Killer content curation tactics Laura Crest, blog editor & content curator for SuccessWorks, SEO Copywriting.com 1

So what is content curation? ✤ Lee Odden, CEO of Top Rank Marketing, asked 10 content marketing experts to define the term ✤ Ann Handley of Marketing Profs said: “...Content curation is the act of continually identifying, selecting and sharing the best and most relevant online content and other online resources...on a specific subject to match the needs of a specific audience.” 2

Why should it matter to you? ✤ Rebecca Lieb of Econsultancy said it well: “Why bother? Tons of reasons....In an era where marketing is supplanting advertising and storytelling is an ever-more essential part of the marketing message, carefully curated content - well presented - is an immense brand asset, be it to a humble, over-caffeinated individual blogger or a Fortune 100 company.” 3

Credibility, trust, & authority: the branding benefits of curation ✤ Once the sacred realm of journalists, content curation is now recognized as not only a way to build your brand, but build trust in your brand ✤ Offering superior, well- organized & truly useful content - consistently & over time - can help establish you/your brand/your client’s as a trusted, go-to source of valuable information. Golden! 4

✤ Set up a separate address specifically for subscriptions ✤ Set up an RSS feed if you’re into that (and if it’s an option) ✤ Set up Gmail alerts for select topic interests (e.g., “SEO copywriting”) and favorite sources (e.g., “Heather Lloyd-Martin,” “Danny Sullivan”) ✤ Use bookmarks for sources you may just want to check periodically So how to do this?

More on how to curate content ✤ Monitor (and engage with) relevant forums, groups, & blogs for topic threads & links ✤ Social Networking Sites - Twitter, FaceBook, LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest ✤ Bookmarking Sites - StumbleUpon, Delicious, etc. 6

✤ Use hashtags (#) on Twitter to segment your interests (e.g., #SEO, #Content Marketing), then follow the yellow brick road of links cited ✤ Make a point of following industry thought leaders ✤ Use a smart Twitter application to save precious time (e.g., HootSuite, TweetDeck) 7 Twitter for serendipity

Curate the curators! ✤ There are many sources of weekly curated content, and their number is growing by the day. ✤ Be discerning: look for authority and expertise not only with the source, but with the individual contributor(s) cited. ✤ That said, weekly (and daily) “roundups”, “wraps”, “recaps”, etc., can be great sources of “pre-curated”, quality content - and perhaps more importantly, of links for cultivating your own content curation list. ✤ Notable daily’s include Search Marketing Land & sister site, Marketing Land. Exceptional weekly’s include SEO Copywriting, Social Media Examiner, State of Search, HubSpot, GigaOm & Reel SEO (video). 8

Don’t forget the news! ✤ It’s easy to forget more mainstream online resources like the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Fortune, and Forbes. ✤ These sources often “catch” news relevant to the industry before the industry does, & offer valuable context & links 9

Professional journals & online magazines ✤ There are also hidden “gems” in the way of both print & online professional journals & magazines ✤ These sources are goldmines for original thought and hard data ✤ Exemplary online sources include Target Marketing Magazine, Open View Partners, Entrepreneur, Website Magazine, & Marketing Sherpa 10

What to take away from this ✤ Content curation, done well, can not only help establish your brand, but it can also infuse it with “cred” = golden! ✤ There are scads of resources for curation: news, social media, blogs, forums, pre- curated dailies & weeklies, professional journals & online magazines ✤ Set up a smart, streamlined system for cultivating content 11

Talk to me! ✤ Thank you for gracing me with your presence! ✤ Should you wish to contact me with any questions, thoughts, feedback, or fantastic guest posts, please do! ✤ ✤ 12