I was reading an excellent book called 24 Assets by Daniel Priestly about how successful companies have 24 key assets which help them grow.
Marketing and brand assets were high on the list. The author gave a gentle reminder that well-made quality digital assets will perform on your website, social media and more 24/7. Video, blog posts and of course podcasts were among the quality assets identified. They work particularly well with mid-funnel leads. These people come looking for more information about your brand or product, and quality detailed information from your assets warms them up to make a purchase.
While all these assets are important, there is one that reigns supreme above all and that is ‘Asset Zero’.
Not putting pressure on you but Asset Zero is somewhere in YOU.
It is something inside you that pushes you to grow, to be your best, to learn the skills to get you where you want to be. Like any good asset, it has a monetary value (wages), offers value to others (your skill) and that value increases with time (promotion!).
This is the asset that began your journey. The seed from which everything else has grown. It is the thing you are passionate about and have become a master at. It’s different for everybody because it is an asset that runs deep within you alone.
But what exactly is your Asset Zero?
You may have to dig deep to remember what it is. Initially, I thought my Asset Zero was a specific job like working in RTE or winning awards. But they are career highlights, not assets. Then I thought perhaps it’s my abilities at interviewing or producing audio. But they are skills, not assets.
The thing that started it all off for me was a love for entertaining and telling stories using audio. Everything I’ve done since, from my early days as a radio dj, to growing into an independent producer and making everything from documentaries to quiz shows for practically every radio station in Ireland. All of that stems back to a love as a kid to tell stories using audio.
When I was a baby dj I had a little studio set up with a record turntable playing requests for my mum in the kitchen. Occasionally I would make interviews on my cassette recorder then edit to swop the questions and answers around. I’d ask my auntie their recipe for bolognese sauce and switch to the answer to ‘what goes in the bin’?. “Oh eggshells and cheese that’s gone off !”
Audio is my love because it is so adaptable and flexible. Imagination plays a great part and imagination is great! If I play an audio effect of a waterfall and say I’m at Niagara Falls, a picture forms in your head. As you listen to a person talk, you imagine what they look like. The more you listen to them, the more you connect and form opinions on their demeanour and what they are saying. The longer you listen usually means the more you like them! This is done by radio stations every day but now anyone can do the same with podcasts.
Today, with podcasts, I still love telling stories through audio by helping companies and brands tell their story. And they ALL have stories. Even better, many of the people working in those companies are very passionate about what they do, which makes everything so much more compelling. This is what I help companies with and how I help connect them to new clients or grow the relationship with existing ones.
So what is YOUR Asset Zero? What is the X-Factor that has brought you to where you are today?