Every piece of successful content does at least one of three things: it educates, entertains, or engages. The best content does all three.
I call these the Three Es: Education, Entertainment, and Engagement. Understanding how they work, when to use them, and how to combine them is the difference between content that gets ignored and content that builds communities.
Most creators stumble because they focus on only one E, or worse, they try to do all three without understanding what each one actually accomplishes. Each E serves a different purpose, attracts different audiences, and grows in different ways.
Education builds authority and long-term value. Entertainment drives immediate engagement and shareability. Engagement creates community and loyalty.
When you understand the Three Es, you can create content strategically. You know what you're trying to accomplish with each piece. You know what success looks like. You know how to measure results.
Let's break down each E, how to use them, and how to combine them for maximum impact.
Education: Teaching Something Valuable
Educational content teaches people something they want or need to know. It solves problems, answers questions, and provides value that lasts.
Educational content includes:
- How-to tutorials and guides
- Tips, tricks, and best practices
- Industry insights and analysis
- Skill development and training
- Reviews and comparisons
- Explanations of complex topics
Why Education Works:
Educational content has the longest shelf life. A good tutorial can drive traffic for years. People search for solutions, and if you provide them consistently, you become a trusted resource.
Education builds authority. When you teach something well, people see you as an expert. Authority leads to trust. Trust leads to loyalty. Loyalty leads to community.
Educational content is highly searchable. People actively look for solutions to their problems. If your content solves those problems, search engines will find it and recommend it.
The Challenge with Education:
Educational content often grows slowly. It's not immediately viral or shareable like entertainment. It requires patience and consistency.
Educational content can be dry if not presented well. Pure information without personality or engagement can lose viewers quickly.
Educational content requires expertise. You need to actually know what you're talking about. Fake expertise gets exposed quickly.
How to Create Better Educational Content:
- Start with real problems your audience faces
- Break complex topics into digestible steps
- Use examples and demonstrations
- Add your personality and perspective
- Make it actionable, not just theoretical
- Follow up with advanced content for those who want more
Educational content is an investment. It takes time to pay off, but when it does, it pays off for years.
Entertainment: Making People Feel Good
Entertainment content makes people laugh, smile, or feel something positive. It's content people consume for fun, not necessarily to learn something specific.
Entertainment content includes:
- Comedy and humor
- Gaming and reactions
- Storytelling and narratives
- Music and performances
- Challenges and experiments
- Personality-driven content
Why Entertainment Works:
Entertainment gets immediate engagement. People share funny videos. They clip great moments. They tag their friends. Entertainment content spreads naturally.
Entertainment builds emotional connections. When you make someone laugh or feel good, they associate those positive emotions with you. Emotional connections are stronger than logical ones.
Entertainment is highly rewatchable. People will watch their favorite funny moments multiple times. They'll show them to friends. They'll reference them in conversations.
The Challenge with Entertainment:
Entertainment can be hit-or-miss. What's funny to one person might not be funny to another. Humor is subjective and cultural.
Entertainment often has a short shelf life. A funny video might go viral for a week, then disappear. It's harder to build long-term value with pure entertainment.
Entertainment can become a trap. If people only see you as funny, it's hard to branch out into other types of content. You become pigeonholed.
How to Create Better Entertainment Content:
- Understand your audience's sense of humor
- Be authentic to your personality
- Don't force jokes or try too hard
- Use timing and pacing effectively
- React genuinely to situations
- Find the fun in whatever you're doing
Entertainment is about connection. The goal isn't just to be funny; it's to create moments people want to share and remember.
Engagement: Building Community and Connection
Engagement content creates interaction between you and your audience, and among your audience members. It builds community and makes people feel heard and valued.
Engagement content includes:
- Q&A sessions and AMAs
- Community discussions and polls
- Live streams and real-time interaction
- Personal stories and behind-the-scenes content
- Collaborative content with viewers
- Response videos and community highlights
Why Engagement Works:
Engagement creates the strongest bonds. When people feel heard and seen, they become invested in your success. They don't just watch your content; they become part of your community.
Engagement provides direct feedback. You learn what your audience wants, what they struggle with, and what they care about. This information helps you create better content.
Engagement builds loyalty. People who feel connected to you personally are more likely to stick around through algorithm changes, platform shifts, and content experiments.
The Challenge with Engagement:
Engagement requires time and energy. Responding to comments, hosting live streams, and building community takes work beyond just creating content.
Engagement can be overwhelming as you grow. What works with 100 viewers might not scale to 10,000. You need systems and boundaries.
Engagement can become drama. When you interact directly with your audience, conflicts and misunderstandings can happen publicly.
How to Create Better Engagement Content:
- Ask genuine questions and listen to answers
- Share personal stories and experiences
- Respond to comments and messages regularly
- Create content based on community feedback
- Host live sessions where people can interact in real-time
- Acknowledge your regular viewers and supporters
Engagement is about relationship building. The goal is to create a community where people feel valued and connected.
Combining the Three Es
The magic happens when you combine Education, Entertainment, and Engagement. The best content creators find ways to teach something valuable while being entertaining and building community connections.
Here's how to blend the Three Es:
Educational + Entertainment:
- Make tutorials funny and engaging
- Use storytelling to explain complex concepts
- Add personality and humor to informational content
- Use entertaining examples to illustrate points
Educational + Engagement:
- Ask questions during tutorials
- Respond to viewer questions with educational content
- Create content based on community problems
- Host educational Q&A sessions
Entertainment + Engagement:
- React to community submissions
- Play games with viewers
- Share funny stories from your life
- Create inside jokes and community memes
All Three Together:
- Host live streams where you teach something while being entertaining and interacting with chat
- Create tutorial series with personality and community involvement
- Do educational content that's fun and responds to viewer requests
The key is to start with one E and gradually add the others. Don't try to do everything at once. Master education first, then add entertainment. Or start with entertainment and add educational value. Or begin with engagement and build from there.
When all three work together, you achieve the strongest outcome: immediate visibility, long-term relevance, and a loyal community.
Managing Your Expectations
The most important lesson is to know which E you are serving before you create a video. Education grows slowly, but builds lasting value.
Entertainment grows quickly, but the results taper off.
Engagement strengthens your community and improves algorithm performance.
Content creation is not about instant success. It is a long game. By setting realistic expectations, you avoid burnout and frustration. By combining the Three Es strategically, you create content that attracts attention, provides long-term value, and builds a thriving community.
Chase value, not just views. When you educate, entertain, and engage, you do more than grow an audience. You build a community that endures.