With the release of my book Content Rules, I know I’m going to get asked a lot more to come in and consult with companies. They’ll want me to help them create marketing campaigns that involve a detailed content strategy for them. I’ve been doing it for years as part of other agencies and love doing it now as a freelancer.
Since this is what I do for a living, I of course don’t mind the new work, but I also am a firm believer in giving everyone the tools to do this on their own. It is why Ann Handley and I wrote the book and why I’m going to share a simple formula to get you going on the path to success with content.
As we lay out in the book, content is not something that you should be scared of. When asked to define “content”, my personal definition is:
Content is anything you create and share to help tell your story to the world.
It honestly is that simple and no matter if you are a rock band, church group, non profit, individual or a large global company, the tools and opportunities are the same for everyone.
Today, stop putting it off and at a minimum do the following four things.
1. Stop and look at what content you currently have
This could product brochures, video clips of your executives speaking, paper or electronic newsletters or even just stacks of photos. Make a simple list of content that you know you have right now even if you are not sure where it is or what you might do with it.
2. Reimagine, don’t recycle that content
If all you do is take old content and recycle it again on another social media platform, that doesn’t excite anyone. But, take some time and think of creative ways you can reimagine that content so that it sparks new interest. Your goal with every piece of content should be to give it wings so that people are excited enough by it to share it with others.
3. Create something new
Seth Godin talks about people being afraid to ship and I want you to not be afraid. Grab your video camera or sit down with a notebook at lunch and create something new. Not sure what to create? Don’t use that as an excuse. Look around your organization and what has been going on in the last week and create a piece of content about that. Share it on the platforms that are appropriate for you.
4. Repeat
And before some of you freak out and say it can’t be that easy, I’m telling you that it is. This circular approach needs to become an integrated part of your team’s duties. No matter how large or small you are, if you are not looking at what you already have, reimagining that and creating new content on an ongoing basis then you are in trouble.
Just like with a campfire, if you don’t keep adding fuel to it, it burns out. So does your content marketing. Once you’ve built a following, if you want to keep that audience engaged and involved with your business you have to keep providing for them or they will go elsewhere.
I of course dive into this much deeper in the book, but give this a try and let me know know how it works for you. Don’t forget that every journey begins with a single step.]]>
With the release of my book Content Rules, I know I’m going to get asked a lot more to come in and consult with companies. They’ll want me to help them create marketing campaigns that involve a detailed content strategy for them. I’ve been doing it for years as part of other agencies and love doing it now as a freelancer.
Since this is what I do for a living, I of course don’t mind the new work, but I also am a firm believer in giving everyone the tools to do this on their own. It is why Ann Handley and I wrote the book and why I’m going to share a simple formula to get you going on the path to success with content.
As we lay out in the book, content is not something that you should be scared of. When asked to define “content”, my personal definition is: