Content marketing is the aim of the game for any industry nowadays. As more and more musicians turn to independent representation with a do it yourself approach, one of the most important things you need to master is content creation.
Content is the blood flow of brands and social media is the heart pumping it to where it needs to be. But if that flow stops, so does the pump.
Today we’re going to look into the best, proven content strategy that will help prevent those common moments of “wtf do I post today?!”.
Every week I create a large piece of content that acts as the main feeding source of the rest of my content for the week. Let’s call it a ‘pillar’ piece of content that holds up the rest of my posts.
Starting with a video, vlog, blog, interview or Q&A show – I have LOTS of information that can be dissected into ‘micro content’.
This micro content could be a Tweet with a quote from the large piece of content, a carousel telling a shortened version of the video or even just smaller clips cut from the video that I distribute on Instagram which tells the viewer to head over to YouTube for the full video.
This method allows me to focus on one topic per week and break it down into bite sized chunks that can be used on my different social channels.
The micro, bite-sized content pieces will refer back to the original content piece and drive traffic across the places I want to send my followers.
Let’s explore how you as a musician can implement this strategy relevant to your branding and voice.
Repurposing Content:
I am not saying to share the same post across all channels. Repurposing content is a content strategy that will dramatically increase the frequency of your content.
Since the best content creators on the different platforms are the ones who post often and consistent.
On YouTube that can be 2-3 videos per week and Instagram it can be 2-3 posts per day.
If you post less than this you will struggle to gain organic visibility which of course is super important.
By using your pillar piece of content you give yourself the opportunity to create a bank of content by breaking it down into smaller pieces.
There’s gonna be some trial and error here to see what works for you, especially your pillar content piece. You need to see how your audience reacts to what you’re offering.
Not forgetting also, it has to be something that you like doing, otherwise you’ll soon get bored and give up.
For example, producer and DJ Martin Garrix is well known for his vlogging and online antics. Lets break down how I would repurpose his content. (Martin, if you’re listening, call me).
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Pillar content piece: Weekly vlog/mini series showing behind the scenes action (live shows, music production, friends, travel, funny moments) which is posted on YouTube.
2. Create micro content: Once you have recorded and edited your long form of pillar content, you need to review it and chop it up into smaller pieces. Look for shorter moments, quotes, tips, funny scenes. Turn these into shorter videos, image quotes, and carousels. These microcontent pieces will be posted on other channels such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Let me show you how I use the concept of repurposing.
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Pillar content piece: Blog post
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The blog post is used as a script for my weekly YouTube video
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YouTube is filmed and edited
4. The audio from the video is extracted and published as a podcast
5. Then I chop the Youtube up into small content pieces for Instagram & Facebook
6. Each tip becomes its own video
7. create a carousel if I covered some tips or tutorials
8. I create some tweet quotes if I said something smart (always, of course)
This is how a single piece of content suddenly feeds your content bank on a continuous basis and you’ll never run out of things to post.
This is how to start posting several times per day on Instagram, which is a necessity these days for being seen.
If you’re serious about growing your channels, then you need to feed them content. Though it sounds like a lot, by mastering your weekly pillar content, the rest will begin to flow with a little practice and patience.
Still unsure of where to start? Head over to my Instagram and drop me a DM – I offer free one-on-one consultations for musicians.
