The Anti-Viral Content Strategy

Why writing for your audience (not algorithms) is the key to growing your business

Hi! Welcome to Friday Features. Some Fridays, I expose you to various quality perspectives about writing, marketing, and AI. This will help you develop a more holistic outlook on writing faster, better, and more human!

This week’s guest is Morgan Jungels from Created to Convert. Let’s dive right in!

---

Dall E

When I first started my business as a fresh-from-the-corporate-cubicle, newly minted entrepreneur, I fell into the trap that entices all of us at one point or another.

The idea of “beating the algorithm” and “going viral”.

I did all the things the gurus say to do—optimizing, tweaking, chasing trends.

Sometimes I’d get a nice spike in engagement, a flood of new followers, maybe even a post that “took off.”

But it didn’t take long for me to discover the cracks in this approach.

I was burned out. Creating content I didn’t feel good about. And those new followers I thought would be my winning ticket? They just passed on through like digital drifters, on to the next viral thing.

Somewhere around year three, it finally occurred to me that I was creating all my content for an algorithm that was never going to buy from my business… and inadvertently neglecting to create for the people who would.

So I unceremoniously quit the virality game. I committed instead to an anti-viral content strategy, one that focused on depth over breadth and audience over algorithm.

And that was the moment when everything changed.

Popularity ≠ profitability

I get it. It’s hard not to want a viral moment. Watching your content explode with thousands of likes and shares feels like winning the internet lottery. But like the lottery, going viral is a quick, exciting rush, and then… gone.

It’s hard to replicate. Which means there’s almost zero sustainability to it.

What happens after the rush? You’re left scrambling, trying to figure out how to recreate that same level of engagement, often sacrificing your sanity and your actual business goals in the process.

In reality, the key to growth is so much simpler than going viral. You don’t need 10,000 fickle followers to grow a business. You just need 100 die-hard fans. The rest will take care of itself.

The no-win game of playing pattycake with algorithms

If you’ve ever felt like you’re creating content just to keep up with Instagram’s latest changes or TikTok’s newest trend, you know it’s overwhelming, bordering on uncomfortable (does anyone else feel weird pointing randomly into thin air or is that just me?), and a big fat waste of time.

To paraphrase Ferris Bueller, the internet moves pretty fast. And algorithms are designed to reward whatever keeps people on their platforms the longest on any given day. NOT what stands the greatest chance of connecting you with your perfect fit customers.

That means they want:

• Clickbait headlines that overpromise and underdeliver.

• Trendy but shallow content that gets engagement but lacks depth.

• Near-constant reinvention, forcing you to produce more, more, more just to stay visible.

And while some people thrive in that environment, it’s exhausting for most of us—especially solopreneurs who don’t have a team cranking out content 24/7.

Here’s why relying on algorithm-friendly content is a losing strategy:

1. Surface-Level Engagement – A post goes viral, but then… what? If people don’t connect with you beyond that one post, they won’t stick around.

2. Constant Rule Changes – What worked yesterday won’t work tomorrow. Algorithms shift, and you have zero control.

3. Burnout is Inevitable – The pressure to constantly “feed the machine” means you’re always chasing, never building.

And if the algorithm decides you’re no longer relevant? Say buh-bye to all that traffic.

So let’s flip the script and focus on the people who actually matter–your audience

Audience-first content isn’t about trying to win popularity contests—it’s about speaking directly to those lovely people who need what YOU offer.

It’s about solving real problems, creating genuine connections, and establishing trust (which is crucial to getting people to open their wallets—think about it, when was the last time you bought from a business you didn’t trust?).

When you write for your audience:

• You attract the right people instead of chasing random views.

• Your content has a longer shelf life because it’s based on real needs, not passing trends.

• You build deeper relationships, which means people are more likely to buy from you, refer you, and engage with you over time.

In the age of AI, doing your audience research is ridiculously easy. With a few simple asks, you can unlock tons of insights that can make your content richer and your offers more compelling in seconds.

The core principles of audience-first content

So how do you make this shift? Here are the key principles:

1. Understand Your Audience’s Problems and Desires

If your content isn’t resonating, it’s probably because it’s not addressing something your audience actually cares about. The best way to fix this? Listen more than you talk.

• Pay attention to the questions people ask you.

• Look at what your best customers struggle with.

• Read comments and DMs to see where they’re stuck.

You don’t have to guess. Your audience is telling you what they need—through comments, DMs, and even the questions they ask you. You just have to tune in.

A prompt that helps with this:

I'm creating [your offer] for [your ideal audience] who struggle with [their broad struggle that you help with]. Can you help me identify the biggest pain points and daily frustrations that my audience has with [that broad struggle]? Use the language they use and talk about it in a way they would talk about it.

2. Align Your Content with What You Offer

A lot of business owners create great content but then struggle to turn their audience into buyers. Why? Because their content isn’t naturally leading people toward their offerings.

Your content should always create a bridge between what your audience wants and what you sell.

Not in a salesy, pushy way—but in a way that makes your offer the natural next step.

A prompt that helps with this:

I'm creating [your offer] for [your ideal audience] who struggle with [their broad struggle that you help with]. Can you help me identify the ultimate desires and daily wins that they want to experience when it comes to with [that broad struggle]? Use the language they use and talk about it in a way they would talk about it.

3. Actively Listen and Engage

Content isn’t a one-way street. If you’re just publishing and moving on, you’re missing the most valuable part: the conversation.

• Reply to comments.

• Lean into customer conversations, reviews, and feedback.

• Ask questions and actually care about the answers.

The best content ideas don’t come from brainstorming in a vacuum.

They come from talking to real people and responding to their needs in real time.

A prompt that helps with this:

Can you please mine this meeting transcript for value insights and voice of customer data that I can use in my content? Look for pain points, desires, challenges, frustrations, etc. that my audience is talking about. Where appropriate, please pull out direct quotes that might be valuable. Identify potential content topics that this information could help inform.

4. Measure What Actually Matters

Forget about vanity metrics (likes and views). The real indicators of success are:

• Engagement: Are people commenting, sharing, and actually interacting?

• Leads: Is your content driving sign-ups, inquiries, or email list growth?

• Conversions: Are your engaged audience members turning into customers?

If your content is bringing in high-quality engagement, leads, and sales, it’s working—even if it never goes viral.

How audience-first content leads to more sales

At the end of the day, you don’t need more eyeballs—you need the right eyeballs.

When you shift from algorithm-pleasing to audience-serving, your content becomes a powerful tool for driving sales. Here’s how:

1. Trust Drives Buying Decisions –When your content consistently delivers value, you position yourself as the go-to person in your space.

2. Deeper Engagement = Warmer Leads – A small, engaged audience will always outperform a large, disengaged one. Those are your future customers.

3. Content Becomes a Sales Asset – Audience-first content is designed to gently guide people toward a purchase. Instead of feeling like a cold pitch, your offers feel like the logical next step.

The long and short of it? Virality fades. Relationships don’t.

Sustainable growth starts with creating for your people

Building a business isn’t about momentary internet fame. It’s about creating something valuable and lasting. Audience-first content may not always get you viral numbers, but it will get you deeper connections, better leads, and more sales—without burning you out.

So the next time you’re tempted to chase a trend, ask yourself: Is this serving my audience, or just the algorithm? Because when you create for the people who actually matter, you win every dang time.

---

This is a guest post from Morgan Jungels. If you want more marketing and audience building content like this, subscribe to her newsletter: Created to Convert!