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7 Helpful Recommendations for Streamlining Your Content Creation Process
Content. It’s what the internet is made of. It’s what surfaces when you Google literally anything, and if you’re not a pro writer, it can take forever to produce.
And yet, your brand feeds on content, and your audience needs to hear from you. To bridge the gap between the constant need for content and the time-consuming task it usually is, here are seven tips to streamline the process from a copy and content agency owner.
1. Batch Create Your Content Pillars and Clusters
Your brand represents an idea for your market. Who you are, what you do, and who you serve. This should be reflected in what you talk about. Stick to your strengths and develop three to five content buckets that define what you’re all about. We call these pillars.
Within these buckets, there should be another three to five sub-buckets or clusters. The clusters take a deeper look at the subject matter but fit holistically within their pillar. For example, if you’re a graphic design firm talking about visual communication, you could include clusters on quality images, branding, and colour theory.
Plan out your topics in one session for at least one quarter, if not longer, so you can eliminate the guesswork when it’s time to put the mouse to paper. If you start every piece with “What should I write about?” you’ll find yourself dreading content day—or never getting there at all.
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2. Batch Create Your SEO Keyword Lists
Strong keyword research is the backbone of every content plan and content marketing strategy. But it can be a bit tedious. Compile a list of all the keywords you will need for at least a quarter of the year or to match all the content you have planned.
There are a million different ways to spin a keyword! Look for short and long-tail keywords that fit into your big-picture marketing strategy and easy wins that can boost visibility faster. I recommend SEMRUSH, Ahrefs, Answer the Public, and Google Trends to help you develop a competitive list of high-value keywords.
3. Don’t Overcommit on the Word Count for High-Frequency Content
Of course, there is a time and place for beefy, super-long-form content, but it’s not your typical weekly or twice-weekly blog post. Save the monster word counts for your big idea pillar content pieces, which should be in the 2,500–3,000 word range.
The content you produce every week, clusters or sub-topic pieces, can be significantly shorter. Our SEO content writing services create hundreds of pieces every month that perform really well at 1,000–1,500 words. This is still plenty of space to add value, inject your personality, and maybe give yourself a little shout-out.
Make space in your content marketing strategy for short-form written content that’s 600–800 words. This works well for listicle-style pieces, marketing content, company updates, and newsletter-style content.
Another opportunity to increase engagement with your audience is microcontent. This content could be for social media, SMS blasts, email blasts, or microblogs. While long-form is “king of the mountain” for SEO wins, quick reads often get more audience engagement.
4. Never Start with a Blank Page: Develop a Standardised Outline
A blank canvas can be inspiring, but it can also sap your creativity and lead you on an endless pursuit of “Where do I start?” Create a standardised outline that you can copy and paste into each new document, and never start with a blank page again. This tip alone cut our production time down by a significant margin within our copywriting services.
A standardised outline serves three purposes:
- Creates a repeatable flow of thought to create a cohesive look for all of your content.
- Prevents the vast white void of the blank page that saps all of your creative energy.
- Eliminating the first two helps to streamline your content creation process and saves you valuable time.
5. Use Voice-To-Text for Getting Quickly Getting Big Ideas on the Page
It’s common for anyone, writer or not, to experience writer’s block. But when was the last time you had talker’s block? This text-to-speech trick can save you HOURS. It’s especially helpful if you’re expertly familiar with the subject matter but struggle to write it once you’re in front of the keyboard.
Once you have your topic at hand, ask yourself a question about it and answer the question as if you were telling a friend or prospective client. Repeat until your fingers tap into high gear and you’re ready to flesh it out.
Be forewarned, however. Text-to-speech is not always 100% accurate. Always be sure to review anything on the page with a fine-toothed comb as you go to save editing headaches later.
6. Don’t Get Lost in Endless Editing
Don’t fill your Google Drive with files that never see the light of day because they’re “not perfect.” If you pick your piece apart too much or for too long, you’ll lose any time savings you’ve built up to this point.
Use tools like Grammarly or ProWritingAid to help you capture spelling or grammatical errors as you input them and reduce editing time later. If you are the type of person who likes to sleep on their ideas before putting them out into the world, do it.
However, when it’s done, let it go. Trust yourself that you know your topics and your audience, and keep your overall business goals in mind. Or work with a team of professionals who can help you create top-performing, high-quality content every time.
7. Create a Post-Creation Checklist or Process Flowchart
Now that your content is written, what happens next? I recommend developing a post-creation checklist or flowchart that gives you all the steps you need to take next. This is helpful if you’re doing it yourself or handing it off to someone else. You can also use this flowchart to begin implementing backend automation to complete some of this process on autopilot.
Here is a sample flowchart to inspire your future process:
Stop Avoiding Content Creation When You Streamline Your Process
Start with a healthy content plan and create a repeatable content creation process to streamline content production. Good luck, writer friends! You’ve got this!
Liz Slyman
Over the past decade, Liz has worked as a copywriter and digital marketing executive for a multitude of companies, from startups to and mid-sized businesses to working as the VP of marketing for award-winning, platinum-selling artists. Leveraging an understanding of the nuance of language in marketing, Liz founded Amplihigher, a content marketing and copywriting agency designed to connect consumers to companies in a way that results in next-level brand expansion.
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