We looked at 137,052 tweets and learned hashtags were worthless

When Twitter started it had so much promise to change the way we communicate. But now it has been ruined by the amount of garbage and hate we have to wade through. It's like that polluted beach that all the swimmers have to use at the Olympics, in more than one way. Both are examples of the possibility of new tech changing everything, but now are full of literal and figurative sewage. While hashtags were actually one of the most exciting parts of Twitter when it was first announced, they have also fed into the rise of the spam problem.…

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We looked at 137,052 tweets and learned hashtags were worthless

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Pokébot is the Facebook Messenger Pokédex bot you never knew you wanted

How well do you know your Pokémon? For me, I'm pretty solid with the original 150. When it comes to the creatures introduced after the Red, Yellow and Blue games, I'm a bit hazy. Which is why Pokébot is so cool, as it lets you find out about the fictional creatures in amazing detail. Just type in any Pokémon featured in either of the X or Y games, and it'll tell you about it. Perhaps more useful, Pokébot can tell you statistics about a given Pokémon, how it evolves, and the moves it learns at each level. It can even…

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PewDiePie was just suspended from Twitter after making an ISIS joke

PewDiePie – the most popular YouTuber,at about 47 million subscribers – has just been suspended from Twitter. The suspension appears to stem from a joke PewDiePie (whose real name is Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg) made about joining ISIS with fellow YouTuber Jacksepticeye. This originally led to PewDiePie becoming unverified – because making jokes in poor taste makes you less of a real public figure. He then retweeted a post from parody account @SkyNeiws, which claimed PewDiePie had his account unverified due to “suspected relations with Isis”: Popular YouTuber @pewdiepie unverified due to suspected relations with ISIS https://t.co/iElCWtBzpU http://pic.twitter.com/x2L0INKVU5 - Sky News (@SkyNeiws)…

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PewDiePie was just suspended from Twitter after making an ISIS joke

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10 Surprisingly Simple Lessons That Will Make You A Better Digital Marketer

Years ago, I was working as an online marketing manager at a digital marketing agency in Salt Lake City.

One of my clients was a large university that offered online courses. The client had expressed concerns that while organic search traffic was up, our “request for more information” goal was down (one of the primary KPIs).

The client was questioning the value in our work and the partnership was in jeopardy.

From competitive analysis I knew we had multiple online competitors that offered similar programs, and also that signing up for college level online courses wasn't an impulse buy – prospective students were doing their research.

Understanding the customer path to purchase

After the call I referenced the client's Multi-Channel Funnels Report in Google Analytics. I confirmed that the top conversion path was visitors finding our online courses via Google Search, and then coming back directly at a later point to request more information. Once I shared this with the client, she immediately saw the value in the work we were doing.

From that day forward, I included data from this report to not only show the full value in our work, but also gain a deeper understanding of my client's customer online journey to purchase.

This lesson is one of many that I've applied to assist me in running more effective campaigns, provide more actionable and insightful reporting, build stronger relationships with clients, and develop more efficient processes.

Here are the lessons I feel will provide real value and help you be a better digital marketer.

1. SEO is far from dead

It seems like every 6 months or so, a proclamation is made publicly decrying the benefits and the effectiveness of sustainable search engine optimization.

While Google is continuously refining and introducing new systems to help it better understand queries and return relevant results, both optimization and inbound links still work amazingly well to improve a page's visibility in Google Search.

Caption: This screenshot is of YoY organic search traffic with a filter applied to remove spam/bot hits. The website is a local business that had existing authority and no previous on-page optimization.

While not a definitive rule, pages and posts with links from authoritative, trusted sources tend to perform better organically than those that don't.

Ensure your website is sending clear, concise signals to search engines. Make on-page optimization and earning links a component of your digital marketing strategy by creating and promoting great content, getting the word out for company news and events and building online relationships with others in your industry.

Client education is key as it can often take months to see the benefits from optimization.

2. Community, Community, Community

Image Source: ALLBRiGHT 1-800-PAINTING

Getting involved in your local community can be an effective way to earn links, increase brand awareness and strengthen your UVP as a national or local business.

A community event can include charity work or sponsorships, meetups, presentations, etc.

If you need ideas on how to acquire links from your clients' community efforts or events, I'd recommend checking out this post.

Do something newsworthy that includes your local community and then get the word out!

3. Social media attribution

Many social media managers will agree that it can be difficult to show an ROI from building an engaged social community.

For many of my clients, I've found that social activity typically “assists” as opposed to acting as a last touch channel that directly leads to conversions. While traffic back to your website from your social channels is great, showing how these efforts are bringing in new leads and sales is even better.

By default, Google Analytics credits all conversions to the last channel a customer interacts with before converting. To help me show clients how both paid and organic social media marketing campaigns are contributing to either leads or sales, I use Google Analytics Multi-Channels Funnel reports.

Google lumps all social traffic into one channel, so you'll need to create custom channel grouping that defines all your social channels e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc. You can also create a channel for specific campaigns that you've tagged.

Prove your worth by showing the assisted and direct conversion value from your social media marketing campaigns. Also, if you use GA, take the time to get your individual qualification – it's free!

4. Start with a great visitor experience

Spending time and valuable marketing dollars on campaigns won't be nearly as effective if your landing pages are providing a poor visitor experience. Don't put the cart before the horse.

For any online marketing campaign, start with optimizing the visitor experience on your website, then move on to marketing.

If you have suspicions that a design element/feature isn't enhancing the visitor experience on a site, request a few free 5-minute evaluations from Peek User Testing for unbiased feedback. In my experience, clients love it and it can be used in conjunction with analytics data to confirm a hunch.

To assess areas that could be limiting conversions, set up funnels for your goals in Google Analytics.

Are most visitors abandoning their cart? Are they making it to the contact page but not filling out the form? Funnels can help you assess where you may need to make changes.

The below screenshot shows a basic funnel that was set up using Google Analytics Goals.

You can also install and use heat map software to see exactly how your visitors are engaging with your landing pages. I like SumoMe's Heat Maps.

5. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it

I'm a firm believer in letting the data drive the decisions, but in order for data to be actionable, it needs to be as accurate as possible. Internal sessions, junk and spam traffic, accounts that aren't set-up properly, can all make your data less insightful and actionable. This is especially true for small businesses and websites that don't receive thousands of visitors a month.

Providing your clients with a thorough analytics audit can be worth its weight in gold. Having accurate tracking in place will not only help you know what's working, but also show how your work is impacting your client's bottom line.

6. Repurpose, Repurpose, Repurpose

Time and budgets are limited so why not get the most exposure possible for your content and events?

Repurposing can be defined as taking new and existing content assets and sharing or recreating them across multiple channels and content formats.

For example, if your client is holding an informative event, you could repurpose this content in the following ways:

• Live stream the event on Periscope, Facebook Live or via a podcast


• Record the presentation on video then upload and share it to Facebook and YouTube


• Transcribe the video or podcast and publish it as a blog post


• Gather emails from event attendees and send them the video and a link to the transcription on your website


• Take any presentation slides and add them to SlideShare


• Syndicate the content across other websites with a link pointing to the original post on your website

Before starting a new campaign, do a thorough content audit, then ask the client for anything and everything that's ever been used as marketing material. This can include PDFs, videos, PowerPoint slide decks, brochures, materials used for print advertising, etc.

7. Do a good job

Sounds pretty obvious right? Before starting my own digital marketing agency, I never considered word of mouth, reviews, and recommendations as marketing channels. The marketer in me would be amazed to learn that many successful SMB's were able to grow solely off of client referrals.

Since starting my own business, I've also found this to be true. Doing a good job can mean a lot of things, but I'd sum it up as working hard, keeping communication frequent, and showing the value in your work.

Remember, it's less expensive to retain a current client than it is to find a new one. Doing a good job means you'll retain clients longer and increase the chances they'll refer you to other businesses.

8. Be prepared to wear multiple hats

As a digital marketing consultant, it's my job to be able to advise and drive successful marketing campaigns across all online channels. SEO, PPC, social media, email – it's a lot to keep up with!

My advice: make a goal to read at least one blog post a day on a different marketing channel and keep good notes.  Take the best ideas and test them for inclusion in your internal processes.

9. Develop processes

Having processes in place ensures that your success is repeatable … and it also saves you time. While every business is unique and no digital marketing campaigns are identical, many strategies and tasks can be defined.

Having tools, templates, and repeatable tasks will provide consistency and help your business to grow sustainably.

10. Pay to promote

Growing an audience and building awareness for your business takes a lot of time and effort. While not all industries are social, for those that are, utilizing social advertising on the social channels used by your target audience can be an effective way to get the word out.

Make sure to retarget those who were interested enough to visit your website. This can include advertising on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and even StumbleUpon.

You can learn something from everyone

I've only scratched the surface, but these were a few of the most actionable lessons I could share.

Do you have something to add? If so, please drop it in the comments below!

Guest Author: Brian Jensen is the CEO at Congruent Digital, a full-service online marketing agency that provides clients with a data-driven approach to search engine optimization, social media, content marketing and pay-per-click advertising.  Connect with Brian on Twitter, Google+ or LinkedIn.

The post 10 Surprisingly Simple Lessons That Will Make You A Better Digital Marketer appeared first on Jeffbullas's Blog.

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10 Surprisingly Simple Lessons That Will Make You A Better Digital Marketer

Your Marketing Org Chart Doesn't Work

Image via Unsplash

I wrote a version of this post for the Workfront blog.

(for more on Workfront's outstanding productivity platform, including their ProofHQ collaboration system for marketing approvals, check out my interview and demo on my Marketing Marvels show)

I have been in marketing in some form or fashion for 28 years. During much of that span, marketers' roles, including my own, were delineated and codified. The org chart and process flows dictated precisely what you did, when, with whom, and who approved it and took your output to the next step.

In this way, marketing has been little different from a Henry Ford-esque assembly line, with the additions of a dose of creativity, Excel, trade show swag, and cool business cards.

But in my work running a marketing and customer experience consultancy, and interacting with hundreds of companies each year as an inspirational marketing keynote speaker, I have come to believe that the era of the marketing org chart as we have known it is coming to a close.

Where Do You Draw the Line?

The rapid and rampant integration of marketing disciplines that were once quite separate creates a cross-functional bouillabaisse that is ill suited to inflexible roles and job descriptions.

What does a social media manager do now? Not long ago, he or she was primarily a writer, using sentence fragments to stoke the passions of customers. Now, that same position may require robust photography, video editing, paid advertising, and analytics capabilities.

And how does that social media manager differ from or intersect with a content marketing manager? Is a video social or content? Is YouTube a social network or a content platform?

And what about customer service? Is Twitter a marketing channel or a customer service channel? Does the social media manager using Twitter to delight potential customers also handle inquiries from current customers needing support? Is Facebook a marketing channel or a support channel? The same question applies to Facebook Messenger, perhaps even more so.

What does a “designer” in a marketing team do today, when front-line social media managers can create credible graphics on-the-fly using low cost (even free) tools?

What does a “media buyer” do in the social era, when paid promotion occurs on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and beyond – the historical dominion of the social media manager?

I'm not at all suggesting that social media managers are somehow the lynchpin of modern marketing. But I am using the maelstrom of disruption that social media causes to historical job roles to suggest something else entirely: The marketing org chart has met its match.

Disappearing Job Titles

I believe the most effective marketing teams going forward will have very few – if any – distinct job titles and roles. Instead, these teams will be increasingly comprised by generalists that know a lot about a lot, without specializing in any one element of marketing.

These highly functional teams will have a collective cornucopia of skills, with individual team members working together in an impermanent capacity to tackle particular assignments, campaigns, and projects.

To make this system viable, smart teams will purposefully collect multiple team members with overlapping and duplicate skills, so that if simultaneous projects have a direct mail component, for example, each project team has a different marketer filling that need for the duration of the project.

This eliminates bottlenecks and gives the collective far more ability to be flexible, nimble and deadline-aware.

There are two outcomes of this movement.

Outcome #1: Goodbye Specialist, Hello Generalist

First, the balkanization of marketing services will fade away. Historically, marketers defined themselves by their specialty:

“I am an email marketer.” “I am a search engine marketer.” “I am a direct marketer.” “I am a B2B demand gen marketer.”

These limiters will become unnecessary because the best marketers will possess many of these skills, making the marketing generalist the most valuable of the species.

In the near future, it will be acceptable to simply say: “I am a marketer.”

Outcome #2: A Greater Dependence on Software

Second, software that enables ad-hoc teams to assemble for particular projects and then disassemble and move on to the next assignment will become essential. Software that understands who has what skills. Software that can recommend team members based on their capabilities and experiences. Software that can keep cross-functional marketers on time and on task.

But software isn't the only answer.

As always, success is more about the wizard than the wand. (highlight to tweet)

The collaborative environment required to operate in the hyper-flexible capacity I've described cannot and will not just emerge from the primordial ooze of Paleozoic marketing departments.

True collaboration requires management support from the highest levels. It requires attracting and retaining marketers that do not fear a workplace without an org chart, but instead thrive on the nimbleness it unlocks. That's a colossal HR challenge, and will take quite some time to achieve.

The Future is Horizontal

This environment requires a true spirit of mutual respect and support. Without a defined org chart, the internal politics of marketing “success” can be set aside. But without that internal scoreboard of who reports to whom to serve as a psychological scaffolding, can marketers really cooperate in real-time for the good of everyone, or will they devolve into ungoverned rabble, like The Lord of the Flies set around a conference table?

A marketing team without an org chart better have every single member on board with the concept, and that will require hiring for outlook as much as hiring for skills.

But it can work, and we'll start to see evidence of it in many organizations, in short order.

For a long, long, long time marketing has been a collection of siloed, vertical specialists doing siloed, vertical work. Not anymore. The era of the org chart is ending, and in its place is the new era of amoeba-like, horizontal generalists (assisted by software) that get more done in less time.

Agree? Disagree? Let me know below.

       

Your Marketing Org Chart Doesn't Work

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Pokébot is the Facebook Messenger Pokédex bot you never knew you wanted

How well do you know your Pokémon? For me, I'm pretty solid with the original 150. When it comes to the creatures introduced after the Red, Yellow and Blue games, I'm a bit hazy. Which is why Pokébot is so cool, as it lets you find out about the fictional creatures in amazing detail. Just type in any Pokémon featured in either of the X or Y games, and it'll tell you about it. Perhaps more useful, Pokébot can tell you statistics about a given Pokémon, how it evolves, and the moves it learns at each level. It can even…

This story continues at The Next Web

Pokébot is the Facebook Messenger Pokédex bot you never knew you wanted

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Twitter is now letting select users put pre-roll adverts on their videos

Twitter has always represented a bit of a raw deal for creators when it comes to monetization. Unlike YouTube, there's no publicly-accessible revenue sharing program. If you create a piece of content that does well, there's no way to shove an advert on it and make some money, unless you're a massive publisher. But slowly, that's starting to change. Twitter just announced that select US creators of all sizes will be able to insert pre-roll adverts into any video clips they upload. We're expanding our revenue programs to empower creators to earn money in multiple ways!

Uber Loses $1.2 Billion by Q2 2016: Is the On-Demand Economy a Bust or an Investment?

Bloomberg's Eric Newcomer reported that on a recently Uber quarterly call with shareholders, the company's head of finance, Guatam Gupta announced that Uber's losses continue to escalate. Total losses in the first half of 2016 totaled an astounding $1.2 billion. According to Bloomberg's sources, there are several reasons for this. For one, subsidies for Uber's drivers are responsible for the majority of the company's losses globally. On top of that, Uber has been investing billions of dollars in China and it's yet to turn a profit there. And of course, there's staving off competition. Most notable, Uber has been engaged in a heavy price war with Lyft throughout the year to expand its market share as well as gain ground over other competitors in each market around the world. Uber told investors that it's willing to spend aggressively to do so.

Of course all of this lead the press and the interwebz to cry that the “sharing economy bubble is bursting” and that Uber and its astronomical valuation of $69 billion are examples of runaway capitalism, a “shell game,” and/or a company trying to take on too much all at once with finite resources. Yet, existing resources aren't enough it seems to take over the world in addition to its other significant investments in autonomous vehicles, in which Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said he “can't be wrong” about, as well as logistics and delivery services and more. Add to this, a growing portfolio of settled and impending lawsuits. The company will eventually have to raise again or finally take the company public to continue its crusade.

A key question to consider is whether or not Uber, regardless of its current impact on the transportation industry, is ever going to turn a profit. This question is leading experts to speculate whether or not its business model is actually lucrative in the long term to all stakeholders including investors, service providers (drivers), and Uber itself along with the “Uber of” every other industry.

There's much at stake. But, I also think there's more to the story.

There's a difference between losing money and investing. There are positive signs that already point to the promise of Uber's potential.

For instance, Uber continues to increase global revenues. During the first half of 2016, Uber's bookings grew significantly from Q1 to Q2, from +$3.8 billion to more than $5 billion. Its net revenue also grew ~18%, from about $960 million in Q1 to about $1.1 billion in Q2. Uber spokespersons have told investors that it currently boasts between 84% and 87% of the market in the U.S.

More so, Bloomberg reported in July that Uber lost at least $2 billion over the last two years trying to compete in China. The good news is that Uber won't recognize additional losses in China on its balance sheet after August. Recently,Uber forged a deal with its largest global competitor, Didi Chuxing, to pull out of China. In exchange, Didi gave the company 17.5% of its business and a $1 billion investment, which the company will show on its books soon.

More so, compared to Lyft, Uber's story further gains credibility. While Lyft is a much smaller company by trip volume, it appears, according to Bloomberg, to be losing more money than Uber in the U.S. Bloomberg reported earlier this year that Lyft told investors that it will keep its losses under $50 million a month or about $150 million in a quarter. Furthermore, in July, Uber delivered 62 million rides to Lyft's 13.9 million. However, Uber's driver subsidies were spread across a greater number of rides thus increasing its losses.

In a conversation for a story with my friend Erin Carson of CNET, I talked about Amazon and its vision, ambitions and resulting investment strategies to change the way you make purchases and beyond. From Kindle to Echo to Dash to Prime content, etc., Amazon is investing in innovation and disruption across multiple industries while increasing revenue and opening doors to new opportunities along the way.

“Uber's introduced an entirely new way to get from point A to point B not just in the United States, but around the world,” Solis said. “That comes at a tremendous cost.”

But, Solis said investors are willing to take the risk with the idea that something bigger is coming globally.

Along those lines, Solis isn't worried about the effect of Uber's finances on the sharing economy.

“Uber has long since left behind the sharing economy,” he said. Uber's been a catalyst for the on-demand economy, which is evident every time you hear about a company that wants to be Uber of whatever. 

It's conditioning consumers to get what they want, when they want it, with a smartphone and an app he said, and that's going to be far more powerful than the sharing economy.

“It's not only paving the way for the future of on-demand transportation but it's also changing consumer expectations for it to bring on-demand services across multiple industries,” he said. “Uber is much bigger than transportation.”

I see Uber's play as an investment in not only its own business but also, it's driving a formidable migration away from the sharing to the on-demand economy aka what I also call the selfish economy. Uber isn't just a transportation company, it's a platform and an ecosystem. Its changing consumer expectations and behaviors as a result beyond transportation. It's even changing how automotive manufactures re-imagine the future of transport and ride/hail services.

As such, it's not uncommon to subsidize market shifts, growth and expansion. Amazon, Tesla, Spotify, among many others, invest similarly to pioneer new markets and accelerate consumer adoption.

None of this is easy. Uber's work is relentless as it takes on taxi industries globally, lobbies governments, fights class action lawsuits, recruits, cultivates and subsidizes drivers, further develops its platform to attract developers to build new apps/services and continues to grow markets city by city and country by county. While $1.2 billion in losses is massive, the company's impact over time requires a broader discussion and appreciation for a different type of value, impact and success in the face of innovation and disruption.

Connect with Brian!

Twitter: @briansolis

Facebook: TheBrianSolis

LinkedIn: BrianSolis

Youtube: BrianSolisTV

Snapchat: BrianSolis

The post Uber Loses $1.2 Billion by Q2 2016: Is the On-Demand Economy a Bust or an Investment? appeared first on Brian Solis.

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How to Curate Content Without Being Mindless and Mundane

“Content curation not only alleviates the pressure of having to devote valuable time to creating original content, but it also adds credibility and third party validations to your efforts.”

– Jason Miller, LinkedIn, “The Power of Content Curation” by ScoopIt

How many times have you seen a blog post or book chapter begin with a quote from a subject matter expert? It's called content curation.

What's curation? It's finding available content and presenting it in a meaningful way, usually around a theme. Museums curate art and artifacts. Radio stations curate music and news. Content marketers curate content created by other people and publishers: stuff people said, wrote, designed or recorded. It's become a staple for marketers because it can help:

• Improve your work.


• Increase publishing velocity and volume.


• Establish and build credibility.


• Generates links.


• Build relationships.

“I've seen curation also become an amazingly powerful form of networking. Sharing content is reciprocal so when other authorities reciprocate, you get more links, authority, traffic and some of the other crown jewels in the search world.”

– Barry Feldman, “The Power of Content Curation”

How about that? I re-used something I said that was published previously-another form of content curation.

You Can Curate Content in Many Ways

Given all the benefits of content curation, it's good to know there a variety of ways to do it. Therein lies the not-so-good news: A ton of content curation is a complete bore. It's used bubble gum. It's the result of a blog owner or social media contributor playing the “Get Out of Create New Content Free” card.

I'll concede the “you should read this” update has its times and place. A tweet is a good example. Said tweeter (presumably) read said content creator's creation and deemed it share-worthy. Said tweeter could editorialize for a word or two by adding something like “Great post,” but there's no real value-add. Nor is there any harm done.

As I was researching quotables for this post (a step in the curation process), I came across this:

“Content curation is very different from content marketing. Content curation doesn't include creating new content.”

That's bull. In my opinion, content curation has to include creating new content, or it's noise. (highlight to tweet) Your curated content is only interesting if it has a point of view-your point of view.

What Kind of Curator Do You Want to Be?

The key to content curation is context. Giving it context makes it new and potentially interesting. It makes me give a hoot. It gives curation-and the curator-a reason for being.

No one's stopping you from being the lazy kind of curator who continually repeats the refrain, “Look what I found.” In fact, oodles of companies have created “collect and curate” tools that encourage this uninspired publishing tactic.

I'd like to be the guy that urges you to reject the approach and curate with that special something only you have: your voice.

14 Ways to Curate Like a Champion

The way to curate like a champion is to champion an idea in the process. Here are a variety of ways to do it:

Quote People in Your Posts

This is my favorite technique of the bunch. As I've done already in this article, you simply include quotes that add perspective to your story.

Social Sharing

The most popular way to curate content is to share something you like (or don't) via social media. Want to increase the mileage of your social share? Check out Start A Fire, a service that adds a badge with your content recommendations within any link.

Start A Fire helps drive traffic to your content by showing readers who click on your links your content recommendations.

Newsletters

It's easy to tune out email newsletters when the sender relentlessly promotes their own company, or even their content. A more interesting approach is to curate “best of” content focused on a niche.

I actually look forward to getting this digest style newsletter each Friday from Vertical Measures. The editor of the email clearly digs to uncover valuable digital marketing content.

Lists

If curating content is about delivering valuable reference material, lists may be the pinnacle. Lists might be about books, podcasts, blogs, tools, apps, or anything thematically related. You can create lists in a variety of forms such as a blog post, web page, ebook, infographic, or email. Check out List.ly, a magical list-building tool.

Collections

You might consider collections to be lists, but they can take many forms and become very engaging when they feature visuals. Think recipes, photos, quotes, or website designs.

Roundups

A roundup is a piece of content made up of responses from a number of industry experts. You might get the content you need by sending emails, making calls, or simply finding what you need in blogs and on social media. Roundups can take a lot of effort, but deliver huge rewards.

Research

It can be very simple to curate research, and your audience is likely to love it.

Ayaz Nanji, a blogger at MarketingProfs, has a dedicated beat: he curates relevant marketing research.

Ask the Audience

A tasty and fun approach to curation is to ask your audience a question or series of questions and publish the results. You can apply this strategy to create roundups, lists, collections, research findings and more.

Customer Stories

Does your company publish case studies or customer success stories? Why not repurpose some by abbreviating them and curating the content?

Ideas from Events

An easy and valuable way to curate content from experts is to gather ideas from events. One simple strategy is to present highlights from a conference. Another is to create content based on a webinar or seminar.

Presenting a Post

Presenting a post you like on your blog can be the most-or least-interesting approach to content curation. Though I'm ever-so-slightly flattered when a publisher finds my articles tasty enough to republish, I'm unimpressed if that's all they do; they copy and paste my work into their website.

You can republish with panache when you:

• Create a new and interesting headline.


• Write a thoughtful introduction to present your perspective.


• Interview the original author and add quotes.


• Bounce back-and-forth in your post between a previously published post and your commentary.


• Present opposing ideas.

Use your imagination. Put your fingerprints on the post. Never steal content. Always cite the original author and source. And, if you're republishing without adding a thing, use a canonical link so as to not steal someone else's SEO thunder.

Present Something Other Than a Blog Post

Your audience may love your taste in online videos, SlideShares, infographics, data visualizations, quizzes, podcasts-any digital media. Try your hand in creating content based on a cool chunk of media you've discovered.

Newsjack

Newsjacking, a term coined by David Meerman Scott, is simply capitalizing on a popular news story by featuring it.

Storify is a great service you can use to create stories or timelines using social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Microsite

Creating microsites or content hubs focused on specific topic requires some extra effort but can be an amazingly magnetic curation tactic. It can be done with other publisher's content, your own content, or a combination.

I've used the microsite strategy to create the Content Marketing Roadmap, a page on my site that curates many of my best posts, infographics, webinars, and tools on the topic of content marketing strategy.

Put Some Thought Into Your Curated Content

Curated content need not be dull, but it often is when marketers desperate for content mindlessly republish the works of others. You can do better. Bring your perspective to the content you curate. Mix up your tactics.

There's no shame in curating content to save time, but to do it meaningfully does indeed take time and effort. Align your content curation strategy with your content marketing strategy at large, and create something original.

Get more content like this, plus the very BEST marketing education, totally free. Get our Definitive email newsletter.

       

How to Curate Content Without Being Mindless and Mundane

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