8 reasons endurance coaches should own their own content

As an endurance sport coach, it's important to have a strong online presence in order to attract clients and build your reputation as an expert in your field. While social media can be a useful tool for reaching out to potential clients and sharing your knowledge and experience, there are several compelling reasons why endurance sport coaches should consider owning all of their own content on a blog, podcast, or email newsletter.

What Does it Mean to Own Content?

Social media platforms are proprietary pieces of software run by private corporations. These entities have ultimate control over who sees the content you post on their platforms. They also have the ability to block, ban, de-prioritize or just simply hide your content from your audience. They can change their policies and algorithms as they see fit which can have debilitating effect on your ability to reach your audience.

Blogs, podcasts and email newsletters unlike social media are "open technologies" which means as a coach you can "own" both the the content and the distribution. Because the technologies are open they are not controlled by any one entity. If you have a blog, podcast or email list hosted somewhere and you can for any reason take your existing content to a different host while maintaining the ability for your audience to view and engage. If you move your podcast, blog or email list this has little to no effect on the ability for your audience to access it.

Here's a few reasons why you should consider storing more of your content on your owned platforms like a blog, podcast and email newsletters.

1. People are Using Social Media Less

Many people are becoming more aware of the potential dangers and drawbacks of social media. For example, social media platforms can be addictive and can have negative effects on people's mental health, such as increasing feelings of anxiety and depression. In addition, social media platforms can also expose people to online harassment, bullying, and fake news, which can have serious consequences for their safety and well-being. As a result, many people may be choosing to use social media platforms less, or to use them in a more mindful and responsible way. Your audience is now far more likely to want to consume your content in safer and calmer places like your blog, podcast or email newsletter.

2. Your Audience Has Become Fragmented on Social Media

Fragmentation on social media refers to the phenomenon of people using multiple social media platforms, rather than using a single platform extensively. One problem with fragmentation on social media is that it can make it difficult for coaches to reach their target audience. If your coaching business only has a presence on Facebook, for example, your clients who use Twitter, TikTok or Instagram as well as Facebook will be more likely to miss opportunities to interact with you.

If you are using multiple social media platforms, you may have to create and manage multiple profiles and accounts, which can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. In addition, you may have to tailor its content and messaging to each platform, in order to reach the unique audience of each platform. This can make it difficult for you to maintain a consistent and cohesive brand identity. If you own your own content you can save time and effort by simply posting links back to your owned content on your blog, podcast or email signup rather than creating unique posts for each social media channel.

3. Social Media Can Be Unpredictable and Unreliable

Social media platforms can be unpredictable and unreliable. These platforms are constantly changing their algorithms and policies, which can make it difficult to reliably reach your audience and maintain a consistent presence. Additionally social media is becoming more subject to abuse like the bots and fake accounts which effect the overall quality of the content on the platforms and lead to audience distrust. By owning your own content on a blog, podcast, or email newsletter, you can avoid these potential pitfalls and ensure that your content is always accessible and trustworthy for your clients.

4. Have More Control Over Content

Owning your own content allows you to have complete control over how it is presented and accessed. On a blog, you can design the layout and user experience to suit your needs, and you can ensure that your content is easy to find and navigate. On a podcast, you can have complete control over the format and length of your episodes, as well as the audio quality. And with an email newsletter, you can send personalized messages directly to your subscribers, allowing you to connect with them in a more personal and meaningful way.

5. Owned Content Lasts Longer on The Internet

Using the example of a blog post compared to a social media post, a blog post will last longer than a social media post for several reasons.

One reason is that a blog post is hosted on a website, which is under the control of you, the author or publisher. This means that the blog post can remain online and accessible to readers for as long as the website is active. In contrast, a social media post is hosted on a third-party platform, such as Facebook or Twitter, which may choose to remove or restrict access to the post for various reasons. This means that a social media post may have a limited lifespan, and may not be accessible to readers in the future.

Another reason why a blog post will last longer than a social media post is that a blog post will be indexed and archived by search engines, such as Google. This means that the blog post can be discovered and accessed by readers through search results. In contrast, most social media posts are not indexed by search engines, and may only be accessible to readers who are logged in to the relevant platform and happen to see post.

6. Create a Stronger Brand

Owning your own content can also help you to build a stronger personal brand. By creating and sharing high-quality content on your own blog, podcast, or email newsletter, you can demonstrate your expertise and knowledge, and establish yourself as a thought leader in the endurance sports community. This can help to attract more clients, and can also help to build your reputation as an endurance coach.

7. Generate More Revenue

Social media platforms prefer you to share all your content on their platforms so they can monetize your audience with advertising.

By owning your own content on your own channels you can create a sustainable source of income for your own business. By creating and sharing valuable content on your own blog, podcast, or email newsletter, you can more sustainably and reliable capture an audience, which you can then monetize by offering premium content or services like your coaching and coaching products. This also opens up other potential monetization channels like advertising and sponsorships. This will provide a more reliable and stable source of income for your business, and can help you to grow and expand. The alternative approach where your content is primarily distributed on social media channels results in far less opportunity to monetize as the platforms will always take a larger share of any monetization available.

8. Create Stronger More Personal Relationships

Owning your own content can also help you to connect with your audience in a more personal and meaningful way without the distractions that surround your content on social media platforms. By sharing your own thoughts, experiences, and expertise on your own blog, podcast, or email newsletter, you can build a deeper connection with your audience and foster a sense of community among your clients. This can help to create a more loyal and engaged audience, and can also help to establish you as a trusted and respected endurance sport coach.

Conclusion

Overall, there are many reasons why coaches should consider owning more of their own content on a blog, podcast, or email newsletter instead of relying solely on social media. By taking control of your online presence and creating valuable content, you can build a stronger personal brand, attract more clients, generate revenue, and avoid the potential pitfalls and dangers of relying solely on social media.

Social media is still a powerful tool for reaching existing and new customers but it makes more sense to use it as a way to channel your audience to your own platforms like your blog, podcast and email newsletter.

If you have a Training Tilt account you can use our blog features to store your content and our integrations with email platforms like Drip, ConvertKit and ActiveCampaign to help manage your email lists.