How can you repurpose content assets for different channels while maintaining brand consistency?

Repurposing content should be part of any content strategy: - Saving time - creating original high-quality content is time-consuming. Repurposing allows you to share your content across different outlets with minimal efforts - Reinforcing your brand narrative & message - people need to hear your message multiple times before acting on it. Repurposing creates multiple touchpoints. - Improving/updating content - You & your environment constantly change and evolve. Repurposing your content allows you to update your content and add latest insights & data. - Consistency - repurposing allows you to show up with consistency across multiple channels as well as over a certain time span. Your audience becomes more familiar with your brand

Repurposing content across media while maintaining brand consistency is key to a successful marketing plan. To do this, one must first understand each channel's characteristics and adjust content and message. By matching tone, graphics, and duration to the platform, you assure relevancy. Your brand's values, colors, and message should always be consistent. A well-documented style guide and content management systems may expedite this process, integrating brand essence across mediums.

Think of repurpose as a way to re-focus. When you can be resourceful with your content, you learn about how to deliver that content in a way that best resonates with your audience. While repurposing helps you reinforce your message and be consistent, it also helps you to be creative and innovative within your zone of content creation. Use the process of repurposing content to adapt and grow within your field.

Having a clear content strategy will allow a brand to create meaningful stories, key messages and visual assets, to maintain consistency. From experience businesses don’t need to constantly create new content. Below are some ideas on how to approach re-purposing content. ?Firstly review data to see what has worked previously based on objectives. ? Start big, such as eBook, video, blog, newsletter or podcast. From this several pieces of smaller content can be generated (eg for social media). ? Integrate content across relevant digital channels, such as email, social and websites. ?Keep an asset library of all photos, infographics, videos. Have easy access to previous marketing activity. All content must be aligned with your brand!

Different platforms offer unique opportunities for storytelling. When repurposing content, consider how the story unfolds in each medium. For example, an in-depth research article can be transformed into a series of intriguing Instagram stories, with each slide offering bite-sized takeaways.

Tracking content performance is essential. Make sure that the metrics you track make sense in relation to conversion. There is content that converts without "going viral" - and viral content that doesn't convert. I recommend repurposing high-quality content that provides value to your audience, that moves them along their customer's journey, and that is aligned with their information needs and the messages they need to hear. Take your content strategy into account and the goals you want to achieve. Set yourself performance goals and check which pieces perform best, which keywords work, and which are most engaging. Consider that lurkers often turn into clients - metrics don't always reflect performance from a conversion standpoint.

Your source of content can be generated from those pitch deck presentations that happen in the four walled boardroom. Your marketing thinking hat needs to be on at all times as there is always an opportunity for that wonderful testimonial/social proof/feedback to be experienced and enjoyed.With unique audiences, your content can also prove to be unique and what better proof is there of a satisfied audience in real time, converted to digital content material.

To know what content to repurpose, start with developing a content strategy. Think… What areas of content are you focusing on? What are the problems your customer faces? What do you offer? What’s your vision for the future? Create content around these prompts and explore through repurposing. Was there a piece of content that didn’t perform well while you were hopeful it would? Repurpose that content in a different way to gauge what didn’t work. Was there a piece of content that performed great? Awesome, repurpose that. There’s no one approach to making a good choice. Play with the idea of repurposing and have fun trying new ways to reach your audience.

There's a difference between repurposing, reposting & recycling. When you are repurposing you are changing the "format" - e.g. turning a blog into a podcast or a post into a video. In any case, plan, brainstorm, and structure your content well before you post so that you have a foundation to repurpose from. I recommend using mind maps. You can turn a mind map into any kind of content you want.

When repurposing content, try to start with what will be the most work intensive at the beginning. It’s much easier to plan for the big content creation and work your way down. For example, long form videos can be turned into an audio file, a transcription, and short form videos. Long articles can be turned into a blog post, LinkedIn post, carousels, headers, etc. To begin to understand what content works for what platform and how to repurpose it, start by understanding how your audience uses the platform. Learn those behaviors and you can adapt your content approach.

When repurposing content, ensure alignment across the following elements: brand personality, content type, channel relevance, and audience presence. Consider the unique styles and functionalities of different platforms, as well as the expectations of your target audience on each platform. For example, there may be expectations related to video size, music choice, and content-music alignment. These magical combinations vary across platforms, so first research the 'marketing rules' of the channel and then adapt your existing content to fit them!

Consider the values that underpin your brand. These should consistently shine through, regardless of the channel or platform you choose. The next step is to consider the unique styles and functionalities of different platforms, as well as the expectations of your target audience. Ensure that your values are communicated clearly by tailoring your content to the tools available on each specific platform and by aligning with the communication style expected by your audience. Finally, learn from feedback. What do people say about you? Your audience will be the first to notice if "something has changed." So, make sure to listen to feedback, read comments, and track the resharing of your content, as well as the relevant opinions attached to them.

Content pillars and calendars as well as a content strategy are essential to maintain consistency across channels. They define where you post, what you post, and the posting frequency. That makes your content marketing game more consistent and effective. It is important that you understand your target audience and their consumption preferences and information needs on each platform so that you can tailor your content according to their preferences and needs. Create content creation habits and process flows and integrate tools that help you with ideation, writing, scheduling, posting etc. That eliminates randomness and allows you to outsource certain tasks too.

Brand consistency is maintained by the brand guides you put in place. When you build a brand, you are essentially crafting a unique zone in which your brand has the freedom to play in. Stay in your zone and consistency will follow. This means… 1. Be clear on your customer problem and the solution you offer 2. What you stand for (aka values) 3. What your mission, purpose, and vision for the future is 4. Your voice and tone 5. Your look and feel 6. What differentiates you Use these points as a way to build out content focus areas. How do you want your audience to feel when engaging with your content? Learn your customer and leverage that.

While the format of your content might change when repurposing, maintaining visual consistency is vital. Use the same color schemes, fonts, and design elements wherever possible. This ensures that even if someone encounters your brand on a different platform or medium, the content feels familiar and unmistakably 'yours'.

With so much data available, I recommend extreme focus to my clients. Pick two to three trackable metrics that directly impact your goal and establish a plan for regular data analysis. Be sure to include your benchmarks, check-in cadence, project length, and how you’ll track performance and communicate results. Allow for flexibility so adjustments can be made as needed.

The way you measure repurposed content is quite similar to measuring standard content. The difference lies in the ability to compare repurposed content with the original content and learn from the varying results obtained. Some platforms offer dedicated insight tools already available with your account. In some cases, you might want or need to utilize third-party software or apps specialized in analytics (e.g., GA4 for websites and blogs, Hootsuite for social media, etc.) and integrate them into your activities. Some information is quantitative, such as numerical data, while other data is primarily qualitative, reflecting what comments and feedback convey about your content. Approaches like sentiment analysis can also be valuable.

Repurposing content isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Its value depends on brand personality, content type, channel relevance, and audience presence. Not every piece shines on every platform. While you can tweak content to fit platform rules, success isn't guaranteed. Brand managers must ask: Is the platform aligned with our brand's personality? Can the content be adapted to meet our goals (e.g. engagement, debates, or entertainment)? Is our target audience active on the other platforms? Lastly, consider: Is repurposing worth it? Sometimes, focusing on one highly active platform beats investing in content that falls short of its goals.

As you repurpose content, especially older pieces, take a moment to ensure all information is current. Facts, figures, and even certain perspectives can change. Before redistributing, make necessary updates so that the content remains relevant and accurate.

When making choices on what kind of content to create, keep in the back of your mind how pieces can be repurposed later on. This can help drive ideas on how to consistently drive traffic to peices which are evergreen and require more resources to put together.

Another way to look at repurposing is by using your old content to inspire you to create new content. You and your audience will likely evolve. Use your past content as a means to create something refreshing. It’s not about re-inventing the wheel as it is about updating for relevancy and customer/market understanding.

I love doing this for my clients. I create cornerstone pieces. Create core content Pillars that are central to your brand's identity. For instance, if you're a fitness brand, your core pillars could be health, exercise, nutrition, and mental well-being. Now 2nd step: Develop in-depth, evergreen content pieces for each core pillar. These pieces should be comprehensive, high-quality, and stand alone as valuable resources. These are your "cornerstone" puzzle pieces.