Content marketing takes many forms. Businesses create and publish articles, business blogs, ebooks and infographics; they distribute enewsletters, press releases, and print brochures; they spread the word via podcasts, webinars and videos. Content tells the brand’s story while providing helpful, valuable information, relevant to the reader or viewer.
But coming up with all of that content is time-consuming; for smaller businesses, “feeding the content beast” on a consistent basis can be daunting. The time and expense involved may be a deterrent to executing a content marketing program. It’s okay to share, retweet and curate other’s work, but publishing proprietary content is important to truly portray your company brand.
Alternating short-form content with long-form content is a time-saving yet impactful solution.
What is short-form content? In the strictest sense, micro-content includes headlines, visuals and social media updates that convey information quickly but without specifics. Longer than micro-content, useful short-form content still provides the helpful, relevant information that is the hallmark of content marketing…but conforms to the needs of creators that are short on time and viewers that are short on attention.
Here are 12 short-form content ideas you might consider:
- Quick tip: a short “how-to” blog post or video
- Recap of the latest industry research or survey
- Short Q & A interview (3 questions you send to an industry leader – post their answers)
- Surprising “I didn’t know that!” facts, stats, data or news about your industry
- Breaking news: how a new law, guideline or regulation affects your customer
- One-minute video that focuses on a respected industry leader, your CEO or another staffer (not a pitch) — visit gloopt.com for ideas
- “Best Of” list with links – to important articles, interviews or blog posts from your industry
- Photo + quick caption (of a new project, new hire, industry development, company milestone event, etc.)
- Case Study (Problem/Resolution/Outcome) – make each section 1-2 sentences
- Pose a question or short survey to customers; do a follow-up post with answers
- Create a “Did you know?” quiz; offer a giveaway or service offer to winner
- Helpful checklist: i.e., End-of-year, New Year, seasonal, compliance, equipment “to do” list
Short 1 or 2-line pieces make excellent social media posts; list a few related facts and they make a blog post. Combine several short-form content pieces and you’ve got an email newsletter.
Keep it short…it’ll be sweet!
Read more: How to Tame the Content Beast