Content used to be expensive.

(Ha – Maybe you’re looking at your latest EE invoice and thinking, “It still bloody is!!” But, dear clients of mine, you don’t know how lucky you really are…)

In 2019, for the kind of content strategies we execute today with a 4 people agency team, you’d be looking at a whole editorial department. Imagine keeping a rotating case of writers, designers, senior strategists, reviewers, publishers, PR people, and editors on your payroll.

In 2026, anyone can open a tool and produce a blog post, a social caption, an email sequence or a month of ideas before lunch – with a free AI subscription.  

The practical time barrier to producing content has fallen through the floor. Yet the barrier to producing content that brings in clients has gone up.

There is simply more content competing for the same attention. Every feed, search result and inbox is full of perfectly serviceable writing. It is clean, structured and often answers the question. 

The best of it is forgettable. The worst is downright inaccurate and unreadable. 

That is the paradox. Content has become easier to make, but a great content strategy now asks more of you than it did before.

You need a real point of view. You need to understand what your audience is worried about, curious about and tired of hearing. You need to say something surprising with enough conviction that a reader remembers it after they close the tab. 

That takes a hella lot more than a prompt and a keyword list.

I do not mean every blog needs an enormous original study or a dramatic hot take. Most businesses have plenty to say already: client conversations, unusual observations, useful methods, hard-won lessons and opinions formed through doing the work. The difficulty comes in thinking of unique, creative ways to present that information, in ways that delight your audience.

But it’s not all so hard. The good news is that the reward is greater now, too.

When most of the internet is producing content that says almost the same thing, a thoughtful piece has more room to stand out. 

If it helps someone see a problem differently, answers the question they had been circling around, or gives them a useful next step, it earns their attention and begins to build trust. Over time, that trust makes it much easier for the right people to choose you.

That is the standard I use for my own work, and it is the sort of content I want to make for clients. Before I worry about the keyword, format or workflow, I ask a much simpler question: would I be happy to sit down with a coffee and enjoy this?

I want it to offer something useful, hold up against the ten other articles on the same topic, and leave the reader thinking, "That was worth it."

If it does, you are already doing content better than a surprising number of people. 

You are building content that can outlast another algorithm update because it has a reason for existing beyond chasing one.

P.S. Whenever you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help...

1 – Go deeper with YouTube

Watch my latest videos on SEO, AI, content strategy, and building a content engine that drives revenue.

2 – See what great content looks like

Browse case studies, frameworks, and resources from Empowered English to see how we help B2B brands turn expertise into customers. Check out our portfolio here. 

3 – Build your own expert content strategy

Book a strategy call and let's explore how your content can generate more qualified traffic, leads, and revenue.