Cliff Notes

I can remember when it was cheating to read a summary.

When I was growing up in a small town, access to study aids was quite challenging.

Cliff Notes were available at a bookstore in Waco, which was almost 70 miles from the ranch. They were displayed on a revolving wire cart near the checkout and contained titles such as "War and Peace" and "Moby Dick."

But using them as a study aid was frowned on - if not outright banned - by teachers.

If they caught you.

This was in the days before the internet, Google, and ChatGPT. But it was also in the days before the worldwide content expansion we've seen in the last decade.

I did a quick Amazon search and found that Cliff Notes are still available, although interestingly enough - not on the Kindle.

The most popular search items were To Kill a Mockingbird and Lord of the Flies, followed by the Old and New Testament.

I think this should be emblematic of our society, but I can't think of the analogy right now.

Instead, I want to talk about the renewed value of summarization, and how you can leverage this approach for your personal brand.

​THE INFORMATION EXPLOSION

The digital era has brought us an unprecedented surge in content creation. Every day, millions of articles, blogs, videos, and social media posts are published across the globe.

While this abundance of content provides endless opportunities to learn and stay informed, it also presents a significant challenge: information overload.

With so much content available, it's overwhelming to sift through it all and find what is truly relevant and useful.

In this chaotic sea of information, the ability to summarize content efficiently has become invaluable.

Summarization can help us quickly capture the essence of what is being communicated, allowing us to make informed decisions without wading through endless pages of material.

There is tremendous value in summarizing this vast amount of content.

THE CHALLENGE OF INFORMATION OVERLOAD

In today's fast-paced world, time is of the essence. We live in an era where attention spans are shorter than ever, yet the amount of information we consume daily continues to grow exponentially.

According to recent studies, an average person consumes about 34 gigabytes of data every day!

This staggering amount of content can lead to an overwhelming sense of information fatigue, where our brains simply cannot process or keep all the data we encounter.

It's projected that Gen Z will spend 112 complete days on their phones throughout the year in 2024. That's a third of the year!

And that's a lot of content.

As a content marketer, this presents a unique challenge.

How do we ensure our messages cut through the noise and reach our target audience effectively? The answer lies in mastering the art of summarization.

By distilling complex information into clear, concise summaries, we can deliver impactful content that is both informative and engaging.

Summarization helps us present key points concisely, enabling our audience to quickly grasp and retain necessary information.

HARNESSING AI FOR CONTENT SUMMARIZATION

This sounds so counterintuitive, but one of the primary uses that I have for AI is in actually summarizing content - created by AI!

AI-driven tools can analyze vast amounts of text and producing coherent, comprehensive summaries in a fraction of the time it would take a human.

Check out this quick bite-sized hack for using Perplexity.

These tools use advanced algorithms and natural language processing techniques to identify key themes and concepts, ensuring that the resulting summaries are both accurate and informative.

One of the major benefits of AI summarization is its ability to process information at scale.

Whether you're dealing with a single article or an entire library of content, AI can quickly generate summaries that highlight the most important insights. This not only saves time but also ensures consistency and accuracy.

PUTTING YOUR SPIN ON IT: PERSONALIZATION AND SHARING

While AI-generated summaries provide a solid foundation, adding a personal touch truly sets your content apart.

Let's be honest, creating content to feed the beast of social media today can be a challenge.

So one quick approach is to summarize and repurpose the content of others.

No, this isn't cheating. I'm not suggesting you plagiarize content, rather you should put your own personal spin on it and share the original article.

Original authors actually love this approach because it drives traffic to their work.

Once you have a summary, consider how you can tailor it to better suit your audience's needs and interests.

Add your insights, anecdotes, or examples to provide context and make the content more relatable. This personal touch not only enhances the reading experience, but also helps build trust and credibility with your audience.

Sharing your personalized summaries on various platforms can help amplify your reach and engagement.

By consistently providing valuable, succinct insights, you establish yourself as a thought leader in your field and foster a loyal audience.

One challenge for brands is that when you summarize and share the content of others, you are taking prospects away from your web page and to someone else's.

There is a really easy way to solve this, and I outline it in my complete tutorial on how to share valuable content using the power of summaries. I'll attach it here:

The take-home message? When the world creates a problem - like too much content - it also creates an opportunity. Leverage it.