The biggest “hack” to win with content is to arbitrage attention.
The way you do that is by deploying HQ, longer-form content in traditionally short-form locations.
The juxtaposition stops the scroll and catches audiences off guard, compelling them to engage.
Also, recognize that everything is “moving up” and styles are traversing formats.
You have to consistently over-deliver on audience expectations for your given channel. When one brand goes “10x,” all a sudden that becomes the bar for everyone else. The standard for what gets attention online is growing ridiculously fast.
Here’s how I think about channel evolution in 2025-26:
๐ฆ๐ต๐ผ๐ฟ๐-๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ (๐ป๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ + ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐๐ถ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐)
– TikTok/Reels โ the new paid courseย
– Chain-style Tweets/Threads โ the new evergreen blog post
– Paid ads โ the new Super Bowl spot (instant pattern interrupt)
– Comment sections โ the new group chat
๐๐ผ๐ป๐ด-๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ (๐ป๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ ๐ฒ๐
๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ด๐ผ๐ฟ + ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐ต + ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ)
– Medium articles โ the new magazine op-ed feature
– Reddit long-form โ the new private mentor DM (leaked openly)
– Email newsletters โ the new weekly column people depend on
– Case studies โ the new before-and-after short story
๐ฉ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ผ + ๐บ๐๐น๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ (๐ฐ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ฐ + ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป)
– YouTube documentaries โ the new Hollywood-style film
– Livestreams โ the new real-time talk show
– Podcasts โ the new pro-grade training library (what cassettes used to be)
– eLearning course videos โ the new Ivy League lecture
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐, ๐จ๐ซ, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ (๐๐ฟ๐๐๐-๐ฏ๐๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ฝ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐๐)
– Landing pages โ the new immersive product demo
– Onboarding tooltips โ the new micro masterclass
– Customer support threads โ the new front-counter conversation
– Discord/Community posts โ the new high-ticket retreat room
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ณ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น + ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ-๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ (๐๐๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ + ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป)
– LinkedIn carousels โ the new mini playbook
– Portfolio sites โ the new interactive operator rรฉsumรฉ
– Internal memos โ the new executive brief
– Product changelogs โ the new shipping report (clear, sharp, real)
Most people try to go viral by gaming the algo or forcing shock value or chasing topics. The secret = masteringย format.
Every platform has a baseline. If you outperform the expected depth, clarity, or production value of that format, the algorithm has no choice but to push you.
Great content is channel-agnostic. It doesnโt matter when, where, or how itโs accessed. All that matters is that it slaps harder than all the noise surrounding it.
The old funnel is dead.
The way to win with content is to capture attention where others aren’t by bringing more value in ways the platform of choice wasn’t necessarily built to facilitate.
That’s content-attention arbitrage.