13 Quick and Easy Ways to Create Top-Of-Mind Awareness by Repurposing Content on the Digital Platforms.
In Chapter 30 of my book, “The Ultimate Guide to Social Media for Business Owners, Professionals, and Entrepreneurs,” I shared 13 ways you can save time by creating original content once, and then repurposing that content across the social media platforms. It’s my pleasure to share this chapter (slightly modified) here with you. Enjoy!
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I believe social media is all about sharing good content, helping others, and building relationships. Building a well-known brand, bringing in new clients and customers, and increasing your income come from engaging, caring and providing value.
My general rule is that only 20% of my posts on social media are about my law firm or me. The other 80% are focused on sharing valuable tips, helping others, and curating good third party content that I believe will be useful to my audience.
Regardless of what kind of posts I’m publishing, I always try to share part or all of each post on as many different relevant platforms as possible. This allows me to add value to more people than just posting in one place and, it also helps me get the most amount of exposure for my brand, in the least amount of time. If you’re like me, protecting my time is always an important goal.
Several Initial Thoughts
Before we get started, remember that in today’s digital world, we’re all media companies. Having a digital presence is critically important. Producing, sharing useful content, and engaging with others is mandatory to build your brand and long-term success.
It’s also important to understand and appreciate the fact that while content is king, context and personality are everything. Each platform is different (some more than others), so care must be taken to post and share the right content, in the right way, to the right platforms.
Use the approaches shared in my book to help you create helpful and engaging content. Feel free to duplicate the process I share below to save time and expand your sphere of influence by repurposing quality content quickly, easily and on as many different relevant platforms as possible.
Please note that while I’ll be using a website or blog post as an example of the original content that is being repurposed, the same approach applies if your original content is a video, podcast, or any other kind of content that can be read, listened to, or viewed on social media.
Step #1: Website and Blog
Create and share personal and professional news, updates or other helpful content in a properly written blog post. Once again, for purposes of this post, your original content may be a video on YouTube, a post on Facebook, or even a podcast. The same approach applies.
Use effective headings and appropriate keywords. Use an emotional story format and write in your own voice. Try to avoid professional and industry-specific jargon if possible. Make the post interesting and easy to read. Increase interaction by always including a picture, graphic or video.
If you’re creating social media content like all the other business owners and professionals out there, then you’re probably doing things the wrong way. Be yourself and unique. Share your art. Use the communication tips I share in the 19 chapters found in the third section of my book (“Part Three: Social Media Communication and Success Tips”) to stand out, make your point, and get people to take action.
By the way, if you don’t have a quality website or blog, then get this done. This needs to be a high priority. Everyone is going mobile (smartphones and tablets) so make sure your site is mobile responsive (no exceptions). For more tips and details, see Thomas Wallin’s chapter on websites and chapters by Chris Brogan and Nick Rishwain of Experts.com on blogging.
Step #2: Twitter
Share the catchy caption or heading of the social media content you just created, together with a short descriptive sentence, on Twitter. Include a link back to your original blog post. Tag people or companies you referenced in the original post and use one or more relevant hashtags.
Pictures attract attention and create more engagement. As such, add the image you used in your initial content to your tweet. If you don’t have a picture, use one of the free or inexpensive paid online services to grab an image that relates to your story. Better yet, take and use your own picture that relates to the original content.
One of my favorite ways to create a picture or video with my tweet is to capture a picture or clip of a video (screenshot) from my blog post using my computer shortcut (Shift-Command-4) or QuickTimePlayer on a Mac, use “Jing” or SnagIt by TechSmith.