Content Creation Techniques

Vintage Illustration, luxury driving nostalgia. +73% of Gen Z consumers say they find comfort in content and design that reminds them of the past. Is trending hard, especially among lifestyle and fashion brands trying to win over Gen Z. But this isn’t just a vibe shift, it’s a strategic move backed by cultural data, behavioral insights, and evolving consumer expectations. Fashion and lifestyle brands are leveraging these illustration trends across packaging, social media, and product design. This appetite for nostalgia isn’t about looking backward, it’s about finding emotional grounding in an overwhelming digital world. +120% YoY increase in searches for terms like “vintage cartoon art” and “retro aesthetic outfit.” +58% of Gen Z shoppers prefer brands with a “strong aesthetic identity rooted in storytelling and nostalgia.” >>Nostalgia-Driven design is here to stay<< Reports predicts that “neo-nostalgia” will define aesthetic strategies through 2026, particularly as Gen Alpha begins to enter the consumer space and Gen Z’s influence continues to peak. Meanwhile, AI and generative design tools are making vintage-style illustration easier to scale, enabling brands to customize retro visuals for seasonal campaigns or limited drops, all while keeping production costs low. +Digital Burnout: In a screen-saturated age, tactile, analog-style graphics stand out. +Sustainability: Vintage aesthetics pair naturally with thrifting, upcycling culture. +Anti-Overdesign: After hyper-polished brand visuals, there's a desire for hand-drawn, imperfect, real art. >>Illustration styles to review<< +Rococo Fashion Plates +Toile de Jouy Designs +Chinoiserie +Scientific & Botanical Illustration +Neoclassical Engravings In Conclusion: Vintage illustration isn’t just a throwback, it’s a forward-looking strategy for brands that want to connect with Gen Z’s complex mix of irony, emotion, and aesthetic intelligence. It signals soul in a world of sameness, and smart brands are taking note. Find my curated search of luxury Illustrations, and get inspired for success. featured Brands: Bulgary Chanel Dolce & Gabbana Dior Dyptique Gucci Hermes Kohan Loewe Versace #beautybussines #beautyprofessionals #luxurybussines #luxuryprofessionals

From managing a full-time job with content creation to now running my latest venture, Like Mind Tribe, I used to grind for hours, believing that the more I worked, the more I’d achieve. But I’ll be honest – working smart >>>>> working hard For the longest time, I was overwhelmed with tasks that weren’t moving the needle. I’d set massive goals and then get stuck in the details. Cut to now, I blindly follow the 80/20 rule, and my work management has never been this seamless. It’s simple: Focus on the 20% of tasks that will give you 80% of the results. This mindset shift changed everything for me: —> I started setting clear, realistic goals every day that aligned with my long-term vision. I spent most of my time on research, ideation, scripting, and storyline, which is only 20% of my content creation process. But getting this step right sets the right direction and pace for the remaining 80% that I delegate. —> I stopped chasing everything and started chasing the RIGHT things. I delegated time-consuming tasks like video editing, profile management, content scheduling to experts on my team, which saves my time and effort. —> I blocked out specific times for work and rest. Boundaries are non-negotiable for recharging and resetting my energy. No more burnout. No more feeling like I was constantly ON. The key is intention – Don’t just do more. Do what truly moves you forward. What’s one thing you would cut out today to work smarter, rather than harder? #drishtiispeaks #productivity #management #contentcreation

This writing advice is 45 years old. And it still beats AI by a mile... Since this article was published, the world has become a very different place. We can now generate anything we can imagine in mere seconds. But faster rarely means better. When it comes to writing, AI defaults to jargon-filled, abstract, cookie-cutter language.  (The exact kind of writing this article advises against.) So, whether you're writing from scratch or using AI to speed up the process, these principles are still the gold standard for producing clear, effective content. Here's what Edward T. Thompson (former Editor-in-Chief of Reader's Digest) identified in 1980: 1. Outline what you want to say Know where you're going before you start writing.  Use index cards, bullet points, whatever works. 2. Start where your readers are Consider how much they already know about the subject.  Don't write over their heads or beneath their intelligence. 3. Avoid jargon Don't use phrases that only people with specific knowledge will understand.  If you can say it simply, say it simply. 4. Use familiar combinations of words Don't invent awkward phrases when clear ones already exist.  But remember: Bad grammar can be just as unclear. 5. Use "first-degree" words Choose words that immediately bring an image to mind.  Concrete will always beat abstract. The fundamentals of clear writing haven't changed a bit. These principles were true in 1980, and they're still true now. In fact, they matter even more today. AI can generate thousands of words in seconds.  But it defaults to abstract, corporate language. If you don't know what clear writing looks like, you won't catch it. You'll edit for grammar and call it done.  But the writing will still feel empty. So in a world where AI slop is ruining the internet... Let clear, articulate writing be your competitive advantage. What's your best piece of timeless writing advice? --- I'm fascinated by writing and creativity in the era of AI.  If you are too, give me a follow Katharine Gordon! And repost to share this article with your network!

Stop Posting Just Room Photos on Socials! Here’s What Guests Actually Want to See. Be honest with yourself, how many times has your hotel’s socials posted a perfectly polished room photo with a caption like: "A cozy escape awaits. Book now. ✨" And how many times did that post actually drive engagement… or, better yet, a booking? The truth? Guests don’t book because of a bed and four walls. They book for the experience. Yet, so many hotels (and restaurants) flood their feeds with soulless, salesy photos that look just like every other property. If your social media feels more like an online catalog than a destination, you’re missing the point. And here’s the real game-changer: With AI improving at an insane pace, software will soon generate better images of our hotel rooms than we ever could anyway! Perfect lighting, flawless composition, AI will do it all. Just like the image in those post. So, what will actually make a difference? The stories and experiences we share. What Should You Post Instead? 📍 The Destination : Guests aren’t just staying at your hotel; they’re visiting your city. We’re focusing on highlighting local gems, hidden spots, and experiences they won’t find on TripAdvisor. 👩🍳 Behind-the-Scenes Stories : Meet the chef behind your restaurant. Show how your cocktails are crafted. Introduce the team that makes the magic happen. People connect with people, not just places. 🎥 Guest-Generated Content : A guest’s TikTok or Instagram Story will always feel more authentic than a corporate post. That’s why we’re actively encouraging and sharing real experiences from real people. 🐶 Unique Experiences – Is your hotel pet-friendly? Show a guest’s dog getting VIP treatment. Do you have a rooftop with an insane sunset view? Capture it in the moment. We’re prioritising content that makes guests feel something. 😂 Relatable Moments – The WiFi struggle at check-in. The joy of room service at midnight. The feeling of slipping into a fresh hotel robe. We’re leaning into humour, nostalgia, and moments guests actually remember. The Bottom Line? Our guests don’t just want a room. They want a story to tell and a memory to take home. That’s exactly why our hotel group has shifted the focus of our social media strategy. Less staged perfection, more real experiences with the teams on the ground diving right in to get on board! AI will generate the polished images, but it won’t replace human connection. What’s the best-performing post you’ve seen from a hotel or restaurant? Drop a link, I’d love to check it out! 👇🏼

Everyone thinks keyword rankings are dead because of AI. This is fundamentally wrong. Here's how to use them to win AEO: Here's the data that'll change your mind. Traditional search still drives 60%+ more traffic than AI platforms. High Google rankings have a massive overlap with AI visibility: ↳ Perplexity cites 82% from Google's top 10 ↳ AI Overviews pull 67% from top rankings ↳ ChatGPT references 28% from high-ranking pages Nail your keyword rankings, win at AI search too. Most people are still using 2020 ranking strategies in 2025. Here's what actually works now: 1. Track Like a Pro (Not Like a Beginner) Use Google Search Console for the basics: → Shows average position across 1,000+ queries → Reveals which keywords drive actual traffic → Completely free (no excuses) But if you're serious, upgrade to Position Tracking: → Daily ranking updates → Competitor monitoring → AI visibility tracking → Custom alerts when rankings move 2. Create Content That Crushes Competition Study the top 10 results and ask: → What depth are they missing? → Where are the content gaps? → How can I add unique value? Then implement E-E-A-T like your business depends on it: → Experience: Share first-hand, real-world experience → Expertise: Interview subject matter experts → Authoritativeness: Conduct original research and cite trusted sources → Trustworthiness: Build credibility through transparency and accuracy 3. Satisfy Search Intent Four types of intent in 2025: → Informational (how-to guides) → Navigational (brand searches) → Commercial (comparison content) → Transactional (ready to buy) Match your content format to the intent. A product page won't rank for "how to" queries. 4. Refresh Content Strategically Find pages that used to rank well but dropped off. Update with: → Fresh statistics and data → New screenshots/examples → Improved formatting → Additional visual elements Even small updates can resurrect dead rankings. 5. Build Links That Actually Matter Quality > quantity, always. Focus on: → Industry publications → Partner websites → Guest posting on authority sites → Creating linkable assets (studies, tools) 6. Fix Technical Issues Use Site Audit tools to catch: → Page speed problems → Mobile-unfriendly pages → Broken internal links → Missing schema markup Google can't rank what it can't properly crawl. The bottom line? Keyword rankings aren't dead. They're evolved. Have you started optimising for AI search? I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments. 👇 P.S. I am launching a new SEO / AEO business called Searchable. An Autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer that will: Analyse, fix, and scale your website to drive customers. You can check it out here and join the waitlist: https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi 📌 If you want a high-res PDF of this sheet: 1. Follow Chris Donnelly. 2. Like the post. 3. Repost to your network. 4. Subscribe to: https://lnkd.in/eUTCQTWb

Andrej Karpathy has released one of the most comprehensive guides on LLMs In just 3.5 hours, he dives deep into the architecture, training, and applications of LLMs. Here’s what makes this video a must-watch: 1. Evolution of Language Models Karpathy traces the journey from simple statistical methods to advanced neural networks like Transformers. He explains how these models are trained on vast datasets, enabling them to generate human-like text and perform tasks like translation and code generation. 2. Inner Workings Unveiled A significant part of the video breaks down complex concepts such as attention mechanisms, tokenization, and large-scale data in model training. Karpathy also addresses common challenges like model bias and ethical considerations, emphasizing the importance of fine-tuning models for specific applications. 3. Practical Applications Karpathy highlights how LLMs are transforming various industries, including healthcare, finance, and entertainment. He provides examples of how these models improve services, enhance user experiences, and drive innovation. 4. Clear Explanations Karpathy’s ability to simplify complex topics makes this video accessible to both newcomers and seasoned professionals. His thorough analysis offers valuable insights into the future of artificial intelligence. For those looking to deepen their understanding of LLMs, this video is an invaluable resource. Watch the full video to learn from one of the leading experts in the field: https://lnkd.in/dswuqDhm

Planning new SEO content for 2025? PLEASE do this first: 1. Get all your blog URLs into a spreadsheet. Use Screaming Frog to crawl and export. It provides other useful information like titles and descriptions. Connect further data sources: - Ahrefs - Google Analytics - Google Search Console 2. Enter each URL into Google Search Console or Ahrefs and find its best-ranking keywords. Add this data to the spreadsheet for each page: - Primary keyword (your main keyword) - Secondary keywords (variations and similar) - Current position for your target keyword(s) If a URL isn't ranking for anything? Find the most relevant keywords using Ahrefs. 3. Audit each blog post and assign actions: - Leave: Content that’s reached its full potential - Merge: Cannibalising or extremely similar content - Delete: Content that no longer offers value to users - Update: Small changes to improve the performance - Rewrite: Large changes to improve the performance 4. Spend a few weeks in Q1 implementing these actions to get more out of your existing assets. Prioritise updates and rewrites that have: - Target keywords in positions 4-20 - Higher conversion and $ potential - Easy improvement opportunities Remember: Not all of your Q1 content needs to be new. Look at your existing content first. You're likely sitting on many quick wins.

How I got 100K leads with somebody else's content. Early in my career at PayPal, I tried something that worked like crazy. I posted a piece of content that brought us 100,000 leads, and I didn't write a word of it. (I also didn't steal it!) Why am I telling you this? With AI eating up SEO traffic, everyone’s scrambling for attention on social media, and most people think this means becoming a content creator. Good news: You don’t need to write like Alex Hormozi, you just need to be smart about finding content that already works. Here's how... 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗰𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝟮𝗕 1. 𝗠𝗮𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀’ 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝘁 – Ask your customers who they follow: Which newsletters, podcasts, YouTubers, and social accounts do they love? Even check what private WhatsApp and Slack groups they’re in. (No customers yet? Who do your prospects follow?) 2. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘀 – Study those creators’ most successful posts, and look for patterns: What do people engage with and why? Which topics? Content formats? Stylistic points? 3. 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 – Use those insights to create, license, or partner to get the stuff your audience craves. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝟰 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝟮𝗕 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀: 1. 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮: ChartMogul turns their SaaS analytics data into irresistible benchmark reports which they share on LinkedIn and in their newsletter to attract warm leads. (Stripe, Unbounce, and Mixpanel do this too.)     2. 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼𝘀: CloudNC sells SaaS to machine shops. Instead of boring product demos, they share hypnotic videos of CNC machines crafting intricate designs. They show these videos to prospects via targeted ads, and when their sales team calls, prospects already know and like the brand.     3. 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀: Rising Team founder Jennifer Dulski turns her Stanford teaching and decades of leadership experience into compelling stories. Result? 200K LinkedIn followers and a steady stream of warm leads. 4. 𝗟𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁: Remember my PayPal story? Here’s what happened: We’d just hired a telesales team and they needed leads fast. Instead of spending weeks creating content, I  found the perfect book for our audience, and emailed the author for permission to share two chapters as a lead magnet. Win-Win: The author got massive exposure, and we got 100,000 sales leads. 𝗕𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲? You don’t need to create everything from scratch, you just need to be smart about finding the content your audience already craves. Helpful? Follow Matt Lerner for more. P.S. 🙏🏻 Please don't steal content - just ask permission and credit the original author! Most of us are pretty reasonable.

In content creation, the temptation to chase trends is real! But, I've learned that true growth comes from focusing on quality and consistency over what's popular in the moment. Maybe, not in numbers, but the growth reflects in the kind of community you build, brand positioning and getting the right opportunities. Here’s why quality/value driven content helps better than just chasing trends: 1. Brand Alignment: Quality content reflects values and helps position your personal brand authentically. Chasing trends that don’t fit can dilute what one is trying to build. 2. Attracting the Right Audience: By focusing on what truly matters, attract people who are genuinely interested in what you offer. 3. Building a Strong Community: Consistency and value in content foster trust, leading to deeper engagement and stronger relationships with the audience. 4. Meaningful Collaborations: Collaborating with brands and creators who align with my content makes for more relevant partnerships/colloborations. 5. Getting the right opportunities: You truly get what you sow. It’s about attracting the right ones that resonate with what you stand for. At the end of the day, it’s not about quick numbers — it’s about building something sustainable and meaningful. That’s the kind of growth I believe in! 🌿 What do you think about this? #QualityContent #SustainableGrowth #Authenticity #LongTermImpact

𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗪𝗖𝗕 (𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲) Balancing a full-time job you love with creative side projects can be challenging. Here are some strategies that help me maintain my cool and manage it all effectively. ✨ 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙎𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 I schedule my posts in advance for LinkedIn and Substack, 2-3 weeks ahead. This eliminates the 'pressure' of content creation and allows for a more sustainable workflow. There are platforms like Hootsuite, Buffer, or native scheduling features. I wrote this post on the evening of Aug 9th. ✨ 𝙐𝙨𝙚 𝘼𝙄 I have a personalized customGPT trained on my writing style, interests, and previous work that significantly streamlines my ideation and content creation process, I provide my idea and I focus mostly on tweaking it, it helps a ton having the core structure already there when it comes to content. ✨ 𝙋𝙤𝙢𝙤𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙤 𝙏𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙣𝙞𝙦𝙪𝙚 This time management method helps you maintain focus and prevent burnout. Work in 25-minute intervals with short breaks in between. ✨ 𝙏𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 I group similar tasks together (e.g., all social media posts, content development, writing) to maximize efficiency. And I repurpose content. ✨ 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙥𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙧𝙨 I develop core themes or topics that I can expand upon across various platforms and formats. ✨ 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 I collaborate with fellow creators, which expends reach - Diego Granados, Peter Yang, Shyvee Shi, Satish Mummareddy, Allie K. Miller, Aishwarya Srinivasan, Zach Wilson and more ✨ 𝘿𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙩𝙚 I have a great team of 5 for my AI PM Academy that help me with operations, editing, graphics, community and much more that helps me free up my time. ✨ 𝙏𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙨 - Notion to organize my short/long-term ideas, deadlines, and progress. - Canva of course for graphics & Descript for video editing. ✨ 𝙎𝙚𝙡𝙛-𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘽𝙖𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 - Saying no to opportunities that don't align with my goals. There's nothing wrong to saying no in a polite way, people understand and respect that. - Make sure the creator world still sparks joy, because if it doesn't then it's probably time it evolves to something new.