startup in New York city I recently joined forces with, where I’m heading up their communications efforts.

Slide mashup for blog
If you’re tired of creating content that doesn’t go anywhere, you’ll learn our proven strategies for building an audience, growing your leads, and creating valuable content that actually gets shared. Along the way, I’ll share with you specific strategies for growing an audience, building a body of work, and positioning you (or your company’s executives) as a thought leader within your industry.

Registration for this class opens this Thursday, when we’re opening up the course to a small group of students to join in on our next class.

If you want to learn about marketing, creating content incentives, growing your email list, and building an audience, then I’d be more than thrilled to have you on board.

(Hopefully) I’ll see you there!