Content curation, which can also be referred to as content “repackaging”, is becoming increasingly popular on the web. As Brian Solis, a principal at the Altimeter Group and a prominent “thought leader” once said:

“Information becomes currency and the ability to repackage something of interest as compelling, consumable and also [as a] sharable social object is an art.”

Some marketing companies abhor content curating. They say it’s ripping off pre-existing content and that it’s the end of intellectual property rights. But in a world where all information is quickly old news, chances are that most content out there is more than 99.9% curated.

What does Content Curating Look Like?

Content curation isn’t just about re-writing articles in a way that may be more entertaining than another piece of similar content, or giving a different point of view. Content curating is also about using different mediums to get that content out to your readers. Some forms in which curated content frequently appears include:

Why Curate Content?

Content that has been curated is a trustworthy source. Take the folks over at boingboing.net for example. This blog regularly outranks NYTimes.com in popularity, when all the website does is basically curate content that is often taken from sources like the New York Times website. Ironic.

Curated content often sites their sources, and a lot of people find curated content in the form of videos and blogs to be more informative and more entertaining than the information that’s provided in other sources, like newspapers.

Blogs, videos, and websites have the ability to put a unique spin and point of view on a story or piece of news, something which newspapers (apart from editorials) don’t really have the ability to do. Curated content is more interesting, more personable, and more engaging than a lot of other sources providing the same information.

Inbound Marketing and Curated Content

As you can see, a vast amount of curated content exists online, and in a whole lot of different forms. If you really want to capitalize on curated content, you can’t just use one medium to share it (i.e. through a blog). The best way to do this is to use as many different online mediums as possible, like posting videos on YouTube or Hulu.

Here’s another reason why inbound marketing is important when it comes to curated content: you can optimize that curated content so that it will give you a huge boost in the search engines. Just think about it: if you’re curating a breaking news story about something that is happening NOW and get it up on the web, it could rank as high up as many popular newspapers and news blogs.

Getting a high ranking for just one story will bring in a ton of new visitors to your blog every single time. Most people who visit blogs will check out some other articles on that blog, especially if it’s of a particular niche that piques their interest, and they can easily become a regular visitor to your site. As a result, you:

  • Become a trusted source of information.
  • Visitors will trust in what you promote.
  • Down the line, when you promote a product or service of yours, those visitors who trust you and who may have even become brand loyalists will be far more prone to make a purchase.

Key Takeaways

Curating content is becoming essential if you want to stay relevant on the web and get a real SEO boost. While some marketing firms may frown upon curating content, the fact of the matter is that everyone does it and that it is an effective way to drive traffic to your website.

Every method of curated content can easily lead to more traffic to your website or blog, designate you as a trusted source of information, which can then eventually lead to sales and brand loyalists.

The more methods of content curation you use, the greater the audience you’ll reach. Really, it’s all win-win.

Need Help?

If content creation is something you are interested in but are having trouble getting started, contact us today to schedule your free marketing analysis.