What’s good, Hard Knocks Community?💰

We're back inside your inbox with a fresh edition of the School of Hard Knocks Newsletter! Here, the spotlight is on viral content expert Adley Kinsman. As the 8-Figure CEO of Story House and VIRALISH, Adley's achieved over 1 billion monthly views and created viral campaigns for major brands like TikTok and Land Rover. As a master of the art of creating and scaling viral content that drives massive growth, Adley knows all about how to supercharge brands and businesses.

Today’s Schedule

• Mastering the Art of Attention: How Adley Kinsman mastered the art of viral content that drives massive growth for top brands

• From the Hard Knocks Library: Feel-Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You

• In Case You Missed It: We asked Bugatti owners in Dubai how they got rich.

Let’s get into it!🔥

Mastering the Art of Attention

Adley Kinsman started her career in the music industry. She auditioned for NBC's The Voice in college on a dare from her friends and wound up landing a spot on the show. 

Through the experience, Adley was offered what she thought was a solid record deal by someone in the music industry who made a ton of promises. In her early 20s, Adley signed the rights away to her name for life and got a multi-album contract, but life ultimately took her down a different path.

Adley came to the realization that she loved to entertain, but she didn't like the way the music industry acted as a gatekeeper. She wanted to build success on her own terms and not wait for a suit behind a desk to tell her when, where, and how.

To stand out and separate herself from the competition, Adley knew she had to do things differently. She learned that the best way to solve her own problems was by solving other people's problems. The bigger problems she solved, the more she got paid. 

From working under a fake name and consulting for app development companies to drop shipping phone cases on Alibaba, Adley tried it all. One night, she made $2,000 on Snapchat and from there, she began focusing on social media. 

Adley got the opportunity to work for a meme company making 60-second videos. She taught herself how to film using a GoPro, how to write scripts, and how to direct. Adley took a lot of inspiration from the Vine app and copied what was going viral on that platform, but things began to tank because the content was inauthentic and missing her unique voice. 

One night, Adley went to transfer footage from her GoPro SD card and everything was gone. All of the files were corrupt and her deadline was just hours away. In a panic, Adley's boyfriend suggested filming some content with the chickens in her backyard since they make her happy.

Without any better ideas, Adley gathered all the chickens, put them in a bathtub, and created a 19-second clip. The next day, it went viral. On Facebook and Instagram, the post did 19 million views overnight and got Adley 100,000 followers.

For the next four years, Adley continued to make content. In 2019, Facebook turned on its monetization program. When the pandemic hit in 2020, Adley started averaging 20 million views a week. Then, 20 million turned into 200 million and Adley began making life-changing money.

Today, Adley works with some of the biggest brands in the world, teaches them how to hack the algorithm, and helps them go viral. Her clients include Land Rover, TikTok, Charmin, Airheads, David's Bridal, Frito-Lay, Raising Cane's, 1st Phorm, and more.

On a recent live call and Q&A inside the School of Mentors community, Adley dropped a ton of wisdom and knowledge around content creation and going viral. Check out these top takeaways:

All About Action

If you're brand new to social media or getting back into it after some time off, Adley says the key to success is putting in the reps. One of the biggest mistakes creators make is getting stuck inside their head and not taking action. Getting out those 100 bad videos and learning by doing is how you ultimately get that one magic video.

Adley also suggests going after a large total addressable market (TAM) and doing it better or differently. Aim to create content that makes people feel something or shifts their mindset

Don't be afraid to experiment and test out all of your ideas, even the crazy ones. You never know what will work and you won't know unless you try. Commit to consistent posting over 30 days and at the end, assess what worked and what didn't, and use what you learned to keep moving forward.

Transparency > Authenticity

In today's social media world, "authenticity" has become quite the buzzword. While everyone's caught up in trying to bring authenticity to their platforms, Adley suggests bringing more transparency into your content strategy. 

Depending on your niche, transparency can look like being honest about how much you paid for something or how much money you've made for a client. By nature, people are nosy and fascinated by what others are doing. 

Bring your audience behind the scenes of your business to infuse an element of vulnerability into your content. By showing your followers you're a real person, you become more credible and are much more likely to earn their trust.

Rules of Engagement

High engagement is one of the most important elements of a successful social media strategy. Through what Adley calls "the combo method," you can grab someone's attention and stop them from scrolling by combining two things that don't belong together. 

For example, you might make a video where two different viewpoints clash, which creates controversy. If you can hijack the current narrative on something and provide your perspective, it will likely stand out. 

Another way to increase engagement is to remember the bigger reasons behind why your target audience buys your product or services. Think about your audience's aspirations, what they value, and how they want their purchase to make them feel to create a more natural attraction.

Knowing Your Worth

Putting a price tag on your worth is something many coaches and business owners struggle with. Adley says she was nervous when she made the transition from money coming to her through platforms to charging brands for her content services. 

One of the most important things to realize is that you don't have to have all the answers in the world to properly serve your clients and customers. Don't undervalue yourself just because you don't feel like you're an expert. You're more valuable and relatable to your audience when you're two steps ahead of them, not ten.

Connect with Adley here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adley/?hl=en

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Words of Wisdom

From the Hard Knocks Library

In Case You Missed It

Ever wonder how Bugatti owners make their millions (or billions)? In Dubai, we interviewed wealthy supercar owners and asked them how they got rich. We interviewed people in a variety of industries such as E-commerce, water parks, car washes and more. Watch the video here!

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