Lessons from Successful Blogs on Recycling Published Content
It’s all about time management and strategy.
Due to my job I have to create 10–15 new blog posts per day for several blogs. Digital copywriters are soldiers of words. They work under a very strict schedule day after day, producing more than 5.000 words daily.
Most content writers will agree that creating more than 5000 words a day isn’t an easy task if you’re not used to writing every day. Therefore,
spending at least 4–6 hours for word crafting is a common routine for most professionals in copywriting.
But some days are not as productive as others. Having a back plan in different ways of recycling your content could save the day and boost your writing when you are under a dry spell. Let’s see how successful bloggers put into action clever recycling methods for their content.
1) Share a New Angle
Visit some of your top-performing older posts and find a new perspective to write about as a continuous ongoing conversation under the same topic.
Some topics can generate an amazingly vast variety of different sub-topics. It would clever to link the new perspectives to the first one, making your readers participate in the evolution of the subject.
Having said that, why don’t you invite your readers to the conversation?
2) Ask your Readers to Participate
Give your followers and readers the opportunity to join the conversation. Fire questions that would give them a good reason to send you their point of view. Embrace different opinions and you will be surprised by the engagement.
3) Infographics are Traffic Boosters
Use the information from your blog post to create an Infographic or detailed PDF. This step will provide you the opportunity to use both in other related posts and drive new visits by linking to the old ones.
Did you know that an Infographic or/and a PDF can generate 1000 more views per day than a regular blog post?
4) Try Podcasts
Pick your best blog posts and produce high-quality podcast material. Then design a series of discussions on the subject with other top professionals in your industry. Being open to audio conversations seems to be appealing to younger audiences.
5) Show Yourself in Videos
When you have to choose between reading a post or watching a short video about the same subject, which would you prefer?
The majority of people (91%) prefer to watch a video and especially a How-To video from a person they trust his/her skills. So, if you have established a level of authority & credibility in your industry then it’s about time to take the next step and stand in front of a camera.
Even short spontaneous videos on social media tend to attract the attention of the human eye by 670% more than a written caption.
6) Interviews
You already have the content published on your posts. Take the main ideas, form up to 10 questions, and set up a series of interviews with fellow professionals. Or even better, make yourself available for interviews on specific topics. This could help you to produce outstanding new content based on your existing blog posts.
7) Compare & Share
Let’s say that you have already published two posts about Video Marketing and PodCasting Marketing. Write a new piece of work comparing these two types of marketing such as Video Marketing vs PodCasting Marketing. You can use the content from your older posts but with a different approach.
8) Publish a Book
Pick the best long-form content you have, make the necessary editing, find a self-publishing platform like LuLu, and publish your book in different versions. Some people love to read printed books but some others prefer ebooks. Go get published and then present your book in a brand new post or an interview or a video or a public speech or a workshop. You’ve got the picture, right?
9) Workshops
If you have published more than 10 extended posts about a specific topic, think about the potential to transform your published work into a workshop. Then run your online workshop on different platforms and use the questions from the audience to create new content.
10) Public Speaking Events
Get out there and speak publically about your strengths. The last time I gave a public speech brought back 250.000 hits in two days for the two blog posts relating to the presentation of the event. Ten months later and after five new posts, the original two blog posts get more than 3.000 hits daily.
11) Shared Posts
Ask fellow bloggers to add their point of view in the form of sharing Pro Opinion:
- 10 Bloggers Share Their Top Tips for …
- What to avoid in your first year of blogging by 8 successful bloggers
- How to handle a bad blogging month according to 6 top-notch bloggers
Look in groups for bloggers that would be interested to write a copy of 500–800 words with their opinion on a specific topic. Then use their contribution (with proper credits) and your content to create a new blog post. Networking and great content in action!
12) Create Social Media Posts
Divide your topics by interest and mood, then find the best lines from your work and prepare your next social media posts for LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, or other social media channels.
In case you receive comments with any kind of remarkable ideas, use them to create new posts. I have found some outstanding ideas in the comments area or in the messages I get on social media. Most of my FAQ sections are based on queries inside social media.
Also, use parts of your content as comment material on social media platforms. Especially on LinkedIn where you may need more elaborate answers if you want to be highly active.
13) Quora World
You already have the published content. Visit Quora and find the right questions for making your posts the perfect answers. Copy & paste part of your published content under the relative questions, add the proper links and hit publish. The community could help you find spectacular ideas to use your existing content in new posts.
14) Host an Online Meetup
I write countless posts about content creation, blogging, and SEO every year. Hosting meetups came as a natural next step. Sharing an interesting conversation with other copywriters on how to master the game of SEO copywriting, is one of my favorite activities.
Besides that, interaction with people who are trying to advance their content marketing strategy can produce amazing new topics. Have a look at how the 30 Day Blogging Challenge started. One lecture was the inspiration for one blog post and a challenge. That particular post was the stepping stone for 15 more new ones. And 2 new contracts for business blogging collaborations.
15) AMA Ask Me Anything Sessions
Are you an expert? Then throw yourself into the wolfs! Make time to be reachable to your audience. Schedule AMA sessions at least once per 60 days. Set a topic and let people ask you anything regarding the general theme. Keep notes or even better record the sessions and then use the conversation as new content material.
Usually, before my AMA sessions both my assistants prepare a selection of the published material, matching the possible questions. During the AMA session, they reply in the comments area by adding parts or links from the selected published posts. And here it is… a brand new approach under the given topic.
16) Case studies
Case studies can be excellent conversation starters for common issues like how to create new content for a certain type of service. Creating long-form (more than 3000 words) posts for a guide that solves a set of pain points could be the best way to combine many older posts after editing them.
17) Newsletters
Stating the obvious here… Use your content to write superb newsletters. Make your email subscribers want more from you. Share knowledge and proven ways to improve their skills. Add parts from your posts to write new content for the people waiting to get your newsletter in their inbox.
Newsletter announcements can actually become compelling new blog posts. From time to time, publish a collection of your best newsletters for hot topics. This could help you craft spectacular new content by using your existing content.
My golden tip on this: shed light behind the scenes if you want to keep your audience's attention alive.
18) Press Releases are Pure Gold
Select some of the top names in the market and let them know that you are open to sharing their Press Releases. Get the hot news in advance and secure your 15% new content each year. Keep your radar active for significant events or conferences that could be a good match for your blog.
19) Become a Guest Blogger
Reach out to other professional bloggers when they run a blogging challenge and participate (the best way you can). You can actually use some of your published work in combination with new content, share your post in their challenge, and then invite them to join your blogging challenge.
20) Dare to be transparent
At the end of the month, publish your growth insights. Dare to be transparent with your statistics. Followers spend more the 40 minutes reading posts that present what works best in a variety of industries. In my case, my monthly growth report gets more than 58.000 hits on the first two days.
21) Reviews
Write reviews for products, services, brands, locations, books, CDs, music, events, restaurants, hotels, and anything you can think of. Write mature and well-structured reviews and when it is possible add a line or two from your published content. Remember to use your public username associated with your blog’s gravatar.
Google Local Guides, Google My Business Posts, and Google Reviews can provide an excellent opportunity to recycle your content while you are putting your mark on the map.
22) One Extra Tip for Speed
Clean your website from any forgotten trash that holds it down to the ground. Here is a list of what to do in order to skyrocket your website’s speed:
Author’s Note
Have you ever tried any of these? What has worked best for your blog? Share your experience with us in the comments.
