From University dropout to multi – millionaire and now full time traveller; the story of how tech entrepreneur Garrett Gee and his “Bucket List Family” embarked upon an unpredicted yet wonderful new chapter of their lives brings the most encouraging example of how quality, transparent and interesting content can attract audiences and build loyalty in the most organic way.
After Snapchat acquired his tech start-up end of 2013, Garrett and his wife, Jessica, felt that the influx of money should not change who they are. So instead of splurging on luxuries, they put their fortune into secure investments to move on to the next project, but not before getting some quality family time travelling with their two young children. Selling all of their assets for $45,000, the young couple laid out a plan to travel across the Pacific Ocean for as long as they could by hunting for hotel deals, cheap flights and any promotions that could help stretch the budget.
Gee started his family’s Youtube and Instagram accounts to keep family and friends posted during the journey; vlogging everything from the planning stage to date of departure; and after that, documenting their daily activities and basically sharing the whole experience.
Since everything was documented online, it wasn’t long until their channels were crowded with fellow travel-enthusiasts, who could experience all the places through the eyes of The Bucket List Family and benefit from travel tips and advice from the people who were experiencing the journey first hand.
The information is helpful, honest and delivered in the most adorable way – featuring their toddlers as presenters – thereby gaining the audience’s trust-more than any highly regarded travel magazines’ reviews. The Bucket List Family soon found themselves with an army of devoted followers eagerly waiting for the next experience.
Unknowingly, the Bucket List Family became a living, moving, dream-marketing machine. A strong base of followers equals great social exposure and since the competition for attention between brands is so intense these days, offers from airlines and hotels started flying in, with the hope that brands and locations could be part of The Bucket List Family’s story and influence. Why? Because “people trust people more than institutions”
So now, the Bucket List Family is still travelling the world and inadvertently making a sustainable living doing exactly what they love. Gee and his wife spend an average of 20 hours a week managing their social media channels, editing videos and answering questions to interact with their followers, making sure that their content is beautiful, helpful and authentic.
The Bucket List Family has built a unique brand all thanks to the originality and transparency of their messages; delivered consistently through multiple channels to connect and build trust with the audience. In a world where people actively look for information, whether to solve a problem or be entertained, content that is interesting, reliable and easily accessible stands out, attracts viewers, gets shared and is simply the most valuable asset for any business.
With online ads losing their power to attract customers, great content is proven to be the way forward for businesses to attract and win customers over. Valuable, interesting and relevant content, appropriately delivered, attracts viewers, gets shared, and instils a trusting relationship that ultimately leads to brand loyalty. Loyal customers will bring more customers, and that whole process of exchanging value to delight and draw customers to your business instead of pushing and hard selling is what Inbound Marketing is all about.
So why not start building your library of smart, valuable content to bring customers to your brand and build a long-term relationship with them? Essentially, would you rather spend your budget on borrowed platforms to achieve instant, temporary returns, or would you rather invest your time and effort for long-term and sustainable success?