Publishing and Distributing
Learn how to publish and distribute content so that it boosts brand awareness and encourages readers to act and become loyal customers.
In order to generate leads and conversions, excellent content is necessary. However, it won’t matter how amazing the content is if the target audience doesn’t know it exists.
That’s why publishing and distributing content go hand-in-hand as part of any content marketing strategy.
What Is Content Distribution?
Content distribution is the process of sharing and promoting published content. It is how a business presents content to the target audience through different media formats and channels.
With the multitude of media channels and platforms that exist to choose from, as well as the overabundance of content competing for attention, consideration must go into the type of promotion used.
A few examples of the different content types for distribution include:
- ebooks
- Blogs
- Podcasts
- Infographics
- Videos
- Webinars
Also, depending on the target audience and the resources available to the business, the channels used to distribute content will vary. The different channels a business can choose fall into three different categories:
Owned content distribution
The content channel that a business owns is known as an owned channel. A business is able to control when and how the content is published on an owned channel. Examples of this include the company website, blog, email newsletter, social media profiles, etc. The downside to this type of channel is that it can be difficult to gain traction with an audience visiting often.
Earned content distribution
Sometimes referred to as shared channels, an earned channel is when a third party promotes or shares the content created by the business. Examples of third parties include customers, bloggers, or anyone who shares the content free of charge.
Earned channels range from guest post articles to product reviews to social shares and more. Even open forums and communities such as Reddit can be considered an earned channel.
Paid content distribution
Any distribution that the business explicitly pays for is known as a paid content distribution channel. Primary examples that fall under this category include pay-per-click (PPC) and social media ads.
What Is Content Publishing?
Content publishing revolves around the type of content that the business creates and the strategy used to publish it. Most brands distribute various types of content across a mix of platforms. This helps the brand stay competitive and grow brand awareness.
However, when a business is just starting out, it’s often easiest to start with a blog on the company website. Blog posts can help attract organic traffic to a website, are simple to share, and are easy to repurpose into new content formats.
How to Manage and Publish Your Content
To keep content creation and the scheduling of publication consistent, planning is required. Ensuring the entire process is streamlined will help to maximize output and minimize the cost and time that goes into production and publication.
The first step to creating a strategy for this is to establish a content workflow. This means detailing each step of the process, such as outlining, writing, editing, final approval, and then finally publishing.
Use an editorial calendar
An editorial content calendar can help organize each step and phase of content creation and publishing. There are various tools available that can help create a content calendar, such as:
- Excel
- Google Sheets
- Google Calendar
- CoSchedule
- Asana
- Trello
- Monday
By using an editorial calendar, team members working on content will be able to stay aligned and work together. In addition to this, it also provides a useful roadmap to both writers and editors alike.
Create a social media content calendar
Just like an editorial content calendar, a social media content calendar is handy for mapping out all social media posts. This type of calendar can help schedule what social media posts are to be made, plan where the content is shared, track deadlines, and so much more.
Managing multiple social media accounts can turn chaotic easily, so having a social media content calendar to organize it all helps maintain efficiency.
Publish Excellent Content and Have It Seen
Content publishing and distribution comprises a multitude of strategies and channels. To ensure content is properly promoted and seen by the target audience, be sure to consider utilizing more than one distribution channel.
Leverage the appropriate and necessary tools and you will reach any set marketing objectives.
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