Content that marketers love is content that you author once that keeps attracting visitors over and over again, potentially for years, without you having to touch it again.

Whether it be a blog post that stays number one on google or a YouTube that keeps racking views & shares, this kind of content is called Evergreen content.

Of course Evergreen content isn’t new to the internet but there is a kind of Evergreen content that always works, since it lends itself to the Connection Economy environment.

Here’s how to find yours:

• Firstly, lets start with the premise that the highest and best use of the web is to bring relationship to art. We can bring relationship (ie. followers & community) to something that’s not art – but the risk we run here is twofold: 1) No innovation, no art. The relationship can go stale since we’re not innovating in our field and we keep talking about the same thing all the time, tiring followers, or 2) The relationships we build may be fine, but because we aren’t innovating, a competitor does make art (disrupts our field) and steals our market.

• Secondly, our job as marketers is to now bring those we’re in relationship with on a journey of becoming. Sure we can update followers with news, events and sales, but (assuming you’re marketing to the developed world) we already have all the stuff we *need*. So for brands that are here for the long term, the overarching aim of our content strategy needs to be about genuinely taking followers on a journey up Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Where does your brand ‘take’ your followers? Park that thought for a second.

• Thirdly, in every field the 80/20 rule always applies. There will always be a small minority (roughly) 20% of the field who own the majority of the influence (whatever the currency – eg. accolades, money, followers etc). Further, the 80/20 rule is fractal, meaning that of this 20%, yet another 80/20 rule applies. This means that 4% of any field owns 64% of the influence. This *tiny* minority of 4% have recognised mastery in their chosen field. Now the question that the rest of that field are (subconsciously) asking is: “What do these 4% know that we do not”?

The universe of answers surrounding this question are your human, Evergreen content.

News, events and sales are good and have their place in a content strategy.

But in this age of fleeting, instant gratification, the time tested wisdom of mastery both gives you Evergreen content and takes your followers on a journey of becoming – over the long term.

No content strategy is complete without this.

ps. Its no coincidence, that the number one business podcast on iTunes is the Tim Ferriss show, whose content is *only* Evergreen interviews with the world’s top 4% masters.