The 10 Rs: 10 Ways To Get The Most Value From Your Content

“Work smarter, not harder.”

If you’re like me, you probably try to apply this theory to many things in both your work and your personal life. I say “try” because it is easier said than done. But! There are lots of ways to do this when you put our content strategy into action.

The goal is a simple one, on the surface at least. Whenever you produce content, you want to make sure you are getting the biggest bang for your buck. It doesn’t hurt if the process you use is more efficient, too.

To begin, just start with the work you have already done and consider different ways to present it. The same goes for any new content you are working on. Once you begin to contemplate the many uses for a single piece of material, you will start to discover how to squeeze every ounce of usefulness out of your creations.

Not only will this help you produce more content in a shorter period, but it can also help you reach a wider audience and step up the quality of your work. You can offer substantial, useful and desirable information on numerous channels at various points in the relationship between your audience and your brand AND increase your ROI at the same time.

You don’t always need a new idea. Sometimes, you just a new format to share an old idea. If you’re looking for ways to create content without starting from scratch, you’ll love the 10 Rs.

Yes, the 10 Rs. It’s not a very exciting name, and I welcome other suggestions.

1. Recap

Guest blogging has countless benefits. It can help you build your online influence, develop a reputation as an authority in your niche, increase awareness of your brand and so much more.  While you likely will not be able to share the same content on your blog, you can direct your readers to it with a summary. Write up an overview of your guest post on your site along with a link to the blog.

2. Recycle

Some types of content take a great deal of time and effort – think PowerPoints, webinars or online courses. Fortunately, they also contain a wealth of information and graphics that you can transform into something completely different yet equally valuable.

For instance, you might be able to convert each slide from a PowerPoint presentation into a content series or make an infographic using data provided in your latest webinar. Alternatively, depending on the format of the webinar, you could chop it up into self-contained sections that are just a few minutes long.

3. Reframe

Reframing the way you share content can help you target different segments of your audience and significantly increase your reach. For example, you might share a link to a post along with commentary on Facebook. Later, you can share a graphic from the post and include the link in your status. This way you will catch the attention of people who are drawn to visuals as well as natural readers.

This is particularly useful for an article that has a lot of stats or one that is a list (like this one!). You can create multiple social posts – one for each stat in the article or item in the list.

4. Refresh

Breathe some life back into old, outdated content to make it fresh, new and valuable once more. There are plenty of ways to go about this. For instance, if an article is underperforming in search, you could revise it to optimize keywords.

You might incorporate graphics, update the text with current data and statistics or replace external links with newer, more relevant ones. While you are at it, make sure the call-to-action is still pertinent, as well.

5. Repackage

Within your audience, there is likely a decent mix of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners. If you only present content in one format, you could be missing an opportunity to connect and strengthen your relationships with half of your target audience or more. Consider repackaging written content into video and/or podcast format, and vice-versa to increase your reach and strengthen engagement.

6. Repost

This idea is like refreshing (number four above), but instead of merely updating and appending existing content, you create something entirely new based on the same topic. Perhaps you might write it from another angle or a fresh outlook. Alternatively, you may even wish to create a piece that contradicts the original content if your opinion has changed or new information has been presented.

Did you have a Top 10 … of 2017 type of article that performed well? Write a new piece focusing on the top 10 list items for 2018.

7. Republish

There are some risks with duplicating content, such as loss of traffic due to a republished piece outranking the original in search results or being penalized by Google. Fortunately, some steps can diminish those risks.

Rather than republishing an entire article on LinkedIn, Medium or another platform, you can provide an introduction or summary that drives readers to your site, similar to the first item on this list. Along with a link, be sure to provide proper attribution, as well.

8. Repurpose

There are innumerable ways to repurpose your existing evergreen content. Here are just a few:

• Turn a collection of blog posts on a single topic into an ebook or guide, or take an ebook and break it up into a series of blog posts.
• Transform visual content into a Pinterest board or Instagram account.
• Turn statistics within articles into attention-grabbing tweets.
• Create an infographic from a list article or a collection of stats.

Brainstorm with some of your most popular pieces of content. Consider where your audience hangs out online as well as the types of content they cannot get enough of and you will soon have a lengthy list of ideas.

9. Resize

Changing the length of long or short copy is another simple yet effective way to get the most mileage from all of your content.

Create shorter items from long-form content to share on other platforms. Turn a brief over into a comprehensive tutorial. Extract a single topic from a blog post and expand upon it to create a well thought out and well-received article. Alternatively, take a snippet from a long piece to create a brief blog post that stands on its own.

10. Revisit

Take time periodically to dig into your blog’s archives, looking for evergreen content that you can refresh, repurpose or otherwise revamp. When you find pieces that offer loads of value just as they are, be sure to share them on social media or even with your mailing list. You will reach new followers, connect with fans who may have missed them the first time around and also gain new traffic.

Bonus: Re-Promote

Once you have done any of the above, you may even want to spend a few dollars on a paid promotion on Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter. On Facebook, spending $3-5 to promote a post can get you a significant amount of exposure.

You can use many of these approaches on your existing content as well as new productions. When planning your editorial calendar, strategize about the different types of content you can get from one idea. You will be reaping the rewards of maximizing your content’s value before you know it.