One of the easiest mistakes to make in online content is believing that success is mostly about distribution.

We look at people with large audiences and assume they’ve mastered the mechanics of reach. They post everywhere. They optimise titles. They study algorithms. They learn the timing, the formats, the tricks that push content into more feeds.

From the outside, it looks like the work is about projection, getting your message in front of as many eyes as possible.

But there’s something bigger underneath any sustainable audience, and it works in the opposite direction.

The strongest content businesses are built on pull, not push.

Pushing is an outward effort.

You are trying to move your work toward people.

Pulling is an inward motion.

You are creating something that draws the right people toward you because it speaks directly to a problem they already feel. When that pull is strong, distribution becomes easier, not because you’ve mastered every platform, but because readers recognise themselves in what you make.

Pull begins with relevance.

Relevance is not about chasing trends or attaching yourself to whatever topic happens to be popular this week.

It’s about occupying space and exploring it consistently. When readers encounter your work you want them to think…

“This person is talking about something I’m trying to figure out”

When this happens they’ll want to know more… this is the start of an audience.

Most creators approach this process backwards.

They start by asking how to get more reach and only later wonder why the attention doesn’t stick. They push content into the world, see a brief spike of activity, and then watch it fade.

The cycle repeats, and each time the instinct is to push harder, more posts, more platforms, more optimisation.

But pushing harder doesn’t create engagement.

Engagement comes from recognition. Readers return when they feel understood. They follow when they trust that your work will continue to illuminate a problem they care about. Over time, this creates loyalty that no growth tactic can manufacture.

It’s the difference between a passing glance and an ongoing relationship.

Building pull requires patience because you have to narrow your focus before you expand your reach. You choose a set of questions you are genuinely interested in and explore them in public.

Each piece of content becomes another angle on the same topic. Instead of trying to impress a broad audience, you aim to become useful to a specific one.

Ironically, this is what eventually expands your audience.

When readers feel that your work is made for them, they share it with people who have similar concerns.

The audience grows through alignment rather than exposure alone.

Platforms amplify signals of engagement, and engagement is strongest when relevance is high. What looks like organic growth from the outside is often the effect of constantly pulling your audience towards your content.

For a simple content-based business, this distinction is liberating. You don’t need to chase visibility. You need to create a body of work that consistently attracts the people you are best positioned to help.

That attraction is slower than viral reach, but it is far more durable. It builds an audience that stays, participates, and gradually becomes a community.

Push will always have a role. Distribution matters, and sharing your work is part of the job. But push works best when it rests on something that pulling your audience towards you has built.

Without relevance, distribution is effort without traction. With relevance, even modest reach can generate meaningful momentum.

The goal is not to shout louder. It’s to build something that people are already listening for.

When you focus on pull, on creating work that resonates deeply with a defined group of readers, you stop chasing attention and start cultivating engagement.

And engagement, given enough time, is what gathers an audience around you.

Your path should now be clear!