Six things you might not know about content creation

According to Letter.ly, the average person spends about 145 minutes on social media each and every day. As many of us spend so much time on social media each day, the idea of turning it into a job sounds like a dream come true, right? Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been a content creator for four years now and I absolutely love it, but there’s so much more to it than just creating tweets and drinking coffee while you think up new blog post ideas.

When your role means you’re responsible for managing multiple social media accounts, creating content for different clients in different industries and ensuring you catch a key trend before the moment has passed, it’s safe to say that a few challenges can arise.

When content creation is what you do for a living, it takes writing, designing and strategic thinking to an entirely new level. Luckily for me, with a few years of agency experience under my belt having written for the likes of The Savoy London to small, family-run businesses, I’ve picked up a few tips and tricks for content creation as a career.

What is content creation?

Content creation is essentially creating both written and visual content in a variety of different forms. This can include everything from social media content and newsletters to landing pages and videos. This content can easily find itself on websites or social media, so it’s important to make sure that the tone of voice, format and all the extras are suited to where it’s going.

So, here are a few nuggets you might not know about content creation, and some of my top tips.

Six things you might not know about content creation

1) It’s not just all about social media

When I speak to my family about my job and what it involves, I’m sometimes met with “so you’re on Twitter all day?” Well, yes and no. Yes, I spend time on social media researching content ideas, monitoring existing content and generally trying to stay ahead of the game in terms of trends, but content creation is about so much more than that.

Most people can write social media, blog or website content, but the trick is creating content that gets you (and your clients) the results that you need. Whether that’s making a purchase, signing up to a mailing list or getting some traffic to the website, all content has a purpose.

2) Research isn’t glamorous, but it’s key (and part of the LikeMind Method)

As a content creator, you don’t just open up your scheduling platform of choice and the caption just magically appears. Before you get to this stage, you need to research the client, the industry, what is needed for this post and, most importantly, how this post will help you to get the results for your client.

Research is critical because it’s what takes your content from words on a screen into something informative, interesting and mindful. Don’t scrimp on the research, thank me later.

3) Scrolling on Instagram and other social media is an important part of the process

While many non-marketing jobs will encourage you to put your phone away for the working day and stay off social media, mine is kind of cool because being a natural social media user can be what gives content a competitive edge. Obviously, I don’t spend my entire days scrolling through Instagram or getting into debates with trolls on Twitter, but it’s important that I use social media effectively at work.

For example, searching for new content ideas, competitor analysis and generally seeing what’s trending in any given moment helps me to create content that’s relevant, eye-catching and engaging.

4) The platforms favour the brave

It’s so easy to fall into a pattern of creating the same style of content, using the same features and even the same keywords, but good content pushes boundaries and isn’t scared to try something new.

Platforms like Instagram will favour users who are willing to utilise their features like IGTV, Reels or even Instagram Story stickers. These features are created to be used, so the algorithm rewards anyone who does by favouring their content and ensuring that it appears more often in the feed.

With this in mind, the key is to embrace  the latest features released by a platform, even if they don’t become an overwhelming success. Anyone remember Fleets? Buffer also recommends that for Instagram, you make use of new features. This is because content that uses these new features will be placed in a prime position for users to see. Also, aim to shake up your content as much as you can. If you normally work with images, try your hand at video.

5) The devil is in the detail

Whether you’re working for a larger brand or a small business, it’s a truth universally acknowledged that you can’t go wrong with a final proof, another hashtag or an extra emoji.

It’s easy to create a huge amount of content fuelled by coffee and snacks, but it’s so important to schedule in time to check your content before you click post.

6) Content is a key part of any marketing strategy

When it comes to drawing up the perfect marketing strategy for your campaign, content is king! There are so many benefits of well-executed content, such as increasing website traffic as you direct social media users to your website, to capturing the enquiries you can get from a well-timed social media post.

The right kind of content gets your brand name out there and is one of many ways to generate leads, increase brand awareness and potential sales.

Made it this far? Here are some quick-fire tips for content creators

• Coffee… (kidding, kind of…)
• Spend time on social and save any ideas you think you can spin into something at work
• Think about the kind of content you would want to see, and create that
• Inspiration is everywhere – culture, arts, theatre. Take time to absorb what you see in the world around you
• Be brave, content creation is fun, so spend time trying new things and learning what does and doesn’t work for a given brand, account or platform

Final thoughts

Content creation isn’t for everyone, some businesses don’t have the time or resources, but that’s where we come in. LikeMind Media can handle all aspects of content creation from strategy, research, video creation and, of course, writing (which is what I do). So if you’re interested in learning more, get in touch with us today.

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