Make better, more shareable content with pre-launch ‘Listicles’

Everyone loves listicles, but maybe there’s a better, faster, more consistent way to make them. That’s the pain point that Scott Stedman, cofounder of the Northside Media Group, articulated for us Monday when he described his motivation for creating his new startup, Listicles. We saw him at the Northside Media Group’s November Meetup on “Content,” which he MC’ed.

Listicles is a new platform that Stedman built with Mike Caprio, a developer and entrepreneur here whom we’ve known since we first wrote about fiber (or lack thereof) in New York City.

The site is still in alpha. You can sign up, but you won’t get in immediately.

The launch comes as content marketing grows: on the web, everyone is a publisher able to grow audience with content that provides value. The next phase for Listicles will be to allow readers to modify them.

So, say one of your friends posts, “Seven Marvel Superheros That Could Definitely Kick Batman’s Ass.” You think it’s crazy that she put Captain America at No. 2 and Shang Chi at No. 3, when obviously Shang Chi is No. 2, right? (No one is going to argue that the top spot on that list belongs to Daredevil.)

Listicles will let you take that list and make your own version, either moving items around or swapping items out entirely. It’s like GitHub forking for opinion-based copy, aiming to build some virality.

We’ve applied for a spot. When we get in, we’ll make one and post it here. Let us know if there’s something you’d like to see us do. We’re leaning toward “Top 6 Startups Enabling This Reporter Not To Leave His Apartment Again Until March.”