Repurpose Content: Extend Reach, Save Time

Content repurposing is a powerful marketing strategy that allows you to squeeze every last drop of value from your existing content. Instead of constantly creating new material from scratch, you transform what you already have into different formats. It’s about working smarter, not harder, and getting your message in front of a wider audience. Are you ready to learn how to multiply your content efforts and save valuable time?

1. Identify Your Top-Performing Content

Before you start repurposing, you need to know what’s worth repurposing. Not all content is created equal. Some pieces resonate with your audience more than others. This is where data comes in.

I always start with Google Analytics 4 (GA4). Head to the “Reports” section, then “Engagement,” and finally “Pages and screens.” Sort by “Views” to see which pages on your website are getting the most traffic. Pay close attention to the average engagement time as well. A high view count with a low engagement time might indicate that the content is attracting attention, but not holding it.

Also, check your social media analytics. Most platforms, like LinkedIn and the newer Threads platform, offer built-in analytics dashboards that show you which posts received the most likes, shares, and comments. Look for patterns. Are certain topics consistently popular? Do videos perform better than text posts?

Pro Tip: Don’t just look at vanity metrics like likes and shares. Pay attention to comments and direct messages. These can provide valuable insights into what your audience is really interested in and what questions they have.

2. Choose Your Repurposing Format

Once you know what content performs well, it’s time to decide how to repurpose it. The possibilities are endless, but here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Blog Post to Infographic: Turn a data-heavy blog post into a visually appealing infographic.
• Webinar to Podcast Episodes: Extract the audio from a webinar and break it into several podcast episodes.
• Case Study to Social Media Posts: Highlight key findings from a case study in a series of engaging social media posts.
• Long-Form Guide to Email Series: Distill a comprehensive guide into a sequence of informative emails.
• Presentation Slides to Video Script: Use your presentation slides as a foundation for a short explainer video.

Consider your audience and where they spend their time online. If they’re active on LinkedIn, focus on creating professional-looking graphics and articles. If they prefer Instagram, create visually stunning videos and stories.

Common Mistake: Trying to repurpose everything. Focus on your best-performing content and choose formats that align with your audience’s preferences and the strengths of each platform.

3. Repurpose with AI tools (like Descript)

I had a client last year, a small law firm near the Fulton County Courthouse, who was struggling to keep up with their content calendar. They had a ton of great legal insights locked away in recorded webinars and client presentations, but no time to turn them into blog posts or social media content. That’s where Descript came in. It’s a powerful audio and video editing tool that uses AI to automatically transcribe your recordings.

Here’s how we used Descript to repurpose their webinar content:

1. Upload the Webinar Recording: Simply drag and drop the video file into Descript.
2. Automatic Transcription: Descript automatically transcribes the audio into text. The accuracy is surprisingly good, but it’s always a good idea to review and correct any errors.
3. Identify Key Sections: Read through the transcript and highlight the most interesting and informative sections. These will become the basis for your blog posts and social media updates.
4. Extract Audio Clips: Use Descript’s editing tools to extract short audio clips that can be used as podcast snippets or social media soundbites.
5. Export the Transcript: Export the transcript as a Word document and use it as a starting point for your blog post.

This process saved the law firm hours of manual transcription and content creation. According to a IAB report, audio is a growing channel for marketing, and Descript makes it easy to tap into that potential.

Pro Tip: Use Descript’s “Filler Word Removal” feature to automatically remove “ums,” “ahs,” and other filler words from your audio recordings. This will make your content sound more polished and professional. If you’re struggling with automation mess, Descript can be a great solution.

4. Create Visuals with Canva

Visual content is essential for capturing attention online. Canva is a user-friendly design tool that makes it easy to create stunning visuals, even if you don’t have any design experience.

Here’s how to use Canva for content repurposing:

1. Choose a Template: Canva offers a wide variety of templates for social media posts, infographics, presentations, and more. Select a template that aligns with your brand and the type of content you’re creating.
2. Customize the Design: Change the colors, fonts, and images to match your brand. You can upload your own images or choose from Canva’s extensive library of stock photos and illustrations.
3. Add Text and Graphics: Use Canva’s text tools to add headlines, subheadings, and body text. You can also add graphics, icons, and shapes to make your visuals more engaging.
4. Resize Your Design: Once you’ve created a design, you can easily resize it for different platforms. For example, you can create a square image for Instagram and then resize it to fit the dimensions of a LinkedIn post.
5. Download Your Design: Download your design as a JPEG, PNG, or PDF file.

For our law firm client, we used Canva to create eye-catching social media graphics that highlighted key takeaways from their blog posts. We also created a series of infographics that summarized complex legal concepts in a visually appealing way.

Common Mistake: Overloading your visuals with too much text or too many graphics. Keep it simple and focus on conveying your message clearly and concisely. For more on this, see our guide to on-page optimization.

5. Optimize for Each Platform

Content repurposing isn’t just about creating different formats. It’s also about optimizing your content for each platform. What works on LinkedIn might not work on TikTok, and vice versa. You need to tailor your content to the specific audience and algorithm of each platform.

Here are a few tips for optimizing your repurposed content:

• Headlines: Write compelling headlines that grab attention and entice people to click. On LinkedIn, focus on professional and informative headlines. On Twitter, keep your headlines short and snappy.
• Copy: Tailor your copy to the platform’s audience and tone. On LinkedIn, use a professional and authoritative voice. On Instagram, use a more casual and conversational tone.
• Hashtags: Use relevant hashtags to increase the visibility of your content. Research popular hashtags in your niche and use a mix of broad and specific hashtags.
• Images and Videos: Use high-quality images and videos that are optimized for each platform’s dimensions. On Instagram, use visually stunning images and videos. On YouTube, use clear and well-lit videos.
• Call to Action: Include a clear call to action that tells people what you want them to do. On LinkedIn, encourage people to visit your website or contact you for more information. On Facebook, encourage people to like, share, and comment on your post.

Pro Tip: Use a social media scheduling tool like Buffer or Hootsuite to schedule your repurposed content in advance. This will save you time and ensure that your content is consistently published across all your platforms.

6. Track Your Results

The final step in the content repurposing process is to track your results. This will help you determine what’s working and what’s not, so you can refine your strategy over time. Use GA4 to track website traffic, engagement, and conversions. Use social media analytics to track likes, shares, comments, and reach.

A Nielsen study showed that consistent tracking of metrics leads to a 20% improvement in ROI for content marketing campaigns. Don’t skip this step!

Common Mistake: Neglecting to track your results. Without data, you’re just guessing. Tracking your results will help you make informed decisions about your content strategy. To truly get the most out of your content, you need to leverage data-driven marketing.

We saw a significant increase in website traffic and social media engagement for our law firm client after implementing a content repurposing strategy. Their blog posts started ranking higher in search results, and their social media posts generated more leads. By tracking their results, we were able to identify what types of content resonated most with their audience and optimize their strategy accordingly. For more examples, see these organic growth wins.

Content repurposing is a powerful way to maximize the value of your existing content. By following these steps, you can create a content engine that consistently generates leads and drives business growth. If you want to take your marketing to the next level, consider how to 3x your ad spend.

Don’t let your hard work go to waste. Start repurposing your content today. Begin by identifying one high-performing blog post and transforming it into a short video for LinkedIn. I promise, you’ll be amazed by the results.