How to Recycle and Repurpose Your Marketing
Nov 07, 2024
Recycling is crucial to reducing waste and protecting the environment. But did you know you can recycle your marketing, too? I often see practitioners spending far too much time and energy trying to come up with new and fresh ideas day in and day out, which is a waste.
If you’ve been creating any form of marketing content for your business, you’ll know just how much time and effort goes into it. Using each piece of content just once means you’re not making the most of your hard work. Repurposing means using what you already have in new ways, saving time and energy.
Even if you're just starting, you can still make the most of each piece by sharing it in different ways.
Why Repurpose Marketing?
Providing the same information in different formats is a great way to reach other groups of potential clients. Everyone has their own way of consuming content, some like to read, others like watching videos or listening to podcasts. The more ways you share your information, the more people you’ll reach.
Repurposing existing marketing takes less time than starting from scratch with a new piece of content. It’s a great way of working smarter and not harder.
Repurposing Content in Action
For example, when I worked as a practitioner, I wrote a monthly newsletter. I’d then re-use the article for a clinic blog post and pull out quotes for social media posts.
I have also repurposed content to create workshops and associated handouts. They’ve formed the basis of email opt-in guides and eBooks. My biggest repurposing project to date is collating articles to use as a draft copy for my book. This alone provided me with over half the book saving a huge amount of time.
One of my clients struggled to post consistently on social media because coming up with new ideas all the time was hard work. When she started using individual tips from a library of articles she'd written over the years, posting on social media became easy as she was repurposing what she already had created.
And, this article was originally published years ago, so I’ve reviewed and updated it to be current.
Getting Started with Repurposing Content
Even if you’re just starting out, repurposing can help you make the most of each new piece of content you create.
If you have any existing content, review what you already have and make a list of your marketing assets. You will be surprised how many presentations, videos, articles, images, etc. you have created over the years.
From your list, identify which ones worked the best for you in terms of attracting clients or getting engagement. Use the analytics from your website or social media platforms to help you identify your most popular posts. Pick your two or three most popular items and repurpose them into something else or recycle them by giving them a freshen-up and republishing them.
If you’re not sure which items are the most popular, consider repurposing the ones that answer the questions you’re always being asked in your business.
Think about your audience's preferences; if they like podcasts, repurpose content into an audio format, or if they like visual content, create videos or infographics.
Inspiration for Recycling and Repurposing
Taking one article, here are some of the different ways you can repurpose that single piece of content:
- Break an article into key points for social media posts or short videos
- Use the article’s key points in an email for your list
- Record a podcast using the article for discussion points
- Create leaflets to give out at events or talks
- Create a presentation and put it on SlideShare
- Use the slides to create a video for YouTube and social media
- Record the article as a video
- Design an infographic to summarise the key points
- Freshen up and republish the article on your website a year or two later
- Create another version and use it for PR opportunities
When you repurpose your marketing, consider your audience's preferences to get the best results. For example, if they like listening to content on the go, repurpose yours into a podcast.
Supercharge Repurposing with AI
Love it or hate it, AI is here to stay! AI tools can handle repetitive tasks, helping you transform one piece of content into many. If you have an article in your voice that reflects your approach, AI can help repurpose it into other marketing formats. See it as your new marketing assistant who will help you increase your reach and visibility by creating new assets from your existing ones. The ways AI can help you are endless – here are a few examples:
- Transcribe audio or video into articles
- Breaking written articles down into several social media posts
- Creating video scripts and videos
- Producing infographics
- Summarise long articles into key points
There are many beginner-friendly AI tools for small businesses. Try starting with free tools such as ChatGPT or Google Gemini that will help you break down content into social posts or summaries.
Create One Extra Item at a Time
Start by creating one extra item from each piece of content. This habit will help you grow your library of content without feeling overwhelmed.
Have a Plan!
All of your marketing has to have a reason behind it – you need to know why you’re doing it, what you’re trying to achieve from it, and where it fits in your business strategy. Having a simple, well-designed plan will help you focus your efforts and make the most of your time and energy.
