Curated content is about more than simply trawling through the Internet to find something to post. As an affiliate marketer you should be carrying out a research process to get the most out of this content to both engage with and widen your audience. Curated content itself is simply content you have found externally and chosen to share on your social channels. How you use this curated content in addition to your own original content can make all the difference to your success.
Establish a balance
Firstly, it is important to create a balance between curated and original content. In order for your brand to be credible, you do not want to oversaturate your feed with curated content.
Instead, you should aim to produce for the most part original content which is interspersed with curated content at around an 80/20 ratio. This will help to keep your content varied but also provide some respite if you are struggling for time to make your own original material.
Why use curated content?
There are numerous benefits to using curated content as an affiliate marketer. Curated content tends to perform well on social media. As it is normally researched thoroughly, it will be of a high quality from an external source so can lead to higher engagement and conversions more easily. A good place to start is by researching trending hashtags that are relevant to your industry. Again, not only will the content be of a high quality but such timely topics will attract industry leaders and discussion. We see this being particularly effective on LinkedIn.
Curated content can also indirectly help improve your SEO as your channels will be more visible in search engines. It may not be a main benefit of the process but it will certainly be a welcomed addition. Finally, as mentioned using curated content can be a time saver. While you are putting more time and effort into original content, your curated connect can keep your conversions ticking over and keep followers engaged.
So where should you start when using curated content? Below are the key stages:
Get to know your audience
As an affiliate marketer, it is likely that you already know your audience inside and out but there is no harm in refreshing your research ahead of introducing curated content into your strategy. This will allow you to pinpoint what exactly your followers will be interested in and keep the content relevant to their interests and needs. Carrying out your research can be as simple as using Google Analytics or the insights tool available across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Finding the content
It is important to source your content from various places. This will keep your material fresh and opens up the opportunity to create partnerships and network with other content creators. You can never have too many connections as an affiliate marketer!
As mentioned, a good place to start is with trending hashtags and simply reshare the content you find relevant. This is the fastest method but make sure you encourage followers to tag you to keep the conversation and conversions going.
Alternatively, you can carry out manual research through various platforms. Save the material you find interesting and figure out how to use this in tandem with your brand once you have carried out all of your research.
To keep your feed more uniform, you may wish to share this type of content on particular days of the week and even then, keep this content specific to particular topics each time.
Analyse the results
Whether you are new to curated content or have been using it for some time, it is essential to analyse your results. You probably already carry out weekly or monthly reports to keep up to date on results so it is a good idea to also narrow this down to just this type of content. This is especially important if such content contributes to a significant amount of your posts. You should analyse the reach and engagement of the curated posts to gauge if these are of value to your audience.
It may be worthwhile taking the time to adapt the source material to make it more personalised and relevant to your followers. Some extra time and effort at this stage could really pay off in the long run in terms of conversions and brand awareness.
The key takeaway from this guide is to use curated content in your marketing strategy to add value for the customer. The content you share must be relevant to their interests and when used correctly curated content can really enhance your performance. It provides variation to your daily content and can take the pressure off consistently coming up with original material. It should not be at the forefront of your strategy as an affiliate but it can complement your other tactics.
If you would like more insights into content creation as an affiliate marketer, get in touch with our agency today.
