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Our very own Ross Simmonds joins Jeffalytics for an awesome podcast on breathing new life into old content. But what exactly does that mean?
Well.. It’s about taking content you’ve already developed and figuring out a fresh twist on how to give it more life, more shares, more views and more success.
And that’s exactly what Jeff and Ross dive into over the course of this in-depth conversation on content marketing, strategy and the role of distribution. When it comes to marketing – Ross isn’t the new kid on the block. As he describes in the podcast, he’s been doing content marketing since he was in University, running a successful fantasy football blog out of his parent’s basement. He switched into the marketing field later, keeping the lessons he learned from the fantasy football blog to kick start a promising and successful career as a Digital Strategist.
From there he created Foundation Marketing, a B2B marketing agency that helps companies structure marketing plans and manage social media. Crate soon followed, a content curation service that came out of a want for an easier way to find content for clients. Hustle & Grind is his latest venture, an internet coffee company that gives information and advice to entrepreneurs and hustlers.
Jeff found out about Ross after an event called MNSearch in Minnesota where Ross’ talk blew up the hashtag with discussion and quotes about content marketing, and distribution. The two connected and from there had a chance to link up and discuss two topics that always gets Ross excited…
First, we’re talking about content distribution. It’s an idea that stems from this belief that content is no longer the king as there was a Game of Thrones revolt and Distribution is now the ruler. Whether it’s Facebook, Slideshare, podcasts, LinkedIn, Ross and Jeff dive into a discussion about how the way we think about content is changing and the role distribution has in the marketing mix. Second, Ross breaks down the role of experimentation in marketing and how it can be used to find growth both as an individual and a brand.
If you’re interested in learning about content distribution, the role of content experiments and a handful of techniques that you can start applying IMMEDIATELY – You’re going to love this. Check it out but feel free to read on if you’re looking for some of the key takeaways and don’t have time to lend an ear:
Some of the key takeaways from this episode between Jeffalytics and Ross Simmonds:
Find Passionate Communities & Give Them Value
One of the things that Ross’ talks about in this podcast interview is how he accidentally got into content marketing. He talks about how in the early days he started a Fantasy Football blog without any real understanding of social media or content marketing but with nothing more than a desire to be surrounded by likeminded people. In this podcast he talks about how he “simply wanted to write about sports and connect with people.”
From there he describes how one could reverse engineer those early days directly into insights that helped him grow the skills he now uses daily. Whether it’s the process for creating content or the role of developing a community around the blog – these early days played a significant role in laying a foundation for his future career.
Treat Each Piece Of Content Like A Valuable Asset
This is a strange statement.
But that’s what every piece of content is.
They’re assets. Assets that have value that can have an impact on your business or career for years to come. Ross explains in this podcast why this reality should push people to always strive to develop valuable content. Content assets that are chock full of great insight, research, and fantastic writing.
Embrace The Idea Of Experimentation With Content
It’s been the key behind most modern technological advances, CEOs of the largest tech companies swear by it, so why not try it out?
In this podcast, Ross talks about the value of doubling down on experiments and how avoiding experimentation can run you the risk of being left behind. Ross shares how he studied how people interacted with content in different channels to identify gaps and reverse engineer what made it successful to find insights that could be used to succeed. From Quora to Reddit, Ross talks about how his commitment to running one experiment a year has helped him consistently innovative and the role it plays in sharing insights with the team at Foundation and clients.
DREAM: Distribution Rules Everything Around Me
If you’ve listened to Ross before, there’s a 95% chance you’ve heard this phrase.
Content marketing is understanding who your audience and their motivations, needs and wants and writing to that. That’s where most definitions end.
Ross breaks down how the other part to content marketing is uncovering the channels that your audience already uses and distributing your content in them. On Quora, he recommends answering questions in your field as a great way to give value. On Reddit he suggests that it can be used similarly but not without understanding what works in each Subreddit.
The key takeaway that Ross shares with Jeff is the idea that brands should be investing just as much into distribution as they do creation. Investing heavily in your own distribution channels like email lists, building up your own communities, and building trust with people is a great way to add value to the lives of your audience and have a positive impact on your brand.
This leads to one of the keys to revitalizing old content: republish & reshare.
Your followers can’t see posts from over a year ago because they’re buried beneath new content. Sharing it again as a semi-reminder is the best way to get them to see that that awesome piece of content you published a while back. But you may be thinking if you’ve shared it on your blog, Twitter, and Facebook that’s all you can do.
That’s not the case at all!
In this podcast, Ross talks about the rise of Facebook Groups and how millions of people are flocking to this channel week after week. As a result, marketers can now look to Facebook groups as a channel where they can distribute their content more effectively. On top of Facebook Groups, Ross also breaks down some strategies for distributing content through guest posts, social media, Slideshare, repurposing and much more…
Due to the ongoing rise of content noise, Ross suggests that “It’s time to stop solely relying on Google and instead rely on your own communities & channels to drive your results.”
Why? As Ross puts it,
“Google cares more about shareholder value than they care about your backlink from a DA80.”
So… How do you battle this reality? Distribution. And if you’re looking for an episode that is jam packed with all the info you need to better understand how to breathe new life into your content – This one is definitely worth checking out. Check out the entire podcast!
