Do you want to learn how to get into content creation?
As someone who wrote over 500,000 words worth of content in 2020, I’ve learned a thing or two about producing high-quality content without wasting time.
That’s why I’ve put together these 7 helpful tips on how you can get into content marketing in a way that’s as valuable as it is sustainable.
Ready to get started? Let’s dive straight into the list…
This might seem like an obvious one, but you should know the type of content that you produce before you even get started.
You would be surprised how many people make this mistake and then find themselves exhausted because they’re working on a topic or format that doesn’t appeal to them at all.
To avoid wasting your time, start by brainstorming the type of content that you would enjoy producing.
Here are a few types of content that are great starting points:
These types of content are the most frequently used, though there are others. You should choose one or two types of content that you feel confident in creating rather than trying everything all at once.
The good news is that once you have a successful piece of content, it’s easy to repurpose it into other areas.
Once you have a successful blog up and running, for example, you can easily transform those posts into podcast episodes without extra brainstorming or research needed.
By starting small, you’ll be able to confidently expand your content marketing strategy over time.
Creating a content calendar will help you to better manage your time and stay organized.
You should always start by listing all of the topics that you want to cover for the month, then adding in posts every week as needed.
Ideally, this process is something that can be automated so it’s not taking up too much of your time.
You can also supplement your calendar with a content marketing system or other tools to help you stay organized and keep track of deadlines.
If you’re wondering how to get into content creation, a content calendar might be one of the BIGGEST ways to set yourself up for success.
Understanding your audience is key to creating content that resonates with them.
This means doing research about what they’re interested in, who are their influencers on social media, and the types of questions that people ask when looking for information online.
It also includes understanding how you can provide value for each individual reader or subscriber by making your posts as personalized and specific to them as possible.
The best way to understand your audience is to create a buyer persona.
A buyer persona is a fictional representation of your ideal customer.
It’s someone who shares similar characteristics like age, income level, and hobbies to the people that you’re trying to reach.
This will help make it easier for you to create content that they’ll find interesting and helpful.
You can also use tools such as Google Analytics to see what content your audience is engaging with the most.
This will help you to create more of that type of content in the future and provide valuable information for others who are trying to do research on their own audiences.
It’s important to figure out what your goals are for each piece of content you produce.
For example, do you want the post or video to be educational? Do you want it share a personal story and connect with readers on an emotional level? Or are you hoping that it will provide value in some other way?
Figuring out your goals for each post will help you to write more content that resonates with readers’ needs and interests.
This is also one of the biggest mistakes I see content marketers make.
Yes, your content SHOULD provide value to your reader. But it should also bring something back to your business, right?
At the top of each piece of content, you should be clear on two questions:
Great content will fulfill both of those questions to ensure your content marketing strategy is strategically working for you.
This is one of the most important tips for content creation. It’s so easy to let your schedule fill up with work, meetings, and other obligations that you don’t have time left over for creating new pieces of content.
But this can be a huge mistake because by not making any more space in your day-to-day, you’ll never be able to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way.
It’s a good idea to block time in your calendar for content creation, and this should include any marketing or scheduling tasks related to content (including research, drafting blog posts, etc).
If it helps you to create a routine around when and how you’ll create content, you can also make sure that your calendar is set up to remind you of major deadlines.
This is also an important tip for content creation. It’s easy to put off updating old posts because you’re either not sure how or you have other pressing items on your agenda.
But this can be a huge mistake, especially if the post has been updated with new information.
In fact, it might even make sense to update outdated posts before you publish new ones because your audience is more likely to share the updated content on social media.
You should also block time in your calendar for updating old posts, and this should include any marketing or scheduling tasks related to updates (including research, drafting blog posts, etc).
If it helps you to create a routine around when and how you’ll update posts, you can also make sure that your calendar is set up to remind you of major deadlines.
This may be the most crucial tip for content creation.
It’s so tempting to jump on a new trend or industry and get excited about it. But that excitement can fade, which means you’re less likely to post consistently in those channels (or even worse – you’ll forget altogether).
Instead of jumping from one topic or platform to the next, make sure you keep your content fresh by creating consistently in a few channels.
This way, you’re more likely to have an engaged audience and get consistent results from your efforts.
And that’s it for today! These have been 7 tips on how to get started with content marketing.
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