The Bottleneck Podcast Rory, Elfried and Timothy on the future for influencers
Oct 6, 2025
Timothy Armoo, founder of Fanbytes and Irrational Media, shares insights on the evolving landscape of influencer marketing. He discusses how the focus has shifted from personalities to niche content creators, particularly those aged 16-24 on TikTok. Timothy emphasizes the importance of community-driven growth and trust, while also exploring the power of niche audiences. The conversation touches on innovative marketing strategies, the art of storytelling, and why brands should aspire to become influencers themselves.
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Royalties From A Banality
- Rory recounts how banal background tunes on TV paid composers huge royalties because payment was by airtime, not audience size.
- He uses this to highlight how value and reward often attach to bottlenecks and visibility rather than pure utility.
From Fanbytes To Niche Media
- Timothy describes founding Fanbytes at 21 and growing it to serve major brands before selling it to Brainlabs.
- He then founded Irrational Media to buy and scale hyper-niche passion properties like horoscopes and knitting.
Passionate Niches Beat Broad Reach
- Timothy argues niche passionate communities pay far more because lifetime value per user is higher.
- He built Irrational Media on the thesis that passionate, identity-linked niches outperform broad 'sexy' brands.
