I’ve gotta let you know, I’m actually kinda fed up with the misuse and overuse of the “Don’t construct your own home on rented land!” rallying cry. Each time a platform modifications or a characteristic will get taken away or Fb goes down for eight hours, “gurus” flock to Twitter and LinkedIn and Fb to shout: “SEE! Because of this you don’t construct your own home on rented land!”
And plainly completely everybody eats it up. “YES! You’re so proper!” How do you argue with that, proper? And so they share and everybody else eats it up, too. It simply retains going and going…
All of the whereas, utilizing that rallying cry for that second didn’t make any sense. However this can be a phrase that strikes a chord for no matter purpose, and other people simply can’t resist the attraction. It’s like advertising and marketing moths to a flame.
Let me clarify…
A Thread of Reality
The “rented land” phrase is all about not relying fully on a platform that you just don’t personal. You don’t personal Fb or Twitter or LinkedIn or YouTube, so that you shouldn’t “construct” your enterprise there.
Certain, there’s some thread of reality to this. The concept is that it’s a lot extra essential to personal one thing — that “one thing” being your web site or e-mail checklist, specifically. Whereas that is definitely true, the phrase is overused to use to conditions that don’t make any sense.
Fb is shutting down Fb Podcasts? THIS IS WHY YOU DON’T BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON RENTED LAND! This totally occurred, by the best way. And it is senseless as a result of no podcaster relied fully on Fb.
Fb goes down for eight hours? THIS IS WHY YOU DON’T BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON RENTED LAND! You recognize, as a result of your personal web site would by no means go down for eight hours (mine definitely has).
All of the whereas, in fact, screaming these statements from Fb or Twitter or LinkedIn — you understand, from rented land! These persons are constructing their experience and audiences from platforms they don’t personal.
The Actuality
The fact is that this: Having one thing you “personal” definitely offers you extra management and is extra dependable. However, it is advisable leverage rented land to get individuals there.
And really, have you learnt what leveraging rented land is? It’s the definition of “advertising and marketing.” You hire house the place your potential viewers could also be with the hope of sending them to the factor that you just personal.
However in the end, how a lot will we truly personal? You personal your area. You personal your content material. However once more, it’s about management and reliability. You depend on so many issues that you just don’t personal to make that web site work. You depend on plugins and options which can be hosted elsewhere to perform correctly.
When Meta pulled the plug on Fb Podcasts, I truly learn a remark that stated it’s best to simply host the podcast by yourself web site. Come on! Must you be capable of discover and even eat your podcast in your web site? Certain! (I do that.)
However, how on the earth do you anticipate to construct your viewers? Nobody needs to hang around in your web site! They need to hang around on the rented land. That’s why we ship our podcast episodes to Apple Podcasts and Spotify and Google Podcasts and Amazon Music and in all places else. We don’t personal any of those.
Possession, Management, and Adaptability
I wouldn’t advise that you just construct a enterprise fully inside a platform that you just don’t personal, with no rights to the client checklist. That’s the one, very slim, use of the “rented land” phrase that I’ll enable (as a result of I’m the gatekeeper, dammit!).
However, right here’s a degree that all of us want to know: Whereas “possession” might imply extra management and reliability, that is actually about adaptability. If Fb shuts one thing down, what are you going to do subsequent?
Hell, simply since you “personal” your web site, it doesn’t imply it’s not in danger. What if your entire approach that we eat the web modifications and your web site turns into out of date?
The identical together with your e-mail checklist. The principles on emailing clients and subscribers are continually altering. What if, all of a sudden, your e-mail checklist has no worth?
In the long run, it issues much less and fewer about whether or not you personal or hire every thing. What’s most essential is that you just’re in a position to adapt to no matter disruption happens.
Your Flip
What are your ideas?
Let me know within the feedback beneath!
