The era we live is one of the best times for content creators to work and thrive in; a solid marketing plan for content creators then will only solidify the path to sustained and long-term growth.
Note: Most of us are hard-wired to think (or you’ve been told, just so that someone else can sell something to you) that it’s “easy” or that you’d “make bank with millions within a week”. That’s not true and I’d only urge you to not think on those lines.
Thankfully, marketing plans for content creators are content-driven. That’s a blessing, given that several “other” businesses struggle to create content to help them grow.
Content creators naturally have content flowing out than they consume (or at least more than they consume) — be it Youtube channels, live streams, social media content (including Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitch, Facebook, or Instagram)
For content creators, “content” is the product. “Content” is the inventory. “Content is what you influence with and access to content is what you’d sell”.
Content for marketing and sales? Check.
Content for content marketing? Check.
Content as product or service? Check.
That’s just how it rolls. New age. New businesses.
Now, I could have created elaborate Venn diagrams, flowcharts, processes and workflows (and I might). Or, I could leave you with a simple point plan to give you (and myself) a firm direction we could take.
Read:
160+ Tools and Platforms Powering the Content Creator Economy
Here’s the marketing plan for creators:
5-Point Marketing Plan for Content Creators
Given that content is in your arsenal as a content creator, it’s still surprising that all of these content assets are not put to effective use.
LinkedIn Live creators tend to focus too much on one platform (LinkedIn, in this case). Or Twitter folks like to stay on Twitter.
If you do livestreams on YouTube or Twitch alone, for instance, you are missing out on the huge reach you still have on other platforms that you’d easily gain by multi-streaming.
You already know way too many marketing ideas, tips, and hacks. The need of the hour is proper workflow processes and ideas to repurpose what you already create as a content creator (regardless of the type of content creator you are and the type of content you create).
Important points take precedence first:
Use and Switch Calls-to-Action (CTA)
Create landing pages first (use Unbounce, Leadpages, or Instapage — which are complete landing page builders). Most nocode website builders along with the likes of Webflow and WordPress also allow you to create landing pages.
Even email service providers such as ConvertKit, MailerLite, Moosend, and Mailchimp provide you with landing pages you can use (more on email marketing below).
Regardless, calls-to-action should point your potential audience and customers to dedicated landing pages.
Now that you created multiple landing pages (one or a few for each of the actions you want people to take), your call-to-action types (links, buttons, prompts, sticky bars, popups, and so) will point to these specific landing pages.
The final step is to use relevant calls-to-action prompts for each of those content assets you use:
Blog posts with calls-to-action leading to free digital product downloads, paid digital products or courses, memberships, webinars or live streams, and more.
Likewise with PDF reports, eBooks, and other downloads.
Casual live streams or instant live streams (on the fly) point to an invite for a more focused webinar (with offers and coupons at the end with special discounts or offers).
YouTube videos (depending on topics) should have descriptions leading people to sign up (on landing pages) for something you want them to do (asking for subscriptions and likes is useless).
Email Marketing (The Content Creator Version)
Whatever you choose to do (above and below), if there’s one thing you should pick and do, it’s email marketing. No it’s not dead (it’s thriving) and it’s the single post important thing you’d do for marketing.
Just choosing an email marketing service won’t do either.
The way it works is this: your calls-to-action points to relevant landing page. People sign up. Use email marketing to nurture your subscribers and convert them into lifelong customers.
Now, just because someone signed up (and is now tagged and segmented in your email marketing system), it doesn’t mean they’ll fall head over heels in love and pledge their credit card yet.
Use a combination of broadcast emails, automated nurturing email sequences, smart personalization, segmenting, tagging, and being relevant to make the magic work.
Best email marketing tools for your eCommerce business (depending on what you do):
MailerLite: Content Creators & Other businesses, also eCommerce
MooSend: For all businesses
ConvertKit: Content creators, bloggers, membership site owners, one-person businesses, online course creators, or if you sell digital products.
Drip: eCommerce
Klaviyo: eCommerce
Mailchimp: For most businesses
However, email subscribers won’t buy without you adding more value to the mix (delivered in any form, including emails).
Further, you’d have to wait until “it’s the right time for your customers” for them to make a purchase decision — which explains why you have a continuous string of emails (automated or otherwise) to influence, inform, answer questions, manage objections, and more.
Extend Platform Footprint
If Instagram is where you do your magic, use tools like Semrush Social Media Planner, Buffer, or HootSuite to slightly change that content suited for other platforms such as Twitter.
Blogging is your primary “content creation”? Pick up shorter content blocks from your blog posts and reuse those as Twitter threads, LinkedIn posts, LinkedIn articles, Posts on Medium, and so on.
If your brand mainly depends on Webinars, each of those webinars is full of content that can be converted into relatively shorter YouTube Videos and further as even shorter clips for social media.
For live streams, cut out the ramble and use more important content clips (from within your live streams) as shorter videos for YouTube or social media.
Clips of Twitch streams can also be repurposed and shared as videos (short or long) on other platforms.
Reshare TikTok videos and Instagram reels as YouTube Shorts.
Now, “expanding your platform footprint” doesn’t have to force you into every single platform out there.
Instead of Instagram alone, think: Instagram + Twitter + Facebook + YouTube
Instead of blogging alone, think: Blog posts + LinkedIn Posts (some derived from previous blog posts)+ LinkedIn articles + LinkedIn Newsletter
Bonus: Each blog post can also serve as scripts for LinkedIn Live Streams, YouTube Videos, YouTube Live, Facebook Live, and other live streams and webinars you do.
Cut out the crap from inside your head on thoughts about any particular platform such as: Is it worth it? Is it good? I hate Facebook. I don’t like Instagram. LinkedIn is crap. Twitter is nonsense?
You don’t have to have an “opinion” on social media platforms to tap into the reach each of these social platforms have.
Visualize and track data (Use Databox in addition to Google Analytics along with specific platform analytics you have access to)
Make decisions based on that data (Instagram works better or YouTube? LinkedIn or Twitter?)
Replatform or change platforms based on data. ( Do more with LinkedIn than whatever you do on Twitter)
Expand Content Assets
If you are a blogger, add other content assets like YouTube videos, reports, eBooks, online courses (Use platforms like Podia, Thinkific, and Payhip — connected to your branded domain name with subdomains).
Service providers can also sell digital products, start memberships (with tight service packages also called as productized services).
Start coaching or live training using webinar platforms or paid live streaming (exclusive to paid members). However, don’t just stick to these modes of delivering content.
Start expanding content assets into downloadable checklists, short “Sign up to access” videos and other content.
Variety in content reaches more people since not everyone reads “only” blogs or watching videos at the cost of everything else. Nothing is black or white.
There’s grey everywhere and you’ll thrive as long as you are in the grey area.
Internet consumption is a mixed bag. So why focus on one type of content alone?
Repurpose content assets
The types of content you create as a content creator doesn’t have to be a one-time thing. Repurpose each content asset with style and panache.
Multiple blog posts turn into an eBook. Several data-based blog posts can turn into reports.
Longer blog posts can be broken down into snippets of information you can then share on LinkedIn (as posts, LinkedIn articles).
LinkedIn newsletters or other Independent newsletter publishing you do can be a mix of original thoughts and insights you share along with a curated summary of everything else you publish (with links).
A series of previously published live streams and/or webinars can — by themselves — become a digital product that you could share.
Chop up long webinars by picking “snackable” insights shared in those webinars into smaller videos for YouTube.
Create videos with Descript (and save time on editing). Meanwhile, each Descript script you get from automatic transcription can serve as a rough draft for blog posts.
Or use blog posts as the primary script to create videos. Save time on editing videos with just a few clicks within Descript and share videos.
Do you see how much time and effort you save by reusing what you already created as a content creator?
Mix and match content types and platforms until you find your winning mix.
Read:
How to Grow as a Content Creator
5 Pillars of Content Creator Success
How are you going to kick off on this marketing plan for content creators? How do you do it?
Tell me all about it on Twitter, LinkedIn, or my LinkedIn Brand page.
