Zachary Hourihane on Journalistic Rigor, Pop Culture Analysis, and Building Engaged Digital Communities

We often use the term “Influencers” to describe people with significant social media followings on platforms like Instagram, Twitter TikTok, Youtube, Linkedin and Facebook. Influencers have become today’s media titans, sought after for everything from product placements to timely trends. What’s the difference between influence and impact? Fans and followers? Sizzle versus staying power?

In this interview series, called, “How To Cultivate Community In A Click to Connect World” we are talking to influencers about how they define success and what we all need to discover about the true nature of influence. As a part of this series I had the pleasure of interviewing Zachary Hourihane.

Zachary Hourihane, ‘The Swiftologist’, is a journalist and content creator based in Singapore. He is the co-host of one of the top Taylor Swift podcasts, Evolution of a Snake.

Thank you for making time to visit with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. How did you discover your career path, and what got you to where you are today?

Before I made videos, I was a journalist. While writing full-time, I noticed how limited the reach of an article can be in this day and age. Your main goal as a writer is for your ideas to be heard and to generate conversation about a topic or issue that is important to you. At the same time, I was kind of half-heartedly making a few YouTube videos about my love for Taylor Swift’s music. In that process, I realised that video-first content reaches a much wider audience in a more playful and engaging manner. Combining my journalistic skills (researching, writing a script, sharpening an argument) with my passion and love for music led me to make thoughtful, weekly videos about pop culture.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned along the way that influences how you operate now?

When you make high-quality, engaging content about something that matters to you — your people will find you. Growing an audience is this high-wire act of understanding the algorithms and how they operate, while also understanding what your core audience who tune in weekly, want to see. There’s a difference between those two things, and a sweet spot to find.

Many of our readers are influencers as well. Others have tried and have yet to succeed. What words of advice would you offer to aspiring influencers, knowing what you know now?

Treat it like a job, even if it isn’t making money. The most important things are showing up week after week, being consistent, pushing your creative limits, learning new skills, living in the comment section, and interacting with and getting to know your audience. The best audience to grow isn’t the biggest one; it’s the most engaged one.

Success is often a matter of perspective. I’ve always resonated with Henry David Thoreau’s quote, “It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” How do you see success — or define success — for yourself now?

That quote does resonate with me. Often, as a content creator, it becomes all too easy to measure the impact and value of your work by numbers. Platforms allow us to really granularly analyse who is interacting with our content. However, sometimes — the content you really put your heart and soul into doesn’t resonate as widely as something that didn’t matter to you at all. I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter if you create something and it flops. It’s just as important to scratch that creative itch. Dedicating time and energy to something that you know is going to flop, is a success because you’ve followed something purer than a number.

What are your strategies to make room for who and what matters most?

I have a full-time job on top of my content creation career, so being intentional about structuring my time is really important. It’s not really possible to fill every cup (social life, family time, work) to 100% every day. So I try to take stock of when I’m putting too much energy into one cup in one week, and start balancing it out the next week.

How do you reduce or mitigate stress?

Endorphins. Going to the gym is my favourite way to blow off steam, especially something very cardio-intensive, so I can really switch it off. I’ve also loved hot/cold therapy, which includes a sauna session and a cold plunge.

I’m going to try a few of your tips, and I’m hopeful our readers will, too. Now it’s time for the big reveal — the moment our readers have been anticipating. What are your “five strategies to cultivate a large & engaged social media community?’

Be consistent.

People will meet you where you are, but you have to show up for them frequently.

Be agile.

Sometimes, the content you love isn’t the content that creates growth or spreads your message widely. Balance doing what you love with what your audience loves, even if those two things sometimes conflict.

Be resilient.

You can’t please everyone all the time. Work out who you’re trying to cater to, and play to them. Any external noise is irrelevant.

Take notes.

Sometimes, a good note can exist in the strongest and harshest criticism. Learn what to take on and what to release by being honest with yourself about what you’re creating.

Be available.

There is nothing more important than listening and talking to your audience. You can’t grow a following without having an intuitive understanding of who you’re talking to. You need to live in the comments section.

What do you do to create a greater sense of connection and community among your fans?

I’m present. I think many creators post (for themselves) and go about their day. Hitting ‘post

is only the first part of creating content: social media, even when passive, is ultimately about connection. Think of ways to be ‘interactive’ even when you’re not one-on-one. For example, creating a great hook and concluding with a killer CTA.

As an influencer, you are, by definition, a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

Think critically about the things you love and see them for what they are, not just what they mean to you.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world with whom you’d like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He, she, or they might just see this. :-)

This is a pretty obvious answer… she’s a billionaire with three cats.

What is the best way for our readers to further follow your work online?

Weekly videos on YouTube & TikTok, ‘Swiftologist,’ and on my Podcast, Evolution of a Snake.

Thank you for these thought provoking insights. Here’s to your continued success!

About The Interviewer: Karen Mangia is one of the most sought-after keynote speakers in the world, sharing her thought leadership with over 10,000 organizations during the course of her career. As Vice President of Customer and Market Insights at Salesforce, she helps individuals and organizations define, design and deliver the future. Discover her proven strategies to access your own success in her fourth book Success from Anywhere and by connecting with her on LinkedIn and Twitter.