Do you repurpose content?

Believe it or not, everyone does it. You should be too.

Whether you’ve got piles relevant existing content to re-purpose, or you’re starting with ideas built from scratch, you need to have a content strategy and stick within the parameters of that plan.

When developing your strategy, be very clear on the following:

1. Your Business goals
2. Your Resources, both internal and external
3. Target Audience for your platform or campaign
4. Audience Motivators (what will get them to act)
5. Audience Needs (do they need what you offer)

First, do an audit of all available materials. You have probably already written tons of great content, and you just need to apply it (or reapply it) in some unique way. Whether you are creating something new, or using existing materials, ask yourself the following 8 questions:

• Does it speak to our target? This is critical. If the answer is no, then don’t proceed.
• Has this content been used somewhere before? If yes, was it effective? If no, does it fit an unmet demand in some way?
• Is it still relevant? i.e. no dated pop culture references or business suggestions that are antiquated.
• If you have shown this content before, have you waited long enough to show it again? You do not want to be looping your materials over and over again, in short periods of time, where you develop a reputation for dumping noise on your readers.
• Does this content support your business goals? It must support at least one business goal or it is wasting time
• Does this content support your audience’s needs? If they answer is “I don’t know”, then you don’t know your target well enough and should take a step back to refine your research and strategy.
• Is this the right format and platform for your message? This is an opportunity to revamp or repurpose, as needed.  Maybe you want to turn a blog post into a white paper, or a video into a webinar?
• What else could this audience use? This will come from research, listening to your consumers, and understanding your market. You are the expert, so you  know this better than anyone.

Can you think of anything we’ve forgotten? Let us know.