One of the best parts of Thanksgiving is the day-after leftovers. Sure, it’s the same turkey you had the night before, but serving it cold on slices of bread offers a different appeal.
You can do the same thing with your content.
Repurposing or repackaging existing content in new formats, channels, or media is a cost-efficient way to extend the reach of your work, reinforce key messages, and maximize your content’s value.
What is repurposing?
Just like rearranging leftover turkey and dressing on a sandwich, repurposing just means reformatting content you already have.
This can be done in several ways. For example:
- Repackaging a webcast into a “key takeaways” blog post
- Spotlighting key research findings in an infographic
- Excerpting a listicle blog into a LinkedIn carousel post
- Animating an informational guide in an explainer video
Typically, repurposing focuses on shortening or excerpting content from a long-form or detailed piece (i.e., the meal) into bite- or snack-sized content.
But you can go the other way, as well. For example, you can create a pillar page on your website that consolidates several short articles on a single topic.
Why should you invest in repurposing content?
Repurposing content offers several advantages with few (if any) downsides.
First, the hard work is already done. You’ve completed the research, analysis, writing, and design, and the resulting piece has made it through reviews. The effort it takes to repurpose content is always less than creating something from scratch. With a modest additional investment, you can develop a suite of materials to reinforce your messaging.
While experts may argue about what constitutes “effective frequency,” there’s little doubt that audiences need to see your message multiple times before they will engage or act on it.
Secondly, it gives you an opportunity to reach new audiences. By repurposing your content into a new format, you can change the tone or channel to reach new or additional audiences.
For example, a government agency might develop a highly technical report to inform legislators, their staffs, and other decision makers about a critical issue. For a busy policymaker with a dozen pressing issues, a companion infographic can surface the key findings and potentially elevate the report to the top of their reading list. It can also help federal staffers solicit input on the issue from constituents.
By pulling key points from the report to create infographics, short videos, or blog posts, you can reach people who don’t want or need the details, methods, or dense jargon.
Finally, depending on the new format, you can reap additional channel-specific benefits like boosting SEO, feeding an email nurture campaign, or engaging followers.
How should you repurpose your content?
Like most things in life, the answer to this question is – it depends.
All decisions involved in repurposing a piece of content should be driven by your communications objective. Determine which format will allow you to deliver the message to the right audience via the right channel and create supplemental pieces.
At Spire, our content strategists excel at spotting opportunities for clients to maximize content budgets through repurposing and other strategies. Contact us to learn more and talk about new ways to expand your reach.
