Content Inc.

The step-by-step model for building a business by growing an audience first and creating products second, drawn from Pulizzi’s own experience building and selling the Content Marketing Institute.

Why Start Here

Joe Pulizzi has written several books on content marketing, but Content Inc. is the one that pulls his entire philosophy into a single, actionable framework. Where his earlier book Epic Content Marketing focused on how established companies should approach content, Content Inc. is about building something from scratch.

The model follows six clear steps: find your content sweet spot, tilt it so you stand out from the competition, build a base on one primary platform, harvest your audience into a subscriber list you own, diversify into additional channels, and monetize. Pulizzi illustrates each step with real examples, including his own journey with CMI. He started with nothing more than a blog and a clear focus on a single topic, grew it into a media company with hundreds of thousands of subscribers, and eventually sold it.

The second edition updates the framework for today’s landscape, including guidance on newer platforms and the realities of building a content business with limited capital.

What to Expect

A 368-page business book with a clear structure and plenty of case studies. Pulizzi writes in a direct, practical style. The book works equally well for aspiring entrepreneurs who want to build a content-first business and for marketers inside larger organizations who want to think more strategically about audience growth.