How To Make Your Content Marketing Spread Like Wildfire

20 Actionable Marketing Tips To Distribute Content

You can write the best content marketing whether it’s a blog post, article, ebook or presentation in the world but, without help distributing it to the largest audience possible, chances are it’ll be buried amidst newer, sexier content that’s churned out every second.

You must give each piece of content a head start with these three tips.

1. Create amazing content. Start with compelling content including a great headline that pulls readers in.
2. Remove content distribution roadblocks. While it’s great to gather readers’ email addresses and other details, know that each piece of required information is like putting a massive log in front of your potential reader.
3. Gently nudge readers to act. Don’t assume readers’ goals are the same as yours. Incorporate a call-to-action.

Here are twenty actionable marketing tips to give your content the ability to spread like wildfire. (Here’s how to get your content discovered.)

1. Post content on your website and other owned media entities. Cross post your content on your owned media entities. Don’t overlook offline options such as handouts in your store.
2. Reformat your content for your blog. Take another approach to your subject in your blog to reach that readership.
3. Include related content recommendations with every piece of content marketing. Suggest related articles at the end of each piece as well as using top read lists.
4. Share the information on social media platforms. Use those platforms that are appropriate for your content. Among the major options are Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Slideshare, Pinterest and other targeted options.
5. Promote your content in email and print newsletters. Don’t just reprint your content. Use it to tantalize readers so they will check out the full version on your website or other entity.
6. Facilitate content delivery. Offer prospects, readers and customers the option of getting your content on a regular basis via email or RSS (aka feeds).
7. Remind potential readers with every communication. Include a link to your content in your signature file, customer service correspondence and purchase confirmation notices. (You don’t want to take prospects on a detour when they’re in the process of shopping.)
8. Exchange favors with your social media buddies. As part of a social media tribe, cross-promote each others’ content. It can be useful to get influencers to help you. (Of course, this implies you’ve got a relationship of some sort.) Tribrr can be helpful for accomplishing this.
9. Enlist support from your fans. Provide social sharing buttons to make it easy for readers to distribute your content to their family, friends and colleagues. (Don’t forget to include an email option!)
10. Give press, bloggers and other VIPs the velvet rope treatment. When you’ve got special information such as a research report, give an advance copy to influencers in your sphere. The press are used to respecting embargoed press releases. Think in terms of news that’s important to their audience.
11. Write guest posts on other blogs or media entities in your category. This doesn’t mean that you should just copy your content but rather you should  contribute a related piece in return for a link to your content.
12. Share second rights to your content. Depending on your attitude towards intellectual property, this option isn’t for everyone. You can allow others to reprint your content after a certain period. I recommend requiring at least a link back to your original site as well as your other internal links.
13. Expand reach with a social media press release. Strategically use a social media press release with appropriate links and related media such as photographs and videos for important content. Bear in mind some people and media entities may just reprint your release. Make it easy for readers to get the information they want.
14. Meet the virtual press. Use your content marketing to create your own news. Tape a video with the creators that you can post with the full content and/or on YouTube.
15. Entice prospects with free give-away. Depending on the type of content, consider giving it away on your website or blog. If readers consider it particularly valuable, they’ll be willing to register for it. If not, just let them get it and share it.
16. Answer related questions on social media forums and bulletin boards. Reference your content when answering questions on sites like Yahoo Answers, LinkedIn and Quora.
17. Advertise your content marketing. Depending on your budget for distributing your content marketing, it can be useful to use advertising on your own websites (where you just need excess ad inventory), social media and search.
18. Get on your soapbox. Whether it’s a local Meetup, conference or library, give a talk on the topic of your content. Collect information from your attendees to help you build your housefile. If you give a formal talk with slides, consider posting the slides on a sharing site.
19. Hand out content at conferences. Conferences are great places to distribute content beyond being a speaker. You can hand out your content on a flash drive or place a print version in the goodie bags for attendees.
20. Include an excerpt in your packages. Include a print version or teaser in your shopping bags and product packages in order to entice customers to read it. This is particularly useful if your content helps support use of your product.

With today’s owned, third party and social media platforms, marketers have more options than ever to distribute their messages broadly and cost effectively. To maximize the audience for each piece of content, it’s critical to use as many of these methods as possible and spread your distribution over time so that you don’t bombard readers with too many messages at once.

How do you make your content marketing spread like wildfire?

Happy marketing,
Heidi Cohen

Here are some related content marketing articles.

• Must have content marketing checklist
• 7 Steps to streamline content creation.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kaibabnationalforest/4439407302