About Me:      

Hi, I’m Ryan and I’m the Digital Manager at The Harrington Agency. I use my digital skillset to help awesome organizations raise money and increase awareness. We consume content at a feverish rate and the digital ecosystem means we are able to digest more information, faster. Here’s the media diet I follow to keep my thumb firmly on the pulse of the latest trends, industry news, and information that is imperative to leading client success. (Pssst, it includes TikTok and other fun stuff, not just newspapers and industry reports.)

In the Morning:

First thing in the morning I grab my phone and clear out notifications and emails. A quick 2-minute scroll through Facebook provides me with a quick overview of how the day will go. Then it’s off to my desk. The second my laptop opens, a flood of RSS feed notifications comes through. Each one containing trends from Google Search Trends and Trending US on Twitter. Reviewing what the internet is talking about is crucial to ensure that we are jumping on any trending opportunities. My RSS feed refreshes every 5 minutes, pushing any new trending topics right to the notification hub on my MacBook.

After reviewing trending topics, I report out to my team with any opportunities. I then turn my focus to the 3-5 morning digests I receive from news providers and websites of key interest. AdAge Daily and Digiday are my favorites as I sip my espresso or crack open an energy drink.

In the Afternoon:

When I sit down for lunch, I usually take the opportunity to catch up on news stories. I use Flipboard to follow subjects of interest. The app concatenates relevant articles into stacked topics. I follow #Business, #Marketing, #Design, #Technology, and #BigIdeas. Flipping through these stacks of articles is a quick way to get up to speed on the latest news within the industry. It also offers up some great ideas or things to think about as I tackle the rest of the day.

In the Evening:

When it is time to decompress, I turn to TikTok. Yes, I am a grown adult with a real job, and I use TikTok daily. (I had to set a screen time limit on the app to ensure 4 hours don’t just disappear into thin air) While the fun videos are great, studying the algorithm is fascinating. It also seems to be on the cutting edge of news and developing stories. Many times, I’ve come to my team with an idea or trend from TikTok and we’ve managed to be out in front of the curve in our response.

Before Bed:

When I hop into bed, I typically check Flipboard one more time. Then I check my trending dashboards to see how the day progressed and to see if anything is “on the rise” that I can proactively think about for the next day.

What I Like to Watch:

When I am not entranced by the latest TikTok trend, I find myself caring for a menagerie of active series’ on EVERY streaming platform known to man. Some all-time favorites include MadMen, Blacklist, POSE, and How to Get Away with Murder. Most recently, I wrapped up my third re-watch of Downton Abbey. Up next, a re-watch of Tiger King. Yes, I am actually going to re-watch it to celebrate its one-year anniversary. Admittedly, I was hooked on the series within minutes… I’m not proud, but I won’t hide my feelings.

I don’t care for sports much, but I really enjoy watching Formula 1 racing, GT3/4 racing, and FIA World Endurance racing.

My coworkers will be the first to chime in and let me know that I am deficient in the “quintessential movie” department. I’ll admit, if you reference a movie from before 2010, there’s a good chance I haven’t seen it. I am more than willing to watch something new, finding the time is tricky. Most recently I tackled Best in Show and Drop Dead Gorgeous. But the list of “must-see” movies continues to grow daily with my colleagues.

Weekly:

AdWeek and AdAge typically come out in an alternating schedule. Their coverage of advertising and marketing advancements bubbles up a lot of great ideas to consider. These publications focus on the commercial side of the industry but offer plenty of opportunities to bring new concepts and ideas into the non-profit space.  

Monthly:

I only subscribe to two monthly magazines, Architectural Digest and GQ. Design and fashion are personal passions of mine. These subscriptions have scratched that itch for me for years now. AD is purely for pleasure but after reading the latest issue, I always feel inspired and ready to take on any creative challenges that face me. GQ has fashion locked down. And one day, client meetings are going to be face-to-face, I need to look sharp!

Quarterly:

Once a quarter, a new issue of UPPERCASE arrives. And let me tell you, I anticipate its arrival like a kid waiting for Christmas. This is a creator’s best friend. The themed issues offer ideas, new products, and all-around some of the best creative inspiration EVER. The high-quality stock and dynamic content are divine. The ad-free ecosystem is a refreshing change from the whirlwind of ads my content typically subjects me to. 

Yearly:

Annual reports, white papers, and case studies make up my yearly diet. I try to read and annotate them within 5 days of publication to ensure any action items are addressed. These usually come from agencies and have lots of actionable ideas with data to boot.

Conclusion:

Much like your food diet, your media diet needs to be varied and balanced. It also needs to meet your needs as a marketer, a program director, or executive. Hopefully, you found some new items to add to your media diet. Or at the very least, had some thoughtful reflection on what you consume now.

Let me know in the comments if there are additional food groups I should consider! Content is king and I am always on the hunt for new things to consume.