How to repurpose content effectively

20 October 2022
3 minutes

Key takeaways
  1. Learn the difference between reusing and repurposing content, and the advantages of both.
  2. Find out how reused and repurposed content fit into your content marketing strategy.
  3. How to create content that is easy to reuse or repurpose.
  4. 5 smart content repurposing tips.

 

Want to get even more impact out of your existing content? That’s where reusing and repurposing content come into play. Below, we show you how to extend the lifespan of your old content, so you can reach even more leads without having to start from scratch every time.

Reuse or repurpose? What’s the difference?

Some marketers use the terms ‘reusing’ and ‘repurposing’ (or ‘recycling’) interchangeably. 

What both methods have in common is that they save time and lower your content creation costs. 

Repurposing especially lets you generate multiple assets using the same text or information

But there are some differences between reusing and repurposing content:

Differences between reusing and repurposing content

Reusing Repurposing
You repost old content in a new channel without changing it. You convert existing content into a new format.
It’s faster than repurposing, because the content doesn’t have to be altered before reusing. It takes some time to revise the content, but it’s still faster than creating all-new text.
It’s ideal for boilerplate content, FAQs, and product text that you want to repeat identically in multiple assets. It’s ideal for reaching new leads with different content consumption preferences.

Why should I reuse or repurpose my content?

Your content is valuable. We all know how long it takes to create new content. So, if you can get more reach out of your content without having to create all-new text each time, you will save time and get a better return on your content marketing investment.

Here are just a few examples of how these tools can fit into your strategy and help you engage with new and existing customers: 

  • Repurpose content from a high-performing blog post or white paper by turning it into an infographic to post on social media.
  • Repurpose the main points of a popular article to create a social media carousel post.
  • Reuse existing FAQ content or product text by embedding it in a blog post related to the same topic or product.

How can I make it easier to reuse or repurpose content?

Considering the advantages of reusing and repurposing content, it’s smart to plan your new content creation projects so that the content can be reused and repurposed later.

Here are some ways to make that happen: 

  • Create evergreen content. Avoid being too specific about dates, or your content will sound outdated if you want to reuse it later. For example, instead of saying ‘Earlier this month…’ say ‘Recently’.
  • Plan for multiple platforms. Instead of saying ‘In this blog post…’ say ‘Below…’ That way, the content will be at home on any platform where you decide to publish it later.
  • Include a list of takeaways. A quick list of takeaways at the start of your text helps your reader know what to expect. But it also gives you and your team a quick reminder of what the content is about in case you want to reuse it later.

5 tips to successfully repurpose your content

To help you get started with repurposing your content, here are 5 useful tips:

  1. Merge it. Combine multiple blog posts to create a larger piece of content like a white paper or long read.
  2. Break it up. Break a white paper into multiple shorter blog posts. You might even use this strategy to ‘ungate’ content, which — according to our 2022 industry report — is one of the major content marketing trends of the year.
  3. Make it visual. Condense the main points of a text into an eye-catching infographic.
  4. Pull quotes. Take inspiring quotes from a customer case or thought leadership piece and post them as images on social media.
  5. Transcribe. Provide a transcript of video or audio content. This appeals to leads who prefer to scan text rather than watch or listen to an entire broadcast.
Image of a person holding a phone with that is using different kind of social channels

Good content has staying power

Whether you reuse or repurpose content, it always comes down to having strong content in the first place. 

If you’re interested in creating high-performance assets that enable you to reach your content marketing goals, please check out our 5 tips for content creation excellence and our article on how to improve the quality and performance of your content. 

To learn more about what Contentoo can do for you, please get in touch with our content advisors!

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