How To Do Content Wrong: Part 1

Content marketing is no longer the future. It’s happening right now. Let me say that again: Content Marketing is happening right now. If you are reading this, then you probably know that you should be publishing content in order to cultivate an audience. But is just having content-any kind of content-the answer? (Hint: No.) 

In their rush to establish content streams, many companies and entrepreneurs are treating the content itself as an afterthought. There are many ways to do content wrong, and all of them will get you the same result: nothing. You will be putting valuable resources into something that provides little to no return, and may even end up doing damage to your brand. What follows is a list of some of the most common content mistakes and how to correct or avoid them. This is by no means meant to be a definitive guide to producing content-I’ll provide links and a bibliography for that-but rather a series of quick reads that will get your wheels turning and get you on the right track.

Content Mistake #1: Inconsistent Publishing, aka the Whenever Syndrome

This one is so basic that I considered skipping it, but after taking a look around and seeing how many companies are violating this most basic rule of content marketing, I knew I had to cover it.

Take a minute and think about your online habits. I’m talking about the sites, blogs, social media profiles, etc., that you regularly visit. These places may have initially drawn you in by providing something that you found interesting or valuable, but they keep you coming back by publishing more of that interesting and valuable content on a consistent basis. You return to such sources because a. you know there will always be something new and b. you know that it will be good. We’ll talk about how to ensure the quality of your content later, but for now we want to emphasize consistency.        

To establish the most basic level of credibility you must publish your content with some regularity. This means having a schedule and sticking to it. I cannot overemphasize the importance of staying consistent with your publishing if you want to build a loyal following. Volumes have been written about the awesome power of habit and routine, and what we are aiming for here is nothing less than becoming a part of your audience’s habits and routines.

Volumes have been written about the awesome power of habit and routine, and what we are aiming for here is nothing less than becoming a part of your audience’s habits and routines.

This means being brutally honest and realistic about how much time, energy or other resources you can currently dedicate to content. If you’ve got a four-part article or video series but aren’t sure what you’re going to follow it up with and you know that you and your team are going to be really busy in the near future, you are better off publishing two posts per week for the next two weeks-or even one post for the next 4 weeks- than publishing all four of them in one week and following up with nothing. The important thing to remember is always err on the side of consistency. Of course it is better to publish more quality content than less, but if you are at all limited in the amount of content you can produce in a given timeframe, you’re better off stretching it out in a consistent manner than blowing the whole wad all at once. The clock starts clicking the minute you publish your first piece of content.

The clock starts ticking the minute you publish your first piece of content.

Violating this rule puts your content vehicle in the same category as that of your uncle who started a Twitter profile in the exciting early days of the platform and then abandoned it after a couple weeks (or days) of random tweeting about the weather or what he had for lunch. The fact that nobody pays attention to your uncle’s Twitter profile isn’t the only problem here-there is also the fact that such a profile feels…sad. Unfinished projects give off an unmistakable vibe of sadness and defeat, and this is not the vibe you want to give off. This is one example of what I meant when I mentioned that bad content could damage your brand. You want to be regarded as a reliable source of value. The first step towards that is staying consistent. 

Disclosure: I am an uncle, and I once started a Twitter profile that I did not maintain. In my defense, I never put up a single tweet.