Olivia: Alright Jackson, pop quiz. You see a headline that says '4 Ways Insurance Might Respond If Godzilla Attacks.' What's your first thought? Jackson: My first thought is that someone in marketing needs a vacation. My second thought is… I'm clicking on that link. 100 percent. I have to know. Olivia: Exactly! And you wouldn’t be alone. That's the exact magic we're talking about today, and it comes from Ann Handley's legendary book, Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content. Jackson: Ah, Ann Handley. I feel like her name is whispered in reverent tones in marketing departments everywhere. Olivia: It should be. And she is the perfect person to write this. She's a true digital marketing pioneer, co-founding one of the very first digital marketing platforms, ClickZ, way back when most of us were still figuring out email. She’s been in the trenches of online communication since the beginning. Jackson: Okay, so she has the credentials. But how does a fun, silly article about Godzilla and insurance connect to a serious book about writing? It feels like a gimmick. A very clickable gimmick, but still. Olivia: That’s the perfect question, because it gets right to the heart of Handley’s argument. The gimmick only works, the click is only earned, because of a much deeper principle. It’s a principle that, frankly, turns most marketing logic on its head. Jackson: Now you have my attention. You're saying there's a profound philosophy behind the Godzilla insurance article? Olivia: I'm saying the Godzilla article is the tip of a very profound and very strategic iceberg. And the bulk of that iceberg, the part that gives it all its power, is trust.

Jackson: Okay, 'trust'. That's a word that gets thrown around a lot. But in marketing? It feels a little… optimistic. Isn't all marketing content, at its core, trying to sell you something? How can it be truly trustworthy? Olivia: That’s the cynicism that Handley is directly fighting against. She references a quote from Shane Snow, the cofounder of Contently, that I think is so powerful. He argues that content created by brands should actually adhere to stricter standards of reporting than traditional journalism. Jackson: Whoa, hold on. Stricter than journalism? That sounds extreme. Why? Olivia: Because of the commercial motivation you just mentioned. Since a brand has an inherent bias—they want you to eventually buy their product—they have to work ten times harder to earn the reader's confidence. They have to be scrupulously honest, transparent, and ground everything in real data. They have to over-deliver on value because they're starting with a trust deficit. Jackson: So it's like a built-in handicap. You have to be more credible just to get to the same starting line as a neutral publication. Olivia: Precisely. And this is where it gets really interesting. It’s not about pretending you don’t have a point of view. It’s about how you handle that point of view. Joe Chernov, another content expert from HubSpot, has this fantastic, sharp quote that Handley includes. He says, "There's a name for something with a single point of view: it's called a press release." Jackson: Ouch. That’s a direct hit on about 90% of corporate blogs out there. So what’s the alternative to a press release disguised as a blog post? Olivia: The alternative is what Handley calls being biased and balanced. You have an opinion, a perspective, a bias. That’s what makes your content interesting. But you also acknowledge the full truth. You credit your sources. You even bring in opposing viewpoints to show you’re not afraid of the complete conversation. You’re fighting fair. Jackson: Okay, but let's be real. Is a company really going to feature an opinion that says their competitor's product is better in some way? That feels like a fantasy. Olivia: Maybe not in those exact words, but they can acknowledge the complexity. For example, a software company could write an article on "How to Choose the Right Project Management Tool." They can honestly lay out five criteria for choosing one. Their tool might be the best for four of those criteria, but they can be honest and say, "If your number one priority is X, then a tool like Asana or Trello might be a better fit for your specific needs." Jackson: Huh. That’s… surprisingly honest. And I can see how that would make me trust them more. By telling me when not to choose them, they make me believe them when they say I should choose them. Olivia: Exactly! You’re building a relationship based on being a helpful, honest guide, not a pushy salesperson. You’re telling the whole truth, even the parts that don't directly benefit you in the short term. It’s about playing the long game. This is the foundation. Without this fortress of trust, none of the clever, fun stuff—like Godzilla—can ever work. It would just feel cheap and manipulative. Jackson: Right. The Godzilla article from PropertyCasualty360.com works because they are a respected trade publication. Their readers already trust them to provide serious insurance analysis, so a creative, fun article feels like a bonus, not a desperate plea for attention. Olivia: You’ve got it. The trust is the permission slip for creativity. Once you have that permission, you can start looking for what Handley calls 'content moments.' And that’s where the real fun begins.

Jackson: Okay, I'm sold on the trust foundation. It makes total sense. So once you have that, how do you actually pull off something like the Godzilla article? It feels like lightning in a bottle. How do you even spot an opportunity like that? Olivia: It's not lightning, it's a skill. Handley calls it seizing a 'content moment,' and she details this incredible case study that reads more like a corporate thriller than a marketing textbook. It’s about a company called Kapost. Jackson: Kapost. Never heard of them. What’s the story? Olivia: So, back in 2013, the content marketing tech space was super competitive. Kapost was one of the players. One day, news breaks that a major competitor, a company called Compendium, has just been acquired by the tech giant Oracle. Jackson: Okay, so a big shark just ate one of your rivals. That sounds like a threat. Olivia: It could be. Or it could be a massive opportunity. The team at Kapost saw it as the second one. And what they did next is a masterclass in speed and strategy. The VP of Content, Jesse Noyes, saw the news break. Within minutes—literally minutes—he was firing off emails to all the top industry influencers, including Ann Handley herself, asking for their commentary on the acquisition. Jackson: Wow, okay. So he’s not just reacting, he’s creating the story around the story. He's making himself the journalist. Olivia: Exactly. But it gets better. While Noyes is gathering quotes from the outside, the CEO of Kapost, Toby Murdock, is writing his own analysis. He’s not just reporting the news; he’s explaining what it means for the entire industry. He’s expanding the story from a simple acquisition into a broader trends piece. Jackson: And when did this analysis go live? A week later? Olivia: Within the hour. Jackson: Come on. Within an hour of the news breaking, they had gathered commentary from influencers and published a full analysis from their CEO? That's insane. Olivia: It is. It’s what Handley calls 'newsjacking.' It’s the art of inserting your brand into a breaking news story to demonstrate your expertise and thought leadership. Kapost didn't just report the news; they became the hub for understanding it. All the influencers they quoted shared the article, the industry analysts paid attention, and suddenly, little Kapost was at the center of a conversation dominated by giant Oracle. Jackson: That’s brilliant. It’s like they were news surfers. They saw this giant wave—the Oracle acquisition—forming on the horizon, and instead of getting crushed by it, they paddled out, caught it perfectly, and rode it all the way to the shore. Olivia: That is the perfect analogy. And Handley’s point is that these waves, these 'content moments,' are happening all the time. You just have to be prepared to see them and act on them. She even shares a personal example. When Sheryl Sandberg launched the 'Ban Bossy' campaign, Handley immediately wrote a post with her own nuanced take on it. That post drove unprecedented traffic to her site and even got her teenage daughter interviewed on a major news network. Jackson: So it works for big corporate moves and for cultural moments. It’s a flexible strategy. Olivia: Incredibly flexible. That’s where the Godzilla example comes back in. It shows you don't always have to be reacting to serious business or political news. The release of a blockbuster movie was the content moment for that insurance publication. They saw a wave in pop culture and connected it back to their world with creativity and, importantly, genuine expertise. They weren't just slapping Godzilla's name on something; they were actually analyzing insurance implications, however fanciful. Jackson: That’s the key, isn't it? It has to be relevant. You can't be a dental floss company and try to newsjack the Super Bowl unless you have a genuinely clever, relevant angle. Olivia: You absolutely must have a relevant angle. Otherwise, you just look desperate. The connection has to be authentic. But Handley’s core insight is that these moments are everywhere if you train yourself to look. A new piece of legislation, a viral meme, a competitor’s announcement, a blockbuster movie—they are all potential waves.

Jackson: I get it now. It’s all clicking into place. The newsjacking stuff—the Godzilla articles, the Kapost move—it only works because of the trust thing we talked about at the beginning. You can't be a clever opportunist if your audience thinks you're a liar. Olivia: That’s the entire equation. The trust is the launchpad. The cleverness is the rocket. You absolutely need both to achieve liftoff. If you try to launch the rocket from a muddy field of distrust, it just explodes on the ground. Jackson: And you look like an idiot. A desperate, untrustworthy idiot. Olivia: Exactly. Handley's real genius in this book, I think, is showing that these two ideas—unwavering integrity and nimble opportunism—are not opposites. In the world of modern content, they are essential partners. The trust you build by being honest and balanced gives you the credibility to be creative and timely. Jackson: It reframes the whole purpose of content. It’s not just about shouting your own message. It’s about adding value to the conversations your audience is already having. Olivia: Yes! You’re serving the reader, first and foremost. Whether that’s by giving them a balanced view on a complex topic or a fun, smart take on a monster movie. It all comes from a place of generosity and respect for their time and intelligence. That’s what separates 'ridiculously good content' from the rest of the noise. Jackson: Wow. Okay. So what’s the one thing someone listening right now should do differently after hearing this? Olivia: I think the most practical takeaway is this: the next time a big news story breaks in your industry or in culture, don't just watch it unfold. Pause for a moment and ask your team one simple question: What is our unique, helpful, and authentic perspective on this? What can we add to this conversation that no one else can? Jackson: That’s a great, actionable challenge. It’s about shifting from being a passive consumer of news to an active contributor to the conversation. Olivia: And you might be surprised by the waves you’re able to catch. Jackson: And we'd love to hear your ideas. If you've ever seen a great example of this, or have an idea for one after listening to this, find us on social media and share it. Let's see what ridiculously good content we can find out there in the wild. Olivia: This is Aibrary, signing off.