Content curation (not to be mistaken for creation) is when a brand will share or collect content from the web or other social media channels.
For several businesses, content marketing entails creating a large volume of material to produce, in a short period of time.
This can be a time-consuming and difficult process to remain creative within constantly.
That’s where content curation comes into play, it enables you to convert a large amount of existing information into usable content. You can cultivate a more personal connection with your audience by acquiring and being able to share topics that are relevant to them.
Why should brands utilize content curation?
It is much faster and more cost effective
Creating new posts essentially takes a bit of time, from research, to writing, to posting and evaluating engagement, the process of coming up with original content can be a lot of hard work.
When operating a marketing team for your brand, your team will find their task to be simpler, since they will not have to worry about producing solely unique material, and perhaps meeting deadlines will be quicker.
Recognizing industry trends and becoming a leader
The content curation process enables you to investigate and keep engaged with the latest industry trends.
This subtype of marketing is a fantastic tool to explore existing articles and information out there, to stay on top of the latest findings in your industry that you may not find through SEO.
Moreover, by doing so, you are able to then add your own opinions and thoughts on top of the content you share and overtime will be able to establish yourself as a thought leader within your industry and scope of work.
Allows you to determine what your audience is seeking
Publishing pre-existing content is an excellent method to evaluate topics, concepts, and gain knowledge on what content interests your audience (without having to do this first hand).
Perhaps there are certain topics of key interest to your audience, you can use this through content curation to then reciprocate that into your original content that you produce across social media channels.
Working alongide others through two-way endorsement
The other benefit of this marketing method, is that you are essentially promoting other creators.
Therefore making it a great strategy to get in touch and work alongside other experts within your industry.
Whether it’s other notable brands, or creatives, by sharing and giving credit to the original owner you can expand your network.
The ways in which this is possible is through backlinking or mentioning the original creator, sharing their post across social media and ensuring to tag them and also reaching out to the original publisher to consider collaborating how you both could tap into your audiences together on a project.
It is an avenue to explore that opens up many doors and widens your reach.
How can I measure the results?
As you’ve began implementing content curation as a strategy and sharing your posts, it is pivitol to actually measure the results to see what direction of content is worthwhile and intruiging to your audience.
- Social media: If you’re utilizing platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or other social channels then you will have to pay attention to your analytics such as the number of likes generated, comments and new follower growth.
- Blog posts: If you’ve decided to publish article findings on your own website, it’s important to see what posts readers are clicking on and how much traffic your website is creating. Additionally, its a good idea to look at the number of shares your articles receive.
How do I get started?
It is always ideal to blend a mixture of original and pre-existing content when scheduling your content.
The best way to start content curation is via determining the appropriate ratio of curated and authentic posts you want to put out there and stick to a pattern.
Deciphering different categories within your area of expertise and through trial and error finding what draws their attention the most is ideal.
You can then begin to expand your horizons to educate and spread awareness on topics that are new.
Ask yourself these questions:
What platforms does my audience use?
What topics perform better?
What times are they most active?
What are my competitors sharing?
All in all, content curation is a way to strenghten your narrative as a brand and boost your credibility.
It is a type of marketing that once you get the hang of, does not require a demanding number of hours to compile.
Furthermore, content curation is an added way to increase your visibility based on SEO algorithms and broaden your network within your industry.
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