If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the demands of Instagram and TikTok algorithms, you’re not the only one.
None of us signed up for this to waste away with the pressure to gruelingly produce daily content and meet the expectations of multiple platforms with minimal returns.
We think the whole “more is better” grindset has been blown a little out of proportion – every podcast and tutorial seems to chant the same mantra: “more, more, more” when it comes to content.
But who does that really apply to? Typically, it’s people with personal camera crews capturing their every move, creative teams repurposing content into twenty different formats, and meticulous management over every single platform giving this advice.
Ultimately, that isn’t everyone. That kind of industry-standard doesn’t always scale well with small creative business owners just starting out.
Is the relentless cycle of daily content truly necessary for success? OR… can solopreneurs/small business owners thrive with a strategy that focuses on creating just enough valuable content, tailored to platforms they genuinely enjoy?
Is there a way to sustainably do more with LESS?
This is where content strategy comes in.
If you’re ready to be more strategic with your time, protecting your mental load whilst still ensuring rapid growth for your business, then you’re in the right place: buckle up!
Your content strategy serves as your roadmap for distributing and creating content, whether it’s blog posts, videos, podcast episodes, or any other media that your audience can browse, listen to, watch, read, or share.
A solid content marketing strategy not only outlines what you want to create, but simultaneously takes into account the resources needed, audience, and expectations you have for your high quality content.
You should also always plan a way to measure whether your content is meeting your expectations and helping your business reach its goals – e.g. Google Analytics.
As you develop your strategy, these questions usually come up:
Who is your target audience?
What problem does your content solve?
How does your content help your brand stand out?
How will your audience consume your content?
What will make your content successful?
While these overarching questions are good to keep in mind as your business grows, we don’t really have to dive any deeper into the nitty gritty content strategy stuff.
This simple 3 step process will cover most of the surface-level planning you need to get your content up and running organically, but feel free to delve further into it if you want!
Your content can be separated into two distinct groups: transitory content, and perpetual content.
Transitory content has a very short shelf-life, often disappearing within a day or a week. Think of Instagram stories, tweets, or TikTok videos.
Perpetual content, on the other hand, is long-lasting, remaining relevant and discoverable months or even years after creation. Examples include stuff like YouTube videos, podcasts, and blog posts like the one you’re currently reading.
A good content strategy is based on a comprehensive library of Perpetual content, housed on a platform where new audiences can easily find it. Your Perpetual content acts as a kind of foundation, that will keep attracting new visitors to your brand long after the Transitory social media posts have faded away.
We recommend publishing 8-10 in-depth, long-form pillar blog posts per niche, as part of your Perpetual foundation.
These articles should be well optimized (using search engine optimization), and strategically target several SEO keywords relevant to your business and what your audience is actively searching for.
Blogs are still very much alive and serve as a valuable resource for your audience, and a steady stream of natural growth for you.
People are continuously searching for answers and solutions on Google, and that’s not going away anytime soon. As long as that continues, search-engine-driven traffic remains a pivotal asset for your business.
You can absolutely still gain hundreds of new email subscribers each month, just through organic search traffic. This passive traffic, paired with the use of lead magnets to grow your customer base, is a major reason why you don’t necessarily need to rely heavily on social media channels.
With the bulk of your content now live on your blog after step one, you can focus on building up trust with your audience and converting organic traffic into sales. To achieve this, consider building a content calendar to organize and schedule various types of content such as social posts, blog posts, and emails.
To sustain any interest you drummed up by offering value through your Perpetual content, and eventually convert that interest into sales, you need a third type of content.
By producing an exclusive, high-value stream of recurring content, such as a free live taster course or email newsletter, you can bolster your Perpetual content and incentivize what you offer behind a paywall.
Recurring content:
Builds up trust over time
Keeps you relevant and in mind
Gives you control of when and how you engage with your audience
Although it might seem less glamorous than social media, email newsletters are incredibly effective at driving sales and building relationships with your audience.
You can also consider creating a recurring YouTube series or podcast with the goal of providing ongoing value to your audience on a regular basis.
Does consistently coming up with unique ideas for social media stress you out? You’re not the only one. But it doesn’t have to be a struggle – creating social media posts CAN be EASY!
It’s as simple as this:
Repackage your foundational, or ongoing content into bite-sized social media posts.
Don’t waste any effort creating original short-form Transitory content when you already have a comprehensive library!
You can do this for YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, Tweets, Medium/LinkedIn columns, or TikTok.
Here’s where it all comes together: your social media content should feed attention directly through to your perpetual and recurring content.
You can do this by providing snippets of high-value that tease what you offer and incentivize checking your stuff out further. From there you build a rapport with your audience, and have a loyal customer base waiting for when you launch your products!
Ultimately, the goal is to escape the constant hamster wheel of churning out social media posts.
You may need to keep your head down and use social media for 4-6 months to boost the initial growth of your email newsletter/YouTube channel/podcast. But, after that, your audience will grow naturally through word of mouth and organic traffic!
It is possible to thrive without a complicated content funneling strategy, or slaving away at social media. You might not be able to quit daily social media immediately, but you can 100% start working towards your transition.
Develop 8-10 SEO-friendly foundation articles (don’t necessarily have to rank on search engines)
Launch an email newsletter (optionally add a podcast or YouTube channel)
Create content on social media to drive traffic to your foundation articles until organic growth sustains your newsletter
Consider focusing on easy-to-maintain content like email newsletters, YouTube channels, and podcasts. These platforms help build trust and are simple to manage.
It is possible to curate a simple, sustainable, and effective content creation strategy without relying on social media – it may just take a little patience 🙂
