I was lucky enough to head to the Content Byte Summit over a Friday and Saturday in September. Billed as the summit for journalists, content writers, copywriters and other freelance creatives keen to futureproof their freelance income, it was such a great mix of content and chats and AI related learnings.
I’ve reflected a lot about what my favourite parts of the summit were. Here’s a mini summary:
Adding more value
Co-keynote speaker Ed Gandia spoke about how offering strategy as a service can set you apart in the age of AI. He examined all the ways to add more value and charge for it. This helped me think about my business in another way and work out how I might package things differently. I realised I’m already offering plenty of strategy in my current offering. Is there a way to do it differently?
Using AI to get stuff done
Susan Reoch spoke about AI apps: Something to fear / ignore, or the assistant in your back pocket? I hadn’t considered many of the ways she talked about AI apps and how she uses them to work more constructively. Since the summit, I’ve put some of this to good use and have been working differently with AI. I’ve got to say, it’s really been a game changer for plenty of menial tasks. But the creative words? Still got to use the ole noggin.
Be more… me
Co-keynote speaker Jennifer Goforth Gregory spoke about ‘The secret to my $15k months and how I consistently hit my income targets’ To be honest, I was so captivated by talk that I didn’t take a single note then had to quickly write some points down at the end so I could remember some of the gold. My key takeaway was that I don’t have to follow anyone else, I do what suits me in my business. Love that empowerment.
Life in the world of travel writing
Lindy Alexander spoke about Nailing the pitch (magazines and corporates). After years of reading the Freelancer’s Year, I really enjoyed hearing from Lindy about how she pitches and her life as a travel writer.
Do I feel more knowledgeable about AI and know more ways I could integrate it into my business? Yes. But I also feel it’s a very emerging field and we need to be careful about how we use it. It’s a tool and it can’t replace the empathy, human connection and real life stories we convey in our own writing.