Planning, implementing and publishing content is only half the battle. Right after that, it's about distributing this content. After all, what good is your great blog post, your great infographic, your helpful YouTube video or your audio contribution if hardly anyone comes across it in the end?

Content distribution is an often underestimated topic - and much more complex than it looks at first. This is certainly true if you want to get the most out of your content. Here are some important suggestions on how to make your content marketing even more successful.

The basics of content distribution

Working on the basics of your content is not always exciting. And that's why it's often forgotten. But like the foundations of a house, this groundwork is hugely important, even if you don't see much of it at first.

Content strategy and planning

These basics include analyzing your target group and planning based on this. Read my tutorial on content strategy. Explained in brief, the content strategy helps you with the following points:

• You select precisely the topics and issues that actually interest your intended readership.
• It guides you through the implementation. Should you tackle a topic as a detailed article, as a YouTube video or as a PDF whitepaper for download? That also depends on who you want to reach.
• The strategic approach is important so that you select the right channels and platforms for the subsequent steps to reach your target groups.

Search engine optimization for the Content Hub

A content hub is the central point of contact for all your content - whether as a freelancer, agency or for other websites. This is still true today, where the music often plays on third-party platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. In fact, this is even more true than ever. Because with a content hub, you have an area for your content that belongs only to you. And which you can design however you want.

If you do without it, you make yourself completely dependent on other platforms. And that's not a good idea in the long term. This content hub can take the form of a corporate magazine and should then be optimized for search engines such as Google.

An important point here is the selection of the right keywords. Ideally, this should be done before you even decide on a specific topic. Then you can align your content with the terms that are relevant to your target group.

The loading time of your website - and how well it works on mobile devices - is also very important for SEO today. But that's not all: Google emphasizes these points so much because they influence theuser experience. Google only wants to recommend sites that delight users. That's why search engine optimization is increasingly becoming the general optimization of your website. It is not an additional task. It's part of your toolbox.

Optimize the "sharability" of your content

If you want your content to be well received and recommended, then you need to take care of sharability. In other words, you want to maximize the likelihood of your content spreading (almost) automatically.

First of all, your content must actually inspire. If you have a formulated content strategy and align your content with the wishes and needs of your target group, this should happen almost automatically (see above).

Your content must be worth recommending. As I explained in my article on content marketing for agencies and freelancers, mass-produced content no longer works. You have to stand out in a positive way. This doesn't necessarily require a lot of effort. It is often helpful if you know, understand and speak the language of your target group. It is just as effective to create one really good and detailed post rather than five boring ones.

Incidentally, part of such a recipe for success is also that your content is geared towards the specifics of the respective platform and channel. Example: Whether you produce a video for Facebook, Instagram or YouTube makes a big difference.

This first step is done? Then make sure that your audience feels encouraged to share your content further. On YouTube, for example, it is common practice to actively encourage viewers to comment, like and subscribe. Because these are activities that attract positive attention from YouTube's algorithm - and your video will be shown to more people.

When it comes to an article on your website, make sure that the preview on Facebook & Co. looks good. And that it is inspiring: you have an article image, the headline and a few words of text at your disposal. Make just as much effort here with exciting content and suitable keywords as you do with your post itself! Also ask yourself why you click on posts on Facebook, Twitter & Co. What does such content need to "have" to attract your attention? You can then imitate this effect for your own content.

Distribute your content free of charge

You probably want your content to become a "viral hit": You publish it, sit back comfortably and watch it spread like wildfire. But this rarely works - and practically never without the right groundwork.

In this respect, you will generally not be able to avoid actively distributing your content. There are a few ways to do this that will cost you time and effort, but at least no money.

Use your own platforms

First of all, you use the things that you yourself have control over. In specialist circles, this is called owned media. For example, you make sure that your content is advertised prominently on your own website and is easy to find. And you may have followed the advice of many experts and set up a newsletter mailing list. You should of course use this too.

If you now realize that you have few or no platforms and channels of your own, it's never too late to set them up. However, check in advance whether you and your team have the necessary resources for this. You can find tips on working with specific platforms in our online marketing section.

Content distribution via social media

Your social media channels will be another important tool in many cases. This is where you should publicize and distribute your content - and not just once. Remember: on platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others, the algorithm always stands between you and your audience. That's why it's so important to refer to your content several times.

But don't post the same thing over and over again like an automaton. Ideally, you should have a new perspective, a new piece of information, a new approach each time. So experiment with the content of the posts, but also with the times and days of the week. But don't overdo it. Don't post about your content several times on the same day. Some platforms like Facebook generally don't like it when you try to push the same link over and over again. So you need both patience and creativity here.

Generally speaking, content distribution is a long-term activity. Assume that you will be promoting your content for weeks and months. If your topic is not topical for that long, you will either have to update your content over time and then promote it again. Or you can make sure that your content gets full attention on the very first day.

Another tip: Plan your content distribution right from the start. Then think about things like: Which aspects of my content can I adapt for other channels and distribute separately there? Here are a few examples:

• If Pinterest is important to you, for example, your blog post should contain a graphic that can be easily shared there.
• For Instagram, you produce a short video teaser for your much longer video that is optimized for YouTube.
• For LinkedIn, pick a key message from your content and write a post about it.

This list could go on and on. The earlier you think about it, the easier it is to implement these accompanying and supplementary media and formats. Today, content is no longer a monolithic "piece of content". Ideally, your content should be modular from the outset so that it can be easily distributed via different channels. This is also part of the strategic approach.

Finding and addressing multipliers

Practically all social networks want to connect people with people. Even on the business platform LinkedIn, companies find it extremely difficult to gain attention and reach via their own company page. And there is a simple reason for this: people generally prefer to interact with people rather than with XYZ GmbH or a brand.

That's why it's so important that you motivate other people to recommend your content. You can start with yourself, your friends, colleagues and partners. Don't forget your customers who are particularly enthusiastic about you and your work. Hopefully you can motivate them all to recommend your (great, awesome, unique, wonderful) content - on their personal profiles. In professional circles, this is often referred to as brand ambassadors. "Corporate influencers" are, in turn, your own employees who use their own name to promote their employer's good cause. 

In addition, there will be various multipliers in your subject area and industry, also known as influencers. In contrast to "professional influencers", however, they have built up their influence because they have the relevant expertise and are respected experts. These people do not necessarily have a large overall reach. However, they address exactly the right target groups.

So think about who you could approach. However, bear in mind that these people may be asked frequently. You should therefore make sure that you treat them with respect, get to the point quickly and also make it clear what makes your content so special. If you're really good, you'll already be in contact with these people before you ask them for a favor. Then you are engaging in typical influencer relations.

Distribute your content for a fee

As mentioned above, companies are finding it difficult to reach other people with their messages. This also has to do with the fact that the flood of content is constantly increasing, but the attention and time of the target group is not.

This is why you will often have to plan to distribute your content on a paid basis. In fact, in many places it is considered an integral part of content distribution, especially at the very beginning: the first wave of attention is bought. After that, it will hopefully run largely on its own.

This means, for example, that you place an ad - on Facebook, LinkedIn or Google. Or you can book a sponsored post on a suitable page. However, pay close attention to measuring success so that you don't waste your budget. See my tutorial on content KPIs. This is because easily available metrics such as page views or likes are unfortunately the least meaningful in most cases.

Which path is worthwhile for your content always depends on the individual case. Maybe you're hoping to attract new customers. Then, of course, you have a greater incentive and more financial leeway because your expenditure is then directly offset by income. It is more difficult if your content is aimed at the beginning of the customer journey, as is traditionally the case in content marketing. Here, you will sometimes not be able to establish a direct link between expenditure and income.

How to decide on the right measures

And that brings us to an important point: Which measure is the most suitable and when? The answer to this question depends very much on what your objective is, who you want to reach and in what situation.

Here's another example: Google Ads are ideal for reaching people who have a specific question. This means you are more likely to address people who are already looking for something specifically. Not every product or offer can be advertised through this. This realization is just as important when you are looking after your SEO: it is of little help to be "number 1 on Google" if the relevant term or expression is hardly ever searched for. Unless the sum of such rankings helps you - and is profitable in the creation of the associated content.

Facebook Ads, on the other hand, are good for reaching people who have certain interests or who match demographic data. This is much more general than Google Ads, but can work well if you're not getting anywhere on Google - and vice versa.

This question about the objective also has a significant influence on what content you want to tackle in the first place. Do you want to reach people who are still at the very beginning and still have a lot of questions? Or do you want to reach people who are already researching specific solutions to a clearly defined problem?

My conclusion on content distribution

Hopefully this article has given you an idea of the considerations that go into content distribution. It is important that these considerations are made at the beginning of your planning. If you only think about distribution after you've already published your content, then it's usually too late.

Ultimately, how well your content spreads has a lot to do with how clearly you have your goal in mind. But it also depends on how well you understand your target group and how focused you are in your approach.

Featured image: Robin Worrall