Content Marketing Ideas

Creating Curated Content for Social Media, Email and Your Blog

April 20, 2014 By Linda Dessau

Welcome to the third and final post in a series about content curation. First we got started by organizing topics and the people sharing about those topics, then we looked at how to quickly share other people’s content with your own networks.

In the second post I noted the importance of adding your own commentary to what you’re sharing. This reminds readers of your expertise in the topic and your connection to the industry.

In this post we’ll discuss four types of content you can create by adding your own slant to someone else’s material.

1. Curated social media updates

There are tools that make it quick and easy to share content with your networks as soon as you find it (HootSuite, Buffer and the LinkedIn bookmarklet).

You may also choose to manually create new social media updates when you have a link to share. Here are some things to keep in mind when you do:

a) Use the permalink. Whether you’re recommending a blog post, article, video, social media update or another online resource, always be sure you’re using the permalink (permanent link) for the specific item, rather than the general site address. A permalink looks like this: https://www.contentmasteryguide.com/2014/03/mastering-social-media.html, while a general address looks like this: https://www.contentmasteryguide.com/blog.

b) Super-size your photos on Facebook and Google+ (*see UPDATE below). You may have noticed on these sites that some images show up full-sized and glorious, while others are displayed as a tiny thumbnail. To super-size a photo on Facebook or Google+, you must add your photo to the status update first.

Facebook share window — Before you type your comment and link, upload your photo.

c) Super-size with Buffer. Even when it’s not your post or image, you can still super-size your photo. With the Buffer browser extension, you can super-size your photos by right-clicking on a photo from the page you want to share. Select, “Buffer this image,” customize the text with your own commentary, and schedule or post the update. Voilà!

*UPDATE (September 13, 2014): Facebook is now giving more visibility to posts that contain links with thumbnail images, versus those with uploaded photos (they consider that “click-baiting“). So it’s best to put your link directly into the status update box so just the small thumbnail image is displayed.

2. Curated newsletters

Compared with social media, many marketing professionals consider email a more intimate and direct tool for reaching your audience and deepening your relationship. If you’re not sure what to include in an email newsletter, consider curated content.

a) Be a trusted filter. Mari Smith is the author of The New Relationship Marketing and Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day. In her weekly newsletter The Social Scoop, she offers her top three recommendations for blog posts about social media marketing. Since she reads and shares dozens of quality links every week, her readers anticipate and appreciate seeing which three she’ll choose, and we trust they’ll be highly useful.

b) Offer other ways to connect. If readers are enjoying the links you share, remind them to follow you on social media and on your blog to see more of the same.

c) Remember the marketing part of email marketing. Along with the valuable information you’re sharing from others, remind your readers what your company has to offer. Here are some tips about how blogging and email work together.

3. Personal messages with curated content

You know that it’s important to stay in touch with key contacts like prospective customers, referral sources and vendors, yet these people aren’t always on your newsletter list. How do you keep it all straight, and what do you say when you follow up? Curated content can help.

a) Follow up. If there’s an article you’ve read recently that relates to a recent conversation at a networking event or other meeting, send it along with a brief note explaining why you think it will be useful.

b) As it happens. As you’re browsing content in your day-to-day travels, keep your contacts in the back of your mind, along with any specific concerns you discussed. When you find something relevant, you can paste the permalink into an email, or you can share with individual connections when you find something via LinkedIn, Facebook or Google+. On mobile browsers, look for the option to share or send a link directly by email.

c) Set a schedule. Use a customer relationship management (CRM) system, your calendar or a task management system like Wunderlist to remind yourself to keep in touch. Browse the links you’ve shared recently and consider what this individual would find most helpful and relevant.

4. Curated blog posts

In between your own original posts, you may want to offer your blog readers additional insights and perspectives from other experts in your field, or related fields. This is a great way to keep your content flowing consistently, build and deepen relationships with industry leaders, and learn new ideas.

Experiment with these different styles of curated blog posts:

a) Theme post. This is the method I recommend and implement for my content curation clients. Browse the content you’ve shared in the past week or two, and look for a common theme that is aligned with your core content categories. Add an introduction to the theme, and say a few words about each link, including a brief pertinent quote.

b) Weekly or monthly round ups. Present a list of links with a brief description of each.

c) Embedded social media posts. For more interactivity and visual interest, embed one or several social media updates right into your post. You can do this with tweets, Facebook updates, YouTube and Vine videos, Google+ posts and others. Preface each with your own commentary and description.

While I’m still biased towards creating your own high-quality content, sharing other people’s content helps you round out your offerings and keep showing up where your contacts will see you.

Want help with your content curation? Learn more about our content curation services.

Twitter Tips from Inc.com

October 29, 2012 By Linda Dessau

Thanks to Jeff Korhan for recently posting a link to an Inc.com article, 10 Things You Should Tweet, and to Jon Gelberg for writing the article. It’s one of the best summaries I’ve seen for how to use Twitter to promote your business online.

If you’re not sure what you should be writing in your business’s Twitter updates, check out the article now! Then please come back because I have a few other thoughts for you.

How’s your balance?

On a recent webinar about blog planning, I talked about the balance between networking and marketing when you’re using social media. Too much networking without any promotion, and people won’t know how or when to refer business to you. Too much marketing without any relationship building, and no one will want to go near you.

In another post on Inc.com Hollis Thomases lists 11 Things to Tweet When You Have Nothing to Say, and she puts posting your own content at the bottom as #11.

She mentions the 80/20 rule, which is that 80% of your social media messages should be about other people (I would include connection/conversation in that portion) or showcasing other people’s work, while 20% should be presenting your own content. Nichole Kelly from SME Digital makes the same recommendation in a recent interview.

New! Want help finding great content to share in your Twitter stream? Check out our content curation services!

Your Twitter stream is another website

Like it or not, the minute you set up a Twitter profile, you’ve got another piece of online real estate to look after. A quick glance at your profile page will show someone a lot about how you’re using Twitter, and your balance between networking and marketing.

I suggest you monitor your Twitter page (http://twitter.com/yourTwittername). Anytime you notice that you’re veering over the 80/20 line, make an effort to rebalance the scale.

You’ve only got 140 characters to make an impression on Twitter. Use them wisely and have fun!

P.S. Please connect with me on Twitter @lindadessau.

Getting to Know Your Clients – Just One of the Benefits of Blogging [Infographic]

April 2, 2012 By Linda Dessau

In their comprehensive and well-researched infographic (shared with permission), UK-based company Content+ share that 70% of consumers prefer getting to know a company via articles rather than ads.

It makes sense when you consider the alternative, as I shared in a previous post about why to write an article, not an ad. Ads can feel intrusive and come at us on their timeline, not ours. Information, on the other hand, is something we actively seek out.

Making it easier to get to know your prospective clients is just one of the many benefits of blogging. I’ve been tweeting about some of the others lately:

Which one of these benefits makes the most sense to you? If you’re already blogging, which benefit do you see happening in your own business? If you’re not blogging yet, which benefit is most appealing? Add your comments below or tweet your answer.

Blog Readers Are Your Friends, But…

January 18, 2012 By Linda Dessau

My definition of friend has changed from spending so much time online. I have many friends that I've never met in person, and probably never will. Some friendships began with a five-minute Twitter exchange; others were sparked in person and then deepened online.

I've written before about how you want to engage your blog reader as if you're already friends. After all, even as a brand new reader, that person has still come from somewhere.

Maybe they found you on Google, "Hey, my friend Google the search engine thought I should meet you because I'm looking for…" If they've come via a link on social media, the introduction was even warmer and more meaningful.

But presuming too much intimacy can backfire – both on your blog and on the popular business networking site, LinkedIn.

How to get ignored on LinkedIn

"______ (name) has indicated you are a Friend and would like to add you to his/her professional network."

There's something about that phrase that bothers me, and I click the "Ignore" button when I receive these types of LinkedIn invitations. Unless the person includes a note about how we're "friends." (I used to write back and ask them, but it became too time consuming.)

On LinkedIn, if you can't honestly say that you know someone via work, school or another institution, you have two other options other than "Friend": (a) you can say you don't know the person or (b) you can click "Other" and include a note about why you'd like to connect.

The latter option is what I always choose. You have to enter the person's email address, but don't worry, it's not a test; it just helps LinkedIn deliver your message.

Remind your blog readers why they like you

Blog readers might also ignore your advances if you get too close, too soon. While you want to take a friendly approach, keep in mind that even if they've "met" you once or twice, they may not remember whether or not they liked you.

That's why it's so important to be consistent with your language and branding – it helps remind people who you are and what they liked about you. So you're not just presuming intimacy; you're backing it up.

Keep earning your friendships

Someone recently recommended that I change this phrase in the Wellness Blogs submission guidelines: "Pretend you're chatting with a good friend who came for your help and expertise." He said people wouldn't give the same level of advice to a friend. I disagreed, and kept the phrase as is. What do you think?

This reminded me of an important point, though. Keep making the effort to impress and deliver value to your blog readers. Don't skimp on details or explanations because you assume people read them in a previous post – they may not have.

How do you define friendship these days? Do you think people throw around the word too liberally? Do you consider your blog readers to be friends? How does that affect your approach to writing?