Transcript: [ModMarketing] An AEC Marketer’s Guide to Content Repurposing

Well hey, there friend. Thanks for joining me for another episode of the special podcast series, ModMarketing.

I’m so glad that you’re with me today because I am going to talk about something that could be the solution to one of the biggest challenges that I’ve heard from you when it comes to your content marketing.

That big challenge – finding new content ideas and getting the technical content from your subject matter experts. Is that a struggle for you? I see you raising your hand over there!

You and I both know that publishing consistent content that appeals to your targeted ideal client is a cornerstone for a successful content marketing program.

But getting this new content on a regular basis is another story! You’re busy with proposals and other marketing activities. Your subject matter experts are busy serving clients and delivering projects. Content marketing often gets pushed to the back seat.

Well, friend, in you’re in for a real treat on this special ModMarketing episode. I’m going to cover one of my very favorite topics – and that’s content repurposing.

I love figuring out how to extend or re-use the life of an existing topic or piece of content. Maybe it’s my competitive nature in me that sees this as a challenge. Each time I do this exercise, I challenge myself to figure out how many different ways I can use the same content piece. And, after today’s episode, I hope you’ll be just as excited as I am to challenge yourself to repurpose your existing content!

But before we get started, if you would be so kind, would you invite one of your AEC marketing friends to come to hang out with us as well? You can just grab the link to this podcast and put it in a text message, side it to a friend and say “Hey, I thought you might like this as well.” I would really appreciate it.

Okay, so let’s get into today’s episode.

Let’s first talk about what I mean when I say content repurposing.

My not-so-technical definition is this:

Content repurposing is a magical way to use content already created and revitalize it, so it works harder for your content marketing and SEO efforts.

When you repurpose content, you take previously published content and reimagine that one piece of content into different formats, you might refresh the information based on industry updates, and then content to reach audiences that might have missed it the first time around.

I love repurposing content because bottom line it saves me time. And I know it can save you time. This is because you don’t need to write new content from scratch. You don’t have to go back and ask for more content from your subject matter expert. You’re using that same information you’ve already collected and putting new life into it.

But, let me tell you what content repurposing is not. Content repurposing is not just publishing the same blog article link with the same caption on your firm’s LinkedIn Page once per month. That’s content promotion, which is okay too. We talked about content promotion in episode 84. Content repurposing is when you transform the content into a new medium and/or a new focus or new angle.

Now that you’re starting to see the magic of content repurposing and why I love it so much. Let’s dig into how to select the content to purpose and go through some examples.

Next up is how to select content to repurpose.

How to Select Content to Repurpose

A great way to determine what content to repurpose is to audit the content you’ve already published.  Look for content that still resonates with the ideal client and that is evergreen. If the content is too outdated or highly seasonable, it might be too much effort to repurpose it. Choose content pieces that can be easily refreshed and still attract the targeted audience.

Then, take a look at your firm’s website analytics to find high-performing content. Find the content that ranks the highest when it comes to pageviews, average time on page, etc. The content that meets all these criteria should be what you begin with.

Now let’s look at a content repurposing case study.

Content Repurposing Case Study

A great example of a content repurposing strategy is this series, “Driving Growth with Digital Marketing” I created for Full Sail Partners. As a new marketing manager for our Blackbox Connector products, I wanted to target other marketing managers who use Deltek Vision/Vantagepoint and who already have a digital marketing program or want to create one. So, I developed this year-long content series to attract new leads.

This campaign began in 2021 with a 10-part blog series. Potential clients could subscribe to the series to get notified when new articles would be published. And, using our HubSpot Connector, new submissions would be added to the Full Sail Partners’ Deltek Vision CRM to monitor and evaluate.

This blog series was then turned into a presentation abstract that was submitted to several marketing-related conferences. It was selected to be presented at three conferences where there was a high number of the targeted audience.

Eventually, I plan to turn this into a webinar for Full Sail Partners and possibly publish it as a guide accessible by a form on the website.

And, I’ve used the same outline and framework for this exact special podcast series – ModMarketing.

Between now and then, different steps will be shared as infographics and other resources to post on social media.

This one content topic has been transformed into blog articles, in-person presentations, podcasts, freebies or lead magnets and dozens of social media posts.

And, all of this content fits in with the goal of positioning myself as a thought leader in the content marketing space for the AEC industry.

But let’s talk about how you can do something similar for your firm.  

When you’re planning for new content, brainstorm ways in which that piece of content can be repurposed. Some ideas include:

• Convert long blog posts into an eBook or listicle social media series.
• Turn conference presentations into blog articles, webinars, etc.
• Build an infographic from a presentation or blog article.
• Refresh and republish old blog posts with new, relevant information or data.
• Create a podcast or video series from a previous conference presentation.
• Create a frequently asked questions area on your website from previously published blog articles.
• Create a checklist freebie based on the firm’s project management process.
• Pitch existing articles to guest blogs on other websites.
• Record existing content such as previously written blog articles or conference presentations. Post those recordings on YouTube or use them in a podcast.
• Visualize existing content such as articles. Turn them into short video snippets, pull quote graphics, or carousel-type posts.
• Group existing content to create content pillars or resource hubs. Full Sail Partners has done this with our persona pages. I’ll share a link to the marketer’s persona page in the show notes.
• Promote similar content previously published via an email series. Deliver each piece of content in one email spread throughout an entire campaign.
• Package similar content topics into an eBook or guide. Gather as many similar topics as already created and add an introduction or point of view to make it more of a book. These are often titled, “The Ultimate Guide to…” or “The Only Guide to…”

I know I went through those ideas really quickly. If you need to, go back and listen again.

Then take the content to repurpose challenge. This is where you turn the insight I just shared and turn it into action. So here’s your challenge:

Take one content you’ve just published or that is performing well, and go back and listen to this list of content repurposing ideas again with that piece of content in mind. Challenge yourself to come up with at least 3 different ways to repurpose that content. Why 3? I’m not sure. It just seems doable. Then comment on the show notes page on those 3 repurpose ideas. That’s right, I’m going to hold you accountable and want you to make it public!

Head over to the show notes page at www.marketerstakeflight.com/86 – in the comments section at the bottom of the page, comment with the 3 content repurpose ideas that you came up with. You don’t have to tell me about the name of the content but just say something like:

“I’m going to take the blog post written in August – we are going to turn that into a presentation abstract for a 2023 conference, create a freebie/checklist for people to download, and create a listicle/carousel type graphic for social media that we will share once per quarter.”

I guarantee you’ll be jazzed up to do this same content repurposing challenge for many of your existing pieces of content as well as when you sit down to create new content.

And that’s because this strategy of content repurposing makes your marketing more efficient. And, who doesn’t love more efficiency? Making the best use of your time and your subject matter expert’s time makes the entire marketing investment more efficient.

And content repurposing is one of the best ways to effectively use previously created content and allows for more time to spend on other marketing efforts.

So, make content repurposing a part of your content marketing program.

And, in the next ModMarketing Podcast series episode, I am going to share some basics of getting started with search engine optimization. In that Episode, I’ll go through how SEO works and how to get started with SEO.

But before then, take the content repurposing challenge – identify at least 3 ways you’ll repurpose one piece of content. Then share those ideas with me by leaving a comment on the show notes page. That’s at marketerstakeflight.com/86. It’s fun and beneficial to your marketing efforts.

All right, my friend. Thank you so much for listening. Bye for now.