How To Repurpose Content Like A Pro

The content machine needs to be constantly fed – so serve up a turkey* dinner! This is your one-stop guide to repurposing content, complete with why you should do it, how you should do it, and plenty of delicious examples.

Reader’s beware: this guide will make you hungry – for content! Or turkey. Or both.

*note: no turkeys were harmed in the making of this guide.

Let's start with a few definitions

And what does it mean to repurpose content? Let’s start with the basics:

• Content is “everything your customer or prospect touches or interacts with – including your own online properties and web pages and the experiences they offer, but also everything on any social channel (like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and so on).”¹  

  So yeah, pretty much everything. That’s why people in the industry say that content is king (but don’t say that. It’s cliché). In 2022, the world is expected to create, capture, copy, and consume 94 zettabytes. That's a lot of content.

• Content repurposing, also called content recycling, is taking existing content and turning it into a different format.

1. Ann Handley’s definition in her book Everybody Writes

Why you should repurpose content

Content repurposing is often done to extend the reach and lifespan of a piece of content. But there are plenty of other good reasons to repurpose your content. Let’s take a look at the benefits:

1. Save your time and money

You have a million and one things to do today, but only a few hours to get it done. In fact, 60% of marketers say their time is spent on low-value or unnecessary tasks, including searching for information. Instead of wracking your brain for new content ideas, focus on getting the content you already have into the hands of more people by switching up the format. And as they say, time is money!

2. Get found

There are more than 5 billion internet users worldwide in 2022, and getting their attention takes some skill. Publishing more content boosts your online presence and can improve your SEO. With more content, search engines are more likely to view your website as a credible and valuable source for users. This means you’re more likely to rise the ranks and end up in the top results.

3. Beat writer’s block

Creative juice running low? We’ve all been there. And yet, unfortunately, we can’t afford a kink in the content machine. Get things flowing by starting somewhere familiar and see where it takes you.

4. Reinforce your message

Marketing’s Rule of 7 says your customer needs to hear your message seven (!) times before they buy. Be a rule follower. Get your message out in new ways by repurposing content so it can eventually sink in.

5. Reach new audiences

Cue the voice of your Marketing 101 professor telling you to “meet your audience where they are.” Repurpose content for different mediums so your audience can get what they’re looking for in the places they’re already looking.

6. Diversify your content

Not everyone learns in the same way or from the same source (see #5), but they all need to hear a consistent message from your brand (see #4). Offering your content in different formats will help you achieve these goals and make your brand more dynamic.

7. Extend what’s working

Got a piece of content with off-the-charts results? Take it and run with it (we’ll show you how below). Content repurposing also lets you breathe new life into old successes by presenting them to your customers in a new format.

8. Cover the buyer’s journey

One long-form piece of content can be repurposed into multiple, smaller pieces of content that target each of the buyer stages. Social media posts and blogs can be great for those in the awareness stage. An email campaign or case study examples might be best for those in the consideration stage. Finally, a case study can reel them into the decision stage.

9. Unify your sales and marketing teams

Get everyone marching to the beat of the same content drum. When your sales and marketing teams are both focused on the same message, you’ll build camaraderie while delivering a strong, unified campaign to your customers.

10. Refine your process

Practice makes perfect! Even if your team is a well-oiled machine, it’s always good to reinforce your process for content ideation, generation, and publishing. A good content repurposing exercise lets you put your versatility to the test and iron out any kinks across the broad spectrum of content types and platforms that you deploy for your marketing efforts.

The turkey dinner

We promised you in the title of this guide that content repurposing and turkey dinners have a lot in common. So, hear us out here.

Think about the last time you made a turkey dinner. You put a lot of effort into planning, preparing, and cooking said dinner. It took time, creativity, and money. But it was worth it because you served up a delicious, nutritious meal that was a smash hit – even Aunt Bea and Little Timmy ate it up.

Ok, now imagine your in-laws get to town the day after your turkey dinner success. You’re exhausted, you’ve got no time, and your grocery budget is tight, but they’re expecting a meal. So, what do you do? You repurpose that turkey dinner into new, delightful culinary experiences for the next three days. Today, it’s a turkey sandwich! Tomorrow, turkey and butternut squash soup. Maybe it even becomes a turkey pot pie.

And just like that, you’ve turned one turkey dinner for your family into a bunch of meals for your guests. Everyone’s satisfied and your status with the in-laws remains intact.

That, friends, is the power of repurposing.

Let’s get back to marketing

We think it’s time to show you how it’s done. We’ll walk through how to repurpose a long-form content offer into many short-form content offers. In the process, we’ll save you time and money and show you all those other benefits we mentioned earlier.