Ask a marketing team what they struggle with the most and chances are good they'll say content creation.
There's also good reason why creating content remains a major hurdle for marketing teams: it is always easier said than done. At this point, 80 percent of companies are using content marketing, which makes it crucial for each and every one to stand out and engage target audiences.
The mass adoption of content marketing has also made it harder than ever for marketers to consistently produce content that breaks through the noise to attract, engage and convert new audiences.
A big part of why content creation is such a daunting task for so many marketers, stems from the fact that
But despite the perceived roadblocks, creating uniquely valuable content on a consistent basis doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming - for you or anyone else.
As proof, here are 5 ways you and your team can instantly create quality content that is as effective as it is efficient.
1. Content Curation
Put together a list of tools, resources, etc. based on your audiences' pain points or interests.
Examples:
- Top 10 Books for ________
- 10 Best Tools for __________
- Top 25 _____ Statistics Every _____ Need(s) to Know
- Top 5 blog posts on how to ________
2. Research Trending Topics & Search Trends
When you're struggling to come up with fresh, new ideas for content, do some research on your audience or trending topics in the industry.
Using keyword research tools online, you can quickly identify and prioritize problems your audience is looking to solve or questions they need answered. You can also use social listening tools to figure out which topics are driving the most conversations online.
Recommended Tools:
3. Repurposing Content
Done well, content repurposing can serve as a sort of swiss army knife for marketers. If you're looking for an easy way to instantly create content and get more mileage out of previous posts, this is the way to go.
For instance, you can repurpose top performing blog posts into an infographic, slideshare, etc. You can also turn several blog posts on related topics into an eBook or Whitepaper. On the flip side of that, you can turn a piece of gated content (eBook, whitepaper, etc.) into multiple posts with a call-to-action (CTA) to download the full report.
4. Republishing Content
If repurposing content is easy, republishing content is a virtual cake walk.
Your website analytics already tracks all of the data you need to figure out which blog posts or content assets have driven the most traffic/engagement for your website. Ideally, you want to look for the most "evergreen" pieces to minimize the work on your end.
Once you've chosen a post, you can quickly go in and freshen up the original content with updated statistics and a few new insights - maybe even new graphics if you're feeling ambitious - and then update the publish date.
(Note: Whatever you do, do not schedule the post for a future time or date. If that post goes offline for any reason, you will lose all of the SEO and page rankings you've earned up to that point, effectively starting over again from scratch.)
5. Interview An Expert
Simply, put together a short list of interview questions and then send them out to a subject-matter expert.
This strategy is easiest to manage and maintain if you can leverage experts within your company, but external experts - especially in the form of industry influencers - can drive big results for your content strategy.
Of course, there are many more ways to quickly and efficiently create content that drives results for your marketing team.
What tactics do you most often to create content on the fly? Help out your fellow marketers by sharing them in the comments section below!
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* Adapted lead image: 
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