Creating and Sharing Relevant Content

Okay, so you have figured out that being a part of the social media revolution is a really important thing for your business. That means that you have taken the time and made the effort to complete your social media profiles on those social media channels that are relevant for you. Now, what about the content?

The different approaches to relevant content online

Now that you have connected on social media and are interacting with your online connections as much as possible, it is time for you to identify, either write or curate, and share content with other people. It is one thing to share content that you think holds some value. However, it can be much more difficult at times to share content that is really relevant.

There is definitely a skill that is required when it comes to choosing content that has a great deal of relevancy for your target audience. That means that every piece of content that you choose to share is spot on for the other person. In order for you to actually accomplish that, you need to know your target audience intimately. Of course, that goes back to building a meaningful and enduring relationship. As you are probably well aware, the relationship is always (first and foremost) at the heart of your  success.

Your content is the tool that you use to successfully build relationships.

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Content really is king! At this point, you may be wondering exactly how you can successfully go about creating and sharing truly relevant content online.

• Sit down and figure out a great content strategy: In the very beginning, when you first launched your business, if you did the expected thing, you created a comprehensive, organized, well-thought-out business plan. Your business plan is your road map and even though you may make adjustments along the way, if you did it the right way, you will be able to follow that plan and it will get you to where you need to be. Your content strategy is a part of your overall business plan.

  Your content strategy should be thorough and it should map out exactly how you plan to create and use your content. You need to be able to rely on that strategy so that you know where you are going. The last thing that you want or need is to be faced with unwanted surprises along the way. Don’t forget that your content is the tool that you will use over and over again to bring your business to the next level and to achieve greater and greater success over time. 

• Create an accurate editorial calendar and follow it religiously: When it comes to writing (or curating) content and sharing that content, it is extremely important that you are as organized as possible. If you organize your calendar well, it will help you to keep your content flowing well and logically. If you can manage to maintain the flow, you will start to build up your traffic, prospects, leads, and, eventually, clients. Of course, although the organization is really important, it is equally important that you are flexible with your content and that you are open minded about switching up when you share what, if it works better than your original plan.

  In addition to shuffling your content around, there may be an occasion where you need to add extra content. The more top-quality content you have, the better. In fact, it is a really good idea to have a repository of as many pieces of content as you can (a few months’ worth will make things a lot easier). As far as organizing your calendar is concerned, the way that you organize it should be a good representation of your overall content strategy.

• Embrace content curation: Content curation is great way to expose your online connections to all sorts of interesting material. Remember that if you are curating content, you will present the other person’s content (including an attribution) and then you will add your own commentary at the bottom. Your readers will have the benefit of your insight and that of the author of the original content. Content curation is an accepted way of presenting content, as long as you always give the proper credit to the author each time that you curate. It is important to remember that the more valuable content you share, the more your discussions will hold value and attract other people.

• Customize your content sharing for each social media channel separately: Customization is always important when it comes to content. Part of the reason for that is that you always want the other person to feel that he or she is important to you and to your business. If you just share generic content, you won’t seem unique or enticing to the other person and you can’t afford (nor would you want) to be perceived in that manner. If you are a part of the three most popular social media channels (for many people), you may wish to approach them in the following way:

  • LinkedIn: The content that you share will most likely compel your online connections to want to get involved in a discussion on the topic that you are discussing. If you are a member of 50 different groups (LinkedIn allows a 50-group maximum), you will hopefully be involved with a lot of exciting discussions.

  • Facebook: You should try to keep your posts concise and clear. If you do that, you will probably get a lot of people who are interested in reading your content and volunteering their opinions. That is exactly what you want.

  • Twitter: For the best results, your tweets should be approximately 115 to 120 characters with spaces (the maximum is 140. That way, you are leaving room for people who want to retweet your stuff. Keeping them in mind is very important.

Conclusion

Taking the suggested tips here into consideration will help you to share the most relevant, appropriate content possible. Your online connections will thank you for it and the content will most likely lead to compelling, exciting, valuable conversations among you. It is important to always remember that the needs and wants of your target audience must come before anything else. If you manage to satisfy them, you, in turn, will get what you need as well.

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