Content Curation is one of the greatest gifts the Internet has bestowed. No longer do we need to troll through dusty tomes or scroll microfiche – all the information we want is at our fingertips. Instantly. (Including the definition of microfiche, just in case…)
Compiling relevant information and using it to your advantage – searching, reading, commenting and sharing is what we refer to as content curation. When done well, it can be your brand’s best friend. Curation allows you to share your insights and create a solid stream of thought leadership without spending the time to create a whole new article or post. In other words, you’re not reinventing the wheel. Smart, right?
So how do you turn this marketing tactic into a valuable social media and marketing tool for your business? The answer is simple. Find an article, breaking news or social media post of interest. Add a sentence (or two) speaking to what you like about it and, more importantly, why it is relevant to you and your target audience. Re-post. And give credit where credit is due. No one likes plagiarism – make sure you cite the original post and the author.
Not only can curation save you time and resources, it can also be a terrific marketing tool for your original content. When others re-post your articles or blog posts, it can be an enormous boost to your brand – from search engine and social media rankings to validating your brand’s platform of expertise.
Here’s an example of terrific content curation on Facebook:
By adding a personal opinion, adding a call to action and re-posting an already clever article, this group is providing valuable (and fun) information to their fans that is relevant, timely and saves them the effort of starting from square one. Well done.
But don’t fake it. There are plenty of news aggregation sites for everything under the sun. These sites can be a good starting point to find relevant articles, but good content curation requires a thoughtful approach. Reading, adding a comment to why the article is applicable and adding a call to action is key to effective curation. Anyone can re-post. Cultivating thought leadership and brand awareness takes effort.
There are a number of tools out there to help with content curation if you have the budget – from all-in-one solutions like curata.com, to other content aggregating tools like Scoop.it and NetVibes.com. PR Daily offers a well-informed list here.
Like any other marketing program, curation requires both strategy and adequate planning. If you have the talent and resources to create your own content you need to continue this path, ideally spending 70 percent of your time curating good content and 30 percent authoring original content.
Even better, you can start curating content anytime – all it takes is some intelligent searching and you are on your way. What are you waiting for? Google!
If you think you could use some help with content marketing, the RenderTribe team is here to help.
