Focus on Feedback to Measure What’s Working, So You Can Focus on Activities that Matter

Imagine a comedian that writes a joke they absolutely love. They think it’s hilarious and can’t wait to share it at their set later that night. When they take the stage in the small comedy club, and give the joke their best, it falls completely flat. Not one laugh from the audience. Our comedian friend tries the joke again in their next two shows, and they get the same response. Crickets. Should the comedian keep that joke in their set? Or should they move on and try other material?

As a Creator you’ll have many ideas. You’ll likely post and experiment in different formats, and dabble in several subject areas. This is all part of the learning process and discovery of your unique voice and talent. How you share with the world.

As creators, we tend to share what we think will be entertaining, useful, or interesting to others. However, it’s critical to remember to tune in to what seems to actually be working with the audience. Of everything we’ve released to the public, what seems to have worked the best for those we serve: The Audience.

Because the unspoken request of audiences, and their secret wish is: “Share more of that.”

But how do we do know what’s resonating with audiences? The data tells us. What gets the best quality reactions? The most genuine comments? The most laughs? If we’re a YouTuber, the most views? If you’re a business, what products get the most sales? What formats and topics have we tried that just seem to click with the audience?

To the extent that creators are tuned into “what’s working,” and re-calibrate their messaging and approaches accordingly, the more likely they are to see their audience grow.

If we ignore this feedback, and just keep doing that we’ve been doing (as so many do), then we may end up like the comedian who stubbornly keeps a bad joke in their set.

Some additional tips:

• When it’s just you, how do you do this? Set a timer for 15-20 minutes, and actually go through your videos, web traffic, or any other statistics you have. Keep a running spreadsheet if you need help keeping track of what you’re getting rid of and what you’re keeping. Highlight the rows of your most successful work.
• Have an external accountability partner to make sure you’re looking at what’s working. This can be a friend, a mentor, a fellow creator, or even a paid coach. It’s easy to BS ourselves, but harder to BS others. If you’re a comedian, feedback is pretty immediate and direct. For most others, feedback cycles are a bit longer. But that doesn’t make it any less important to do.