Content redundancy can repel repeat visitors (and cripple SEO). Here's how to avoid it, while still creating valuable brand and SEO content.
The other day I mentored on content strategy at the San Diego Inbound meetup. The most asked question from marketers and brands was about content redundancy.
You can only write about ... continuing education, energy management, hospital software and technology, or even swimming pools ... in so many ways, right?
Not so fast. If you're starting to feel like you're writing the same thing over and over, here are a few ways to mix it up.
Deep dive. Find your audience's favorite content through likes, shares, and Google Analytics, and drill down on those subjects. Give details, examples, success stories, and alternative versions.
Ask your customer service team what your audience is calling and emailing about. Answer their questions and make their lives easier with new content that speaks directly to their needs. (This is my all-time favorite source of ideas for creating authentic user personas as well.)
Check around on your social media and video channels, trending topics, competitor comments, and industry forums for ideas. Answer questions out and about, while collecting your answers for an article of your own.
Refresh. Audit your current content and update and refresh outdated material. Let your audience know what's new. They'll love it (and so will Google). Add this to your SEO content to-do list!
Repurpose. Have a few articles on a similar theme? Combine them into a to-do-list or best-of. Or take a written story and expand on it into a visual graphic, whitepaper, or video.
Build out your editorial calendar. Based on your audiences needs, wants, goals, and challenges, create a calendar of categories, topics, and potential subjects. Keep an eye on this calendar to make sure you're not unbalanced in any area.
Shelly Bowen, MFA, is a content writer, content strategist, and founder of Pybop.
For decades, Shelly has written for businesses on complex topics from disease prevention and medical devices to alternative energy and leveraging data. Today, she's hyper-focused on supporting B-B technology businesses. In her spare time, she hikes, kayaks, draws, and works on her T-Bird.
A wide variety of brands rely on Shelly as an essential freelance writer and content strategy resource.
