Volume 6: Content That Every Brand Should Make (Level 1)
In today’s edition, we’re going to cover content that every brand should make. And how to execute it at the highest level. Because the reality is, the barrier to great content is getting smaller and smaller every day. And therefore, the difference between a good idea and a great piece of content is how good the idea is executed.
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The bigger brands are starting to pour money into organic content, and so you need to operate at an exceptionally high level to win on social in 2026. And there’s three levels to the social playbook. Beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Each level requires different operations, bandwidth, and team members. Over the next 3 weeks, we will cover the content that every brand should make based on their level.
How To Determine Your Content Level
And don’t skip over this part because the reality is it’s very easy to get excited, shoot for the stars with your content strategy, and never take off.
And there’s always a reason that happens, and it comes down to three elements:
Because after working with brands at all levels from 7-10 figures, I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen the brands with all of the operational excellence and the wrong team skill set based on the content strategy, and the brands with a large bandwidth and the proper skill set, but no operations, and therefore they can’t scale.
So, here’s my advice:
Execute optimistically. Strategize pessimistically.
Don’t build your strategy with the idea that everything will go right because it never does, and 1-2 small hurdles can implode a strategy.
But always punch above your belt when you execute by using every piece of content as a way to bulletproof your ops, test your bandwidth, and improve your team’s skill set.
Ask yourself three questions to determine your content level:
- Do my operations break if I double the content volume in the next 30 days?
- Does the quality of your content drop if you double the content volume in the next 30 days?
- Does your team’s skill set match the content you aim to produce in the next 30 days?
And from our experience, if you can nail ⅔, then you can move onto the next content level and use the upcoming 30 days to close the gap.
If ⅓, then things will break, and you need to spend the next 30-60 days building out your infrastructure.
Content That Every Brand Should Make (Level 1)
Formats. Examples. Best practices.
One Shot Videos
Similarly, there are levels to the execution of a one-shot video or vignette. But one-shot videos are great for all stages of the content funnel. You can create them for general awareness within your category.
Level 1: Single Scene Videos With Text Overlay (Lo-Fi)
Best practices: A great one-shot video is a combination of a title hook (the text on screen), then a visual that brings it to life (visual hook).
Example: Heart and Soil
Level 2: Single Scene Videos With Text Overlay (Hi-fi)
Best practices: Layer in a constant action that works in tandem with the text hook.
Example: tomc_fit
Level 3: Vignettes
These are short moments that transport the viewer into your brand’s world.
Best practices: Great vignettes are made through the over optimization of either the angle, aesthetic, or action.
Example: another_adventure_gram
Ten Shot Videos
Ten shot videos are something we teach extensively in Cut30. They’re a specific format where you tell/show a quick, snappy story through a mix of various, fast shots.
There are two levels to this.
Level 1: 10 Shot With Text Overlay
Best Practice: The title hook provides clarity and context while opening a curiosity gap that’s closed by the visuals in the video.
Example: FUNBOY
Level 2: 10 Shot With Narration
Best Practices: Create a shot list that matches segments of your script to each shot.
Example: BlankedStudios
Carousels
There are three primary reasons brands leverage carousels:
- Content For Your Followers - Best at targeting your existing audience.
- Re-Packaging - Great for taking winning content and packaging it into a different content type.
- Can Go Nuclear - Has the potential to pop because carousels go into the reels algorithm.
Here are some ways you can use carousels:
All examples found here: Puresport, Fern, Graffeocoffee, Fern, Nude Project.
How To / Why We Do It
This category is education mixed with what makes you unique. This is the brand explaining how they do something or why they do something to build credibility around what makes them different within the category/niche.
Best practice: Collect your top comments, FAQ, comments on your competitors' content, use a tool like ask the public to source the top questions within your category, then answer them by including your positioning, differentiation, unique experience, or contrarian take.
Example: Brownie God
Final Notes From The House
On another note, Colin, Oren, and I are putting on a 3-day challenge to help all creators and brands create winning content with our playbooks to get your first 10k and 100k views.
It starts tomm and you can sign up here.
Until the next edition,
Alex Garcia | House Of Distribution
