As anyone executing an inbound marketing strategy knows, sticking to a regular content posting schedule is key to generating traffic to your company’s website. However, there will always be those days where you find yourself staring at a blank word document trying to figure out what kind of content to produce. Not only that, as industry trends change you’re expected to produce more content for more inbound marketing channels.
So where are you going to find ideas for all this new content? Lucky for you, there is always the option to recycle something from the past into new content. This evergreen, or timeless, content usually consists of tips, lists, how-tos, or reviews and is easy to repurpose on those days you just can’t manage any new ideas.
Before you get started on repurposing old content make sure the content you’re about to recycle is genuinely evergreen. This means, no news articles, holiday or seasonal content, content focused on trends, or content that is based heavily on statistics or studies. Content with data that is likely to have changed will not be relatable or credible to your audience.
While you don’t want to repost an old blog about industry trends from 2008, you want the evergreen content you recycle to be presented with current trends in mind. This means, make sure your recycled content is engaging and isn’t just a text post. Rather than letting your audience know you’re recycling stale content, freshen it up a little bit by presenting it on a new medium.
Here are two inbound marketing channels to use recycled content:
Social Media
No one could have predicted how important social media would become, not only for consumers, but for B2C and B2B businesses as well. Today, social media is often the first contact a prospective client has with a company. Not only that, recent search algorithm changes have made it even more important for businesses to invest in social media marketing if they want to stay relevant in search results.
So what exactly are you supposed to post on these networks once you’re on them? One way to fill the space on your timeline or wall is to post repurposed evergreen content. However, when using social media, it’s imperative that you present this information in an engaging manner (pictures, videos, infographics, etc) if you want your message to get across.
One way to make your content more engaging is to turn it into an infographic. Infographics are great for showing what services your business offers, basic how-tos, and industry tips. If you’re a plumber, use an infographic to show how to prevent drain clogs. If you’re an ecommerce business, show customers how your business saves them time and money over your competitors.
Video
As online video consumption continues to soar, now is a great time to invest in video content for your business. While you can certainly post video on social media, it should be treated as a separate inbound marketing channel as it's not limited to social media.
When you’re first starting out with video, it can be a daunting task to figure out how you’re going to make interesting and engaging content. Fortunately, evergreen content is perfect for video.
Repurposing your old content into video shouldn’t be intimidating. When searching for how-tos or reviews online, video content is certainly more engaging than reading a 10-step blog post. Take advantage of this by presenting your how-tos, product reviews, as well as tips and tricks in video format.
If you’re in the DIY business, a short video can be used to show customers how to solve basic storage problems or offer tips for how to repaint a piece of furniture. In the SaaS industry, videos can be incredibly helpful tools for troubleshooting software issues.
As your inbound marketing strategy continues to change and adapt to new trends, finding content to fill these new channels shouldn’t be difficult.
For more information about how social media and inbound marketing can improve the success of your business, contact us today.
