You have to earn your content.

You’ve taken a few shots at building an audience. You’ve dropped some coin on a few brand film false starts. But the plays are in the low double digits, the subs aren’t growing, and the marketing budget is depleted.

The stories are there, but the work isn’t built to surface them.

A great example of this is Niman Ranch. This is a legacy brand dedicated to traditional ranching through humane and sustainable practices, with a mission to support farmers, ranchers, the land they work, and the people they feed. A deep dive into their YouTube page turns up the “Why Niman Ranch” playlist of short videos filled with passionate characters and strong points of view. The stories are there.

However, seventeen years of publishing content have yielded just under 2.5 thousand subscribers, with a large portion of the films failing to garner views in the triple digits. It’s easy to see why there aren’t consistent uploads - results like this build fatigue in messaging, initiative, and budgets.

The channel also features long gaps, inconsistent creative direction, and a spectrum of production quality.

There is an immense opportunity to elevate this brand by building an audience of passionate advocates. It would not be too far out of left field to see a Netflix-style episodic similar to Chef’s Table, profiling the farmers, ranchers, and chefs who either grow for or use Niman Ranch products. A series that becomes its own vehicle,  driving the message into the hearts of loyal and eager viewers. But Niman Ranch has to earn that type of content. Here’s how they build the ladder.

Phase 1: Establish Consistency and Voice

This is where the foundation is laid. Regular uploads of short-form character moments - 60 to 90 seconds each - that introduce a person and let them have one specific thing to say. 

Aside from the upload schedule, this is also the moment to establish consistency in quality and voice. Premium quality is at the heart of everything Niman Ranch believes in. That has to carry through to their public image as well. No more poor-quality audio, lo-fi camerawork, or flat lighting. The world’s finest meats deserve the finest production.

Phase 2: Expand Through Empathy

Once the foundation has cured, it’s time to build the walls by diving deeper into the characters who broke through in Phase 1. It’s a story about a third-generation rancher who continues their grandfather’s legacy through their own newfound love of moving cattle on the open range.

Each subsequent mini-documentary, three to five minutes long, expands on the short-form character moments from Phase 1. This is when the true story-finding and empathy-building begin. Every film is a journey into the heart of a character and the “why” behind their passion.

Phase 3: The Earned Investment

When a brand stops being a product and starts becoming water-cooler conversation. When an audience crosses over from consumer to obsessed advocate. When the anticipated release of each 10-20 minute long-form film earns the time it asks for with a character the audience wants more of.

One ladder, three phases, and earned content. The unifying thread – every piece is about a person; no piece is about the brand.

What’s more, it’s proven. Yeti Films showed the way to build a series about people whose obsession with a craft created a loyalty so total that the audience didn’t even care if the cooler was barely in the frame. They earned a rabid fan base beyond the expected consumer. And, most importantly, they created the conditions under which the brand’s premium pricing makes total sense.

The world of humane, sustainable ranching is just waiting for its housewarming party.