As a content marketer, I will be the first to admit that it is not always easy to generate content marketing ideas.
There are so many factors that go into choosing the content you want to put out there and businesses should be picky. At least 70% of marketers use content as part of their overall strategy and content marketing generates three times the leads.
You have to be strategic about what content you publish since it tends to be a customer or client’s first impression of your business. Poor content can waste space, miss the mark on brand portrayal or worse, completely alienate your target audience.
The good news is that there are plenty of solid content marketing options out there. These are some of the top resources I use for generating content.
Industry News and Trends
Customers and clients gravitate toward relevant content that appeals to their needs, so there’s no better way to address that than to utilize content from industry sources like news outlets, professional networking organizations or trade publications.
You could share these posts on your feeds as-is, but you’ll add more value to your business by sharing your insights through thought leadership pieces like blogs, podcasts, case studies, whitepapers, webinars and more. Thought leadership is a great opportunity to stay relevant on industry topics, be seen as a leader in your industry and generate interest in your company. Plus, it can improve SEO efforts when using relevant keywords and internal links.
National Days Calendar
Ever wonder where holidays like National Siblings Day, National Sticker Day and National Pretzel Day come from? You can thank National Day Calendar, which started in 2013, for promoting these celebrations and more all year long.
I started using this calendar for content ideas probably within a year of this website launching, having no idea it would become what it is today. You can find just about any holiday you can think of, lasting anywhere from a day to a month. Depending on the business, it can be one of your most utilized resources for ideas because there are so many national days that can be applicable to your products or services.
Some of these holidays may seem absurd, but many bring awareness to diseases, essential workers and industries. It’s an essential source for creating a content strategy.
If you’re curious to learn more about the team behind the website, this segment from CBS Sunday Morning is worth the watch.
Customers
Some of the most authentic and engaging pieces of content come from customers, also known as user-generated content (UGC). While some brands still shy away from it, it’s becoming a more accepted form of content for businesses to share.
I am a firm believer in UGC because it’s free publicity, it allows you to reach more than just your followers and it’s not as self-promoting as sharing your own content. My rule of thumb is for UGC to be a third of your content, but it could be more or less depending on the business.
There are several ways you can approach sharing your client’s or customer’s content. If it’s posted on social, you can reshare their post or add your own caption to it if they aren’t a private account. If the content is from another source or you want to share the social post directly from your account, tag the customer or client in the post through that social channel or use their name. If you do this, make sure to get their permission to share the content and if they are ok with being tagged. Many people keep their accounts private and don’t want anything shared, especially if the content has children.
Of course, use your best judgment before determining if it makes sense to share the content, but typically, this content is a win-win for businesses and customers. Customers and clients typically like their posts highlighted and shared and their followers get a kick out of it too. And it’s an easy way for businesses to build brand awareness and customer loyalty.
Employees
Employees at your company can be a great resource for content in two ways. One, they can be part of the content itself as a thought leader or highlighting company culture. And two, they can generate ideas that appeal to your customers and clients.
Not every employee has an innate understanding of your audience like your sales team or client services teams. But, when you give them opportunities to share their input or ideas, you may discover something you overlooked or hadn’t thought of yet.
These are just some of the resources you can use to find marketing content ideas, but sometimes, it’s nice to have someone who can help you pull it all together. Contact me today to see how I can help you develop your marketing plan, create a content calendar, generate content and more.
AFJ Digital 