Top 10 Content Curation Strategies To Make The Most Of In 2023

Here at SocialPlanner we always say ‘content is king’ and there’s a reason for this belief – what is the internet without content? There are literally millions of website pages filled with all sorts of content. However, much of this content is rubbish and not worth the time it takes to view. That’s because even the best companies don’t always know what content to create. That’s where content curation comes in – using other people’s awesome content to enhance the quality of your websites, blogs and social media accounts.

In this post, we will show you the top 10 strategies of content curation that will make you stand a few feet above your competition. Of course, it takes time, but if you are determined to be the best, it won’t be impossible or too difficult.

Without further ado, let’s dive into this topic.

What Exactly Is Content Curation?

When you’re creating content it is something that you make on your own, inspired by your own ideas. Curation is when you use the content of other people and share it. This will be shared on your social media platforms or wherever else you have your own content.

It is a powerful way to grow your audience and customer base while also saving money and time. Let’s be honest, creating high-quality content takes a lot of time and dedication. And if you’re running a brand, you don’t always have time to sit down and create content. So, content curation it is.

Even the most seasoned content creators share content from industry leaders or influencers. It helps to add more value to what they already have. If you have a decent content marketing strategy, chances are you’ll have content curation as one of your plans.

There are many places where you can introduce your audience to your curated content. You can do so on social media, in emails, on your blogs and in your newsletters. Wherever you are sharing your own content, there is a place for curated content.

However, and this is a big however, you have to do it the right way or things could blow up in your face. You could even be accused of stealing other people’s work.

You have to find the right content and make sure it reflects your brand and your company’s image. Sharing random content just because you find it entertaining is not recommended. It has to be content that is of value to your audience.

The Benefits Of Good Content Curation

Apart from the obvious benefit of freeing up your own time, content curation is popular for many other reasons.

With a good approach, you can increase the SEO (search engine ranking) of your content. Brand visibility will also be boosted as the content reaches more people. This means more traffic driven to your websites which results in more organic reach as well. 

Another bonus is that you’re likely to get more engagement if you’ve got a variety of content on offer. With proper content curation, you will also build on your brand’s authority in your industry.

Top 10 Content Curation Strategies To Make The Most Of

1. Get An Understanding Of Your Audience

Of course, this is something that you should already have if you’re creating and sharing content. We discuss having a clear image and idea of your audience in all our guides on digital marketing. Without knowing who you’re trying to get hooked and entertain, you cannot possibly give them what they want.

You can ask yourself a few questions to make sure that you have this important understanding. For example, what does your audience look for when seeking information?

It is also important that you have identified your audience’s needs and wants. Know the kind of content they like to share on social media. Does your audience like reviews or how-to-lists? Are they keeping up with industry trends?

One very effective way to answer all your questions is to do some online surveys. Keep them short and to the point to avoid people running away from your surveys. Ask simple questions but keep them relevant to your industry and niche? Also, let people share their suggestions – you’ll be surprised what you can learn from this.

Note – don’t ask ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions. Instead, keep your questions open-ended. For example, don’t ask ‘do you like wine?’ Ask, instead, ‘what kind of wine do you like most?’.

2. Be Clear About Your Content Curation Goals

The very first step of curating the right content is knowing what your audience wants and then building goals around that. You need to know what content is good enough and which you will just be skipping. There are actually four big bonuses to content curation and you can make them your goals.

They are:

• SEO

With this goal, you will be using content that is mostly in the form of infographics, intra-page links and articles. All this will go toward optimising your search engine performance. 

• Thought Leadership

If you want to show your audience that you are a leader in your industry, this goal will be very important. You will curate content that reflects your understanding of your industry and community. They will see that you know your customers and their needs and that you care. 

One example of this kind of content curation is having a page dedicated to ‘expert news’ or something similar. Here, you share content from experts in your industry.

3. Be Unique

When you’re using content curation to keep an eye on what’s being created by others in your industry, you’ll have an advantage. You will know what’s being created by others in your niche and what isn’t. That way, you will be able to create fresh and unique content that your competition is yet to think of. Having unique content will make you stand out and get more brand authority.

4. Have Real Value

You have to give your audience content that is not just more fluff or useless information. With that said, don’t just find good and quality curated content and leave it at that. Add your own little gem of value to the content.

Take a moment to add your own thoughts to the content and dress it in such a way that your specific audience will love it. Consider adding some commentary or personal experience to the content. Or add something that all your own content has in common, something that is your own unique ‘personal touch’.

5. Do Your Content Curation From Credible Sources

There is a lot of content to be found on the internet so you’re not limited when it comes to sources. You are, however, more limited when it comes to quality. Not everything out there is worth your time or the time of your audience. It is up to you to curate content that is going to matter to your audience. 

You need to check the trustworthiness of your sources. Do they actually know what they’re talking about? Are they involved in the community and aware of the industry’s unique needs and trends?

Does your source have some sense of credibility with its own audience? Is the content they share relevant and informed? Can you verify the content’s accuracy?

Having all this information is important because if you share something with your audience, you are showing your support for it. Sharing content that is dubious will harm your brand’s reputation and reliability.

6. Ethics Matter

When you are sharing someone else’s content there is an ethical way to do it and that’s the way you should always go.

There are two rules that you should always stick to when it comes to content curation.

• Rule One

Credit the source – when you are sharing a person’s content, give them credit. Make sure that everyone can clearly see where you got the content. Also, link back to the original source in your blog or post.

• Rule Two

Respect copyrights – make sure that you are not infringing on any legal copyrights when you curate content. You don’t want to step on anyone’s toes and be accused of theft or acting unethically.

7. Be Creative And Share Fresh Content

You want to attract new people and grow your audience. The best way to do that with content curation is to find original and fresh content. Don’t share something that everyone in your industry is sharing. You won’t be giving anyone something they’ll want to engage with if you do that.

Instead, find content that your audience likely has never seen before. You may have to do some extra research for this, but it pays off. If you are first to share something of value, your audience will want to come to you for new and fresh content.

Perhaps you can curate content but add your own spin. This goes hand-in-hand with being unique with your content. Don’t be one of many sites and blogs that share the same content. Give people something new.

Be a trend-finder and an analyst – share what you find with your audience. One way to find new content is to keep an eye on social media. There is a lot to be found on social streets. You can also promote the content of experts and influencers in your industry this way.

8. Less Is More

Someone wise once said ‘less is more’ and those words are very true. Rather than flooding your audience with useless information, give them quality over quantity. Share content that has value. Don’t just go out and find as much content as you can to share.

Sure, you can build up a library of curated content, but don’t share it at once. If you want, you can use a scheduling tool such as SocialPlanner to determine when to share content.

9. Be About The Community

If you want your brand to be trusted and valued, you should be involved with your community. You want them to know that they matter to you and that you carry their best interests in your heart. People should know that you are not just about money and sales but pleasing them. That is what customers want – to be treated as if they are special. 

It may sound difficult to achieve this with content curation, but it’s not impossible. Share great content and add your unique voice to it. Speak to your audience, ask their opinions. This will go a long way to creating a real connection with the people you hope to attract.

10. Evaluate The Success Of Your Content Curation

With any real marketing strategy, you have to evaluate its progress and success. The same needs to be done with content curation. You have to know if the content you are finding and sharing is actually doing something good for your brand. Is it worth spending time on the content you’re sharing? There is a lot to be said about curated content, as long as you share the right content.

Look at whether you’ve managed to get more email list subscriptions since you started sharing your curated content. This will reflect the interest in your brand – has it grown or not?

Has your click-through rates improved? If it has, your content carries relevance to your audience. Any new subscriptions and unsubscribes will also show you if your content is doing what it’s meant to.

On your blogs and websites, you can also monitor the number of new visitors and how long they stick around. This will show you if people are truly interested in your new content.

Your social media accounts are also easy to monitor – look at retweets, likes and shares. Has your content curation led to an increase?

Conclusion

Right, so we have shown you how to use content curation to add more flavour to your content. As long as you use these strategies, you will be able to achieve your goals with ease. Of course, as is the case with all marketing, you will have to work hard. Dedication and passion are necessary and combined with our advice, you will reap many rewards. Good luck!