When it comes to curating content to add to your editorial calendar, sometimes it can look pretty simple at a glance, adding topics and planning your next piece — or does it? Content curation may look from the outside as a quick fix to getting content fast, but it is most definitely not. It can be quite the complicated beast.
As you start pulling your sources together to generate your curated content, keep a few myths in mind that can potentially stop you from pointless hours of sorting and brainstorming.
Myth #1: Content Curation Is One Size Fits All. Just like any content or SEO strategy, content curation does not always fit into one box for every niche. You can curate content for any industry, but the most effective methods may vary from one niche to another. When you are in the first steps of developing a content curation strategy, carefully analyze the kind of content that performs well in your industry. This will make your strategy a bit quicker when you start curating, because your sources will be a little more obvious. Once you have a handle on the best content sources for your niche, your next curating effort should be a breeze.
Myth #2: Content Curation Is Quick. Quick content curation is not a myth in many industries. This is especially the case for niches Internet marketing, pop culture, and fitness. However, quick content curation is not always the case for some unlucky industries. Highly technical or obscure fields might have to spend a lot longer hunting down gems in their industry, especially if there are very few sources of good content available. With that said, curating content in difficult fields is not impossible. Luckily, there are powerful tools such as Scoop.it that have a large database for finding the best topics possible in your niche.
Myth #3: Content Curation Is All Automated. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if automation were truly the case? Unfortunately, content curation is a bit more complicated than that. As I mentioned before, tools like Scoop.it are great for pulling tons of content sources into one convenient platform. However, the results page is pretty much the end of the road in terms of automation. To really find the best content curation opportunities, a keen eye combined with industry expertise is the surefire way to finding your best curation opportunities. Often times, your brain can produce better curation results than any automated tool.
Myth #4: Your Influencers Know What’s Best. A lot of industries have a few top dogs that blaze trails in terms of content. While every company strives to become that trailblazer, it is essential that you really understand what your influencers are putting out for their content, and why. Unless your business is a copycat replica of your influencer, you may want to consider seeking out other sources for content inspiration. Sometimes the content from your influencers can leave big gaps and unanswered questions. You might think that their content is gold, but read between the lines and ask yourself how their content can benefit your audience.
Myth #5: Content Curation Is The Same Thing As Copy/Paste. Before you think that curating content is the same process as highlight, right click, copy, paste, it’s time to re-think your definition of curation. Content curation is a completely ethical opportunity to find content that your audience will love from other sources. With that in mind, giving credit where it is due sets you apart from those content-swiping online pirates. You never want to pass off curated content as your own, and providing a link back to the original source is the best way to give credit. SEO tip: make sure that your credit link is dofollow, so your source can benefit from link building advantages.
Myth #6: Curated Content Upstages Your Original Content. If your curated content overpowers your original content, it is time to prioritize and develop a new content strategy STAT. Curated content is meant to be served as a compliment to your own content. If you are afraid that your own content is truly taking a back seat to your curated content, there are several ways to get around this issue:
- Use your curated content as leverage for new content developed by you. As we mentioned before, content from competitors can leave gaps and unanswered questions. Use this as an opportunity to answer those questions on a brand new blog post of your own.
- Take your curated content and repurpose it into another form of useful content, but always remember to add your own twist.
- Use tools such as Hubspot’s Blog Topic Generator to create brand new topics for your own blog.
- Create more than you curate; soon enough, you will probably find that your own original content is being curated by competitors.
Myth #7: You Aren’t a Thought Leader If You Use Third Party Content. Truthfully, I can see why digital marketers would initially think this. When I first heard of curating content, I thought the same thing. However, I quickly learned that this could not be further from the truth. Curating third party content actually does make you a thought leader for several reasons:
- You show honesty: you show your audience that sometimes your influencers can write something or present something better than you. You can’t always be the best at everything, and that is OK.
- You can actually connect with said influencer by mentioning them on Twitter when you link to their article or content piece and get them to potentially follow you, thus building a very valuable connection.
- You build credibility with that third party source, and possibly attract more third parties that want to share the content that you create.
- Curating influencer content helps build your brand, which can lead to gaining a new audience that respects your thoughts.
As you can see, curating content does not make you take a backseat. It is an opportunity to build credibility with both your audience and your influencers.
Myth #8: Content Curation is Predictable. Setting up an editorial calendar is always a wise thing to do, but realize that it might not always flow with your content curation efforts. This is especially true if you use certain topics or categories to build your calendar. For example, sometimes topics in your niche may not be readily available in the form of news stories. If this is the case, don’t place too much emphasis on generating news topics for your curation, because it may or may not be available. Other resources such as Quora might have some solid information one month, but it falls short the next. Always keep your options open for curating your content.
Myth #9: Always Share The Same Sources. You probably have a few favorite go-to sources for curating content, but it never hurts to seek out new sources on a regular basis. Engagement is key when curating content, and switching up your sources and stories will help keep your audience engaged. If you repeatedly use the same sources, your audience will likely just go directly to the source instead of coming to you for new information.
Not to mention, sharing new sources can lead to new relationships in your industry. Your new sources may just end up sharing some of your content to their audience, too.
Myth #10: Sharing a Link is Good Enough. Simply sharing a link is an easy way to curate content, but why not add some extra value? To put yourself in the position of a thought leader, adding your own two cents on a topic can quickly change audience perspective. You don’t necessarily have to come up with something witty or clever, but do try to write an insightful sentence or two. This is the perfect way to add your expert opinion and weigh in on a hot topic in your niche.
Myth #11: Only Share Content That’s Popular. It always makes sense to share content that is hot, trending, and seasonal. But remember, one of the points of curating content is uncovering hidden gems. Lesser-known blogs and sources are perfectly capable of developing top-notch content such as white papers, independent studies, or present content in a way that you have never seen before. Giving smaller sources exposure can encourage them to continue creating valuable content, which in the end will help you curate great sources for your audience. Feel free to share what everyone is talking about, but don’t rule out the smaller guys for your content curation.
Myth #12: Throw Content At The Wall And See What Sticks. While you are curating content from many sources, keep in mind that curation is anything but random. You are cherry picking the absolute best content that you can offer to your audience. Although it might be tempting to grab the first story that pops up and put it on your Facebook page, try to put some thought into what you are sharing. Remember, your expertise and keen eye will make your curated content shine.
Now that your content curation myths and fears are put to rest, you can start strategizing and curating the best content possible for your audience. Don’t keep them waiting!