Blog Post

In today’s digital landscape, content marketing has become an essential strategy for businesses to attract, engage, and retain customers. Most organizations already possess a wealth of marketing content, such as market research, white papers, presentations, speeches, articles, videos, photos, and graphics, but effectively leveraging this content requires a well-thought-out strategy.

Creating content isn’t just about publishing blogs and social media posts. The key to successful content marketing lies in understanding the value of what you already have and transforming it into resources that meet your audience’s needs. In this article, we will explore how to maximize your existing content, create a relevant content plan, and ensure it resonates with your target audience.

1. Repurposing Existing Content

One of the most valuable assets a business already possesses is its existing content. The content could be anything from research reports to product brochures, to customer service FAQs, speeches, or even old blog posts. Repurposing this content allows you to extract more value from it, while saving time and effort in creating new material from scratch.

For instance, if your CEO has written a book or has delivered a speech, these can be converted into numerous forms of engaging content:

• Book Reviews: These can offer insights on leadership, business practices, or industry trends, and can be shared via blogs or social media posts.
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): If your customer service team frequently answers the same questions, these can be repackaged into “10 Most Common Questions” or “10 Tips to Solve Your Problem” articles or video snippets.
• Speeches: If your CEO or key team members have given speeches, these can be recorded, edited, and turned into bite-sized clips for social media.
• Slide Decks: PowerPoint presentations or webinars can be uploaded to platforms like SlideShare or even repurposed into visual posts for social media.

Repurposing not only saves time but ensures that valuable insights reach your audience in different formats, enhancing their engagement with your brand.

While creating content, understanding what your audience needs is crucial. Content should be driven by your customers’ pain points, desires, and questions. The first step is to gather data and insights into what your audience is searching for, reading, and engaging with. You can use social media listening tools or analytics from your website and social media accounts to gather this information.

However, customers may not always know what they need, especially when it comes to innovative products or services. In these cases, businesses must be creative in anticipating their future needs and introducing them to potential solutions.

For example, if you sell a complex product like software, creating tutorials, guides, and case studies that show the customer how the product can solve their problems will prove invaluable. It’s also essential to craft content that not only educates but also highlights how your product or service enhances their lives in a way they might not have imagined yet.

Once you’ve identified the type of content that aligns with your customers’ needs, it’s essential to create a content plan and calendar. Without a clear plan, your content efforts can quickly become disorganized, which may lead to inconsistent delivery and missed opportunities.

A content calendar helps in planning content ahead of time, ensuring that you deliver fresh and relevant content consistently. Here’s how to approach it:

• Define Your Goals: Whether it’s increasing brand awareness, generating leads, or driving sales, identify your goals and align your content with them.
• Identify Content Types: Based on your goals, decide what type of content works best – blogs, infographics, videos, social media posts, or podcasts.
• Set Publishing Frequency: Determine how often you want to publish content (daily, weekly, monthly) and stick to it. Consistency is key.
• Track and Evaluate: Set metrics to measure the success of your content. This could include engagement rates, website traffic, or conversion rates.

Having a content calendar not only streamlines content creation but also allows you to stay ahead of important events, seasonal trends, or launches.

With the ever-growing volume of content being produced online, content shock – a term coined by Mark Schaefer – refers to the point at which the sheer amount of content being created overwhelms consumers, leaving them uninterested or disengaged.

To avoid content shock, focus on quality over quantity. Don’t just publish for the sake of publishing. Instead, ensure that every piece of content you produce adds value to your audience. Use tools like Google Trends or BuzzSumo to stay on top of trending topics, ensuring your content remains relevant and timely.

Personalization also plays a significant role in avoiding content shock. By delivering content that resonates with the audience’s specific needs and preferences, you increase the chances of engagement and avoid overwhelming them with irrelevant information.

Being creative with your content is essential, but relevance is even more important. While it’s easy to get caught up in exciting new content formats and creative ideas, if the content doesn’t meet the needs or interests of your target audience, it will fall flat.

Creativity should enhance the message, not distract from it. For example, an informative guide can be made interactive through quizzes or assessment tools, or a blog post can be turned into a video. Similarly, using creative formats like infographics or animated explainer videos can make complex information easier to digest.

But remember, always ensure that creativity complements the value your content brings to the customer. If you’re not solving a problem or offering something useful, your audience will quickly lose interest.

Content marketing is about more than just filling up a blog or posting on social media. It’s about understanding your customer’s needs, reusing existing content effectively, creating personalized experiences, and ensuring everything you produce adds value. A well-executed content strategy will increase engagement, drive sales, and enhance customer loyalty.

Repurposing content, creating a solid content calendar, and always prioritizing your audience’s needs are all crucial steps in building a sustainable content marketing strategy. By doing so, you’ll not only stay ahead of the competition but also create a long-lasting relationship with your customers.

Be creative but relevant – always align your content with customer needs.

Repurpose existing content to maximize its potential and reach.

Create a content plan and calendar to stay consistent.

Avoid content shock by focusing on quality over quantity.