Marketing budgets are tight, and you’re being asked to do more with less. It’s time to optimise your content marketing spend with activities that either reduce content creation costs, or have the potential for high impact results that will justify the investment.
I don’t recommend taking to generative AI to create content with little human effort, for many reasons from ethics to quality. And because nobody (not even Google) wants to read hundreds articles that begin with In the ever-changing/evolving/fast-paced landscape/world of [your industry here]…
There are better ways for marketing managers to do more with less, without contributing to the harm of humans and the environment. As a bonus, you’ll get to demonstrate your strategic marketing skills – and there’s probably no better time to remind your employer that you can’t be replaced by an inexpensive VA who knows how to use Gen AI tools.
Whether your career has advanced past the level where you’re expected to write content yourself, or you’re currently firmly stuck in write-it-yourself zone, here are some ways to stretch that marketing budget and make your activities count. (If you prefer video, you’ll find a video version at the end of this article)
- Updating and extending older blog content. This activity has the potential to improve SEO, increase website traffic and leads. It can be done by your in-house copywriter (which might currently be you) or be outsourced to a content agency like Article Writers Australia. You might be surprised at how many opportunities you find for improving (and repurposing) while you’re auditing old content.
- Repurposing. Sections of old white papers might be easily repurposed and updated into articles for the blog or for the basis of a new webinar. Newer articles on the blog might form the basis of a new ebook or white paper. Both articles and white papers can be a treasure trove of information easily turned into several LinkedIn carousel posts and status updates for your sales team to share. Old webinars and event presentations can have similar potential.
- Format change. Creating short, in-person narrated videos in-house has never been easier. It also ties in nicely with the need to showcase your thought leaders and build that thought leadership footprint across multiple formats and channels in preparation for AI search-related changes. If professionally written content is a squeeze on the current budget, it could be time to set up that empty office as a mini recording studio!
- High-impact content. Perhaps you have enough in the kitty to develop one or two pieces of written content a month. Make it count by choosing something that’s high on the needs list and likely to deliver in spades. Perhaps it’s a new case study showcasing experience in a high value sector. Perhaps it’s a white paper designed to educate the market and increase conversions for a particular product or service.
- Multi-author reports. If you’ve got plenty of internal topic experts, creating a value-packed report based on each expert contributing a drafted section could be an option. The key to success with this approach is in diligently planning the structure and content of the report, ensuring your topic experts are willing to draft content for the sections related to their expertise, and in having the drafted report professionally edited to ensure consistent style through the document.
- Leverage your topic experts and LinkedIn. Are your internal subject matter experts active on LinkedIn? If they’re not, you could be missing multiple opportunities to connect with potential clients and generate warm leads. Consider establishing a thought leadership program that encourages and assists your SMEs to increase their visibility and activity on LinkedIn.
If you’re lucky enough to see an increase in marketing budget this financial year, you can still use these strategies – making the most of existing content assets is an excellent practice regardless of the economic climate!
Need help with content? Article Writers Australia can assist with creation of case studies, articles and white papers, and with report editing, blog audits and content updating. Contact us for an introductory online chat!
Leonie Seysan is the Director of Article Writers Australia, and manages the team of professional writers and editors. She holds a Bachelor of Communications Degree (Media Studies) and has been writing professionally for over 15 years. Leonie is also the podcast host of 'Content with Humans'.
