I Don’t Know Who My Audience Is and I’m Okay With That.

7 min readApr 13, 2022

In the “age of information” I find it ironic that there’s still a lot of morons out there. That’a not the point of this piece. One of the things that our society says is one needs to know their target audience is as a creator. Who is our tribe, our people, our fans or whatever you want to call them. You ask any personal brand strategist or content creator willing to give you free game and one if not the only bit of advice they’ll tell you is to know who your audience is and taylor content to their liking. Sounds simple, right? Don’t be surprised if you pay for a course and get told the same thing. You didn’t get scammed, you just paid for advice others, such as myself would’ve given you for free. Yes, I would still tell anyone looking to put something out in the world to know the type of people they want to create content for, that niche crowd. I sat this because it’s the most basic advice any content creator can give to someone and if I don’t tell them some other content creator will. I sat this with the full understanding that bit of advice falls under “do as I say, not as I do,” like the financial advisors telling you not to get involved in crypto #NotFinancialAdvise I don’t do this to be malicious or misleading like a financial advisor who wants to buy as much Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies so when the time comes to sell it they’d make millions (possibly) selling the Crypto back to hundreds or thousands of people looking to buy some including the people they told not to make any crypto investments to. I’m not hoarding fans, I tell people to do the complete opposite of what I so as a creator when it comes to audience because I’m afraid I will do more damage to someone else than I intended to, which is none. It’s not only lonely at the top, it’s lonely in the center and it’s lonely at the bottom when you are creating content for “no one” specifically. Fortunately or unfortunately for me, I don’t experience the feeling of lonliness often. Not because my “clan” got me. It’s because I’ve grown to be used to being alone, even as a creator. That’s not to say I have no desire to be a part of something with somebody/some community. That does not mean I don’t identify with groups and communities. It just means when I write blog pieces, books, screen plays or creating content that I believe that group would be into. Trust me, if I did, the Ernest Thoughts Podcast would be a totally different podcast. You think white American/European men between the ages of 28–34 would be into hearing me talk about how evil white people are on a weekly bases if I created episodes based on these numbers?

If so, they must have tough skin, agree with the message or are gluten for pain, which wouldn’t surprise me at all. White people are weird like that.

How I Do.

If you are impressed by those numbers, I’m flattered. I do it for the fans (whoever they are), mostly do it for myself. If you are a content creator or thinking about becoming one, this is how you can get people to check you out and hopefully stay. Sounds unpromising and tricky, right? I can promise you that it is both unpromising and tricky. Buckle up! Safety first, even on short rides.

The first stop is on “Wayward Tour Bus” is “Why Avenue.” Whether you know who your audience is or not, as a creator you must know why you do what you do as a creator. Id not, you’re doomed and this bus does not go on or near “Doomed Drive,” so you might be on the wrong jump off. Tuck and roll. I also feel obligated to mention, if your “why?” is to be liked and get people to give you money, go start an Only Fans. Next, we’re taking a turn to “Lonely Lane.” It’s dark here, isn’t it? Notice how cold and dark it is here compared to the bright and vibrant “Why Avenue” I don’t mind the darkness, at times it’s the cold aire that worries me the most. If you plan on being a creator with “no audience,” you’re going to have to get used to making trips here, sometimes even staying here for sometime. Don’t fret, those days on “Why? Ave” will get you through those cold darks days and before you know it, you’ll ne back to creating the content you create. Welp, Losers, friends, buttercup, whatever you want to be called, this tour has come to an end. Gas prices are too high and I don’t get paid enough to loop you around the same streets so gfet your sweaty butts up. Don’t forget to leave a “50 clap” rating and please consider “tipping” your tour guide.

Creative Ignorance is Bliss.

It’s not all doom and gloom as a “wayward creator.” It’s actually freeing and really fun. When you don’t try to appeal to any specific group, you don’t run the risk of compromising who you are are to be the perfect creator, whatever perfection looks like for the type of content you are creating. For example, if you are a video game based content creator and you post a videos of your gameplays, but also gaming related commentary as well. You will attract people who are into video games and also into video game commentary. What if one day you decide to talk about a very serious social issue that not only is improtant to discuss for the world at large, but in the gaming world, too. Gamers can be racist, homophobic, sexist, amongst other toxic “you should not be this way” behavior. If you talk about these issues, within the gaming community whether you’re on the side of the “social justice warriors” or not you WILL lose some followers because that’s the way hate goes. I’m sure a fair number of creatoes who know their base understand this, but there are content creators and “socialites” who try to be the perfect person who doesn’t upset anyone and this will create a character that may not truly be how they are is order to appease to a base. Many names come to mind, but fuck them. Nobody, but me gets free promotion here. When you’re creating for the love of it (whatever your why is) you don’t worry about being the perfect artist, author, podcaster, YouTube or whatever you do-er.

Silence is Not Always A Bad Thing.

You have to understand that everybody is different. Not every fan is going to be vocal all the time or ever and that is something that I’ve had to come to realize over the years. The reader who will tell me how much they love what I write is just as appreciated as the “silent” readers or the ones who will chime in every once in a while. You can’t expect people to be a different bread just be cause everybody is different in their own way. I know as a fan I’m not always vocal. I comment, but that doesn’t mean the person doesn’t have my attention, love or support. That’s just the type of supporter I am. I’d prefer to keep supporting my favorite creators than to constantly remind them of my existence. Please don’t get discouraged if that describes you. You’re vocal support mean more than you probably imagine it does for us creators, especially to writers. I’m just saying you don’t need to do that for me in order for me to feel good as a creator, now.

Who My Audience Is.

If I had to pin-point who my audience is, I’d say they are real people who value genuine people, even if they disagree. That may sound like copout to the prototypical brand strategist out there, but in the best answer I can honestly give. There’s men, women and gender-nonconforming people of all backgrounds who’ve either reached out to me and expressed their support or I’ve been informed by what the numbers say. I like it this way. I now prefer it to be this way. It means that I can’t be labelled easily. It means there will always be an element of surprise when it comes to whatever I post. Most importantly, it means I can express all sides of myself and not have to worry about driving away 90% of my base. You do whatever you want when you ain’t “poppin,” kind of.