Businesses stagnate without a clear strategy for organizing content distribution.
It’s simple. You can’t gain new leads if you can’t reach new audiences.
During rocky economic times, you must have a plan for growth. How can you plan ahead to position your company to extend its reach no matter what?
Understanding the various channels for organizing content distribution lets you form a marketing strategy that consistently brings you new leads. It enables you to coordinate your marketing campaigns to engage customers more creatively across multiple mediums.
As a content marketing agency, it’s our responsibility to introduce our clients to systems and strategies that get consistent results. Part of that means understanding the various platforms for content distribution and how to use them effectively.
This article covers some of the most valuable channels for content distribution and explains how to combine them to create unique campaigns that deliver outstanding results.
What different channels for content distribution exist?
The channels for organizing content distribution can be broken into 3 categories: owned, earned, and paid.
Owned
Owned content distribution channels are those you and your company own. These include blogs, websites, social media profiles, mobile applications, and any other proprietary location your company can use to publish content.
Earned
Think of earned content distribution channels as your industry associates. They might include external or guest blogs, press releases, featured podcasts, or other third-party platforms that host your content free of charge.
Paid
Paid content distribution channels require funding. These platforms include paid advertising networks from social media platforms, sponsored content through affiliate marketing, and any other avenue that requires payment in return for results.
What channels are best for organizing content distribution via social media?
Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn are the most popular social media platforms for distributing content. Other platforms like Twitter, TikTok, and Reddit can be helpful too but are harder to monetize.
All of these platforms use algorithms to determine how content spreads organically. They all host paid content distribution as well.
Facebook / Meta
Facebook is great for showing followers content like videos, text posts, and images. Many factors influence how your company’s content is distributed to viewers. The company’s content distribution recommendations suggest the following to guarantee the best results:
- Publish content that encourages a variety of responses.
- Interact with your audience regularly
- Describe published content with accuracy
- Avoid participating in sharing schemes and encouraging specific responses
Facebook also offers a valuable Performance Insights page that allows you to track your content’s reach and engagement.
Owned by Facebook, Instagram offers many of the same features. The emphasis on imagery makes this channel great for distributing photographic and video content promoting physical goods and services.
Instagram is an excellent medium for companies looking to capitalize on influencer marketing to grow brand awareness. The application uses a hashtag-based system to categorize posts, making it easy to reach niche audiences based on shared interests.
YouTube
The popular video-sharing platform is one of the most visited websites in the world. High-value videos get the most views, and are between 3 and 7 minutes long.
YouTube’s algorithm does an excellent job of showing content to users based on preference and browsing history. The site is beneficial for driving traffic to service-based websites and can maximize the impact of your marketing when used with other platforms like Twitter and Facebook (more on that later).
Professionals worldwide rely on LinkedIn for building industry connections and finding business opportunities.
Many companies maintain an active presence here, so it’s an ideal space to conduct B2B marketing campaigns.
LinkedIn stands out from other social media platforms for its separate tier of paid features that cater to marketing professionals and recruiters. With a premium subscription, you can see who has recently viewed your profile, making it easy to tell who to reach out to for sales or work opportunities.
Twitter / TikTok
Twitter and TikTok are short-format social media platforms that focus on quick delivery and punchy messaging. They have 2 of the largest user bases of any social media platform.
Some companies view the short content requirements as limiting, but these platforms are fantastic for promoting content in other spaces. For example, linking a tweet or TikTok to your Facebook or Instagram page is a great way to boost traffic.
Regardless of how you use them, Twitter’s and TikTok’s massive user bases are great for gaining direct exposure to potential leads.
Are traditional channels still effective for organizing content distribution?
It depends on what you’re marketing. Traditional channels like newspaper articles and standard post aren’t as effective for marketing digital services, but they can be great for marketing physical goods and in-person services.
Standard Mail
Contacting your leads via standard post is effective for engaging older audiences who are uncomfortable using computers.
Traditional mail can also create a more personal connection with your leads, making them more likely to convert to customers. This is especially true when you thoroughly understand who you’re marketing to.
Newspaper Articles & Press Releases
Organizing content distribution through outlets like these is a great way to reach large audiences fast. When your company has an announcement that could change your entire industry, these platforms are the quickest way to inform the public about important news.
TV / Radio Commercials
These are most effective for advertising locally available goods, services, and events. When marketing decentralized services that don’t require physical attendance, limiting your content distribution to TV and radio commercials could also limit the number of leads acquired.
Pay-Per-Click Advertising
Pay-per-click advertising remains one of the most effective ways to distribute content that attracts new leads. Services like Google Ads offer access to billions of potential leads and make it easy to cater to specific audiences by using filters to target probable leads.
How do you effectively organize content distribution across multiple channels?
Consider which platforms have elements you can use together to create a unified marketing experience for your customer. For example, text-based platforms pair nicely with video-based platforms.
Below are examples of how to combine content distribution platforms to engage with your audience effectively.
Twitter + YouTube
Combining the power of Twitter’s hivemind with YouTube’s video hosting services allows companies to generate viral buzz around their content.
If you use Twitter, ask yourself: how frequently do you open a tweet that links to a YouTube video, and how frequently do you show them to your friends? Probably pretty often.
Companies who use YouTube to organize the distribution of video content can attract new subscribers by utilizing the power of Twitter to increase view count.
LinkedIn + Blog Post / Podcast / Webinar
The high concentration of professionals on LinkedIn makes it an ideal platform for advertising blog posts, podcasts, and webinars that contain industry-specific knowledge. The more niche your content, the more useful LinkedIn becomes for finding leads within your industry.
Email Campaign + Snail Mail Follow-Up
Blending digital marketing with traditional forms of customer engagement can be a great way to advertise products.
For example, consider a company that paints houses. They could use online email marketing to attract leads initially, then encourage conversions by sending them physical mail (like paint swabs) that eases them further into your sales flow.
Companies that provide customers with samples of their products can drive conversions by organizing content distribution across multiple physical and digital channels.
Organize Your Content Distribution With ClearBrand
Whether your company organizes content distribution using a single channel or across multiple, understanding how to use each platform lets you capitalize on their benefits to create the most effective marketing campaigns possible.
With so many channels for content distribution available, the creative opportunities to combine them for better results are virtually endless. But that also means deciding where to begin can be challenging.
For more information about how your company can benefit from an organized content distribution strategy, contact ClearBrand today. Our marketing specialists are ready to help you develop a tailored plan to expand your company’s reach and get new leads today.
