As surprising as it may seem, most marketers do not even consider this question. That is because they assume that content creation is one of the most effective strategies to attract visitors, generate leads, and drive conversions.
We could not agree more. Creating and posting unique content regularly not only improves organic search engine rankings, but also has a positive impact on online presence, reach, and traffic.
Now, the question is, “Does original content attract and convert more visitors than curated content?”. According to industry experts, sharing content developed by other people can also help generate leads, if done correctly.
To begin with, successful content curation involves much more than just sharing a good article. To attract leads, you should also present your ideas and frame that piece of content, explaining why people should check it out.
Finding the Sweet Spot
One of the best examples of content curation we have come across is a collection of free documentaries available online at Top Documentary Films. The team behind TDF has used curated content to encourage people to comment on their posts, which has brought them a domain authority score of 76. Quite impressive, isn’t it?
Similarly, you can create a weekly blog post that presents the most relevant industry news. You can also write blog posts based on the latest studies or reports relevant to your niche and then provide a link to the original source towards the end of your posts. Regardless of the content curation method you opt for, always include a comment form, which can help you broaden your reach, boost your rankings, and get more leads.
Coming back to our question, what should you do? Should you curate or create content? To be completely honest, the choice is not between content curation and creation; you should be doing both. Why? Because each alternative has its pros and cons.
Advantages and disadvantages of content creation:
- Is tailored to your niche – The content you create not only is targeted to your audience; it is also specific to your brand and targets your keywords, supporting organic search.
- Is unique and original – You can use your own voice, which means that the content you create stands out from the crowd and gives you the chance to become a purple cow in the content marketing world.
- Can be reused – When you create your own content, you do not have to worry about copyright infringement. Since you own the content, you can reuse it whenever you want.
- Requires time and money – Everyone knows that developing original content takes a lot of time. If you do not have time, you need to hire someone else to create content for your company, which can be quite expensive.
Advantages and disadvantages of content curation:
- Can help build trust – Curated content providing links towards high-authority sources can turn your blog into a credible source of information for your audience.
- Supports search engine optimisation – Including unique commentaries and links to original sources in your posts can help with search engine optimisation.
- Is less time consuming – It takes less time to search for and share content than to create an article or blog post from scratch.
- May advertise your competitors’ products and services – When linking to competitive content, it is very important to present competitors fairly without losing your potential customers.
A few valuable takeaways (and curated content examples):
- curated content will become an essential piece of the content marketing puzzle, especially for those trying to update their target audiences with industry news, said Mike Juba, Content Marketing Strategist. Read the recent post at OpenTopic;
- according to Rebecca Lieb, Marketing Analyst, you may need to create content, curate content, or do both to be successful in 2015. Read the original article at OpenTopic;
- with a strong content distribution strategy, you can reach your audience and boost your online presence, said Emma Rugge-Price, Vice President at GE Australia, in the article “5 predictions on content marketing trends and strategy in 2015”.