I wanted to share my experiences with content creation and repurposing with you so that you will be able to turn your ideas into content that will increase your visibility, credibility, and your bottom line…

When I came online in 2006 I quickly realized that I needed to start creating content if I was going to build a profitable business. The only problem was that I believed my writing was not very good, and that my ideas did not seem very original or innovative. Everyone else seemed to already have this content creation thing figured out.

Instead of giving up, I gave myself a needed boost of self-confidence by taking action and moving forward.

This served me in two ways; immediately I felt better about what I was working to achieve and my writing started to improve.

Writing articles and blog posts was an arduous process in the beginning. I would spend about two hours on each one, making sure that I was presenting my topic in a way that could be easily understood by my readers. The directories only required your articles to be two hundred fifty words at that time, but it was still a struggle for me to get my thoughts and ideas out of my head and on to the screen. I still type with only two fingers, so this probably seemed comical to anyone who saw me tapping away on my keyboard each day.

My blog posts were flat and uninteresting. The mechanics of getting them written and posted took all of my energy, leaving little time for creative ideas to flow. I was also trying to maintain ten different blogs during that first year, but that's a whole ‘nother conversation.

The ‘ten tips' style was the model I used for my articles back then, making a list of tips on my topic and then writing a couple of sentences about each one. I would then add a paragraph at the beginning and another one at the end to get to my two hundred fifty word minimum requirement to submit them to the article directories. Each day I would start with a new topic, so this process started all over again. The result was that my business grew very slowly as I worked to come up with new ideas. That all changed when I discovered how to repurpose my articles into a variety of different formats to create an ongoing stream of content.

Repurposing is simply the process of taking your idea and using it over and over in different ways. I think of this as being the ‘Life Cycle' of our original ideas. Going back to when I was starting out, I knew that I needed to have content to use as my foundation. So I challenged myself to write one hundred articles in one hundred days. This was a huge undertaking for me at that time, but I was willing to stretch myself in order to have an excellent chance at success. Those hundred articles (which only took me 78 days to write) became the basis for all of the content I created during the next six to twelve months. I will explain how this ‘life cycle' can work for you.

As an example, you can write three articles, submit them first to an article directory, and then turn them immediately into a short report. Even though the content is roughly the same, a whole new group of people will be able to learn from you when they receive your report. You can also rewrite these same articles and use them as blog posts. After the changes to Google's algorithm (the Panda, Penguin, and other updates since February, 2010) you'll want to make sure to rewrite them significantly before using them on your own sites.

The next step in the repurposing cycle is to use this new short report as a free giveaway for your existing site or new optin page. You may be thinking that your prospects and clients will recognize what they are receiving as something they have already read, but the truth is that everyone is at a different point in your autoresponder series and in their connection with your business, so they may not have even seen it the first time around. Over the past six years only two people have ever told me they had read my report before, and that was because I mentioned concepts that were innovative and original, something I had longed to be able to do since the beginning of my online career.

Publishing your report as a book for the Kindle or Nook can be the next step. You will attract and connect with an entirely new audience when you do this. It has never been easier to have your writing available in this way, and becoming a published author is a way to build your credibility as well. Because I give away my short reports, publishing your material in this way may also be the first step of the monetization of your content.

The next stop in this life cycle is to make an outline of your topic and turn it into an information product to sell online. Then you can further repurpose this content by teaching it as an online course. I have done this more than thirty times since coming online and it has been very lucrative.

At this point I like to take my content offline to use as presentations and handouts for when I speak to groups both locally and around the country. By explaining my original ideas to a live audience I receive feedback that is extremely valuable.

Don't forget about repurposing your content into audio and video as well as part of this process. I started hosting my own teleseminars in 2007 and used my articles, blog posts, and short reports to write my outlines and study guides to use during the calls. Even though many of the people have already read my material, they are anxious to hear me discuss it on a regular basis.

For video, remember that you do not have to make a personal appearance unless you want to. Create a short PowerPoint presentation that highlights the key points in your articles and blog posts and then post it to your YouTube channel to reach even more people who are interested in what you have to say on your topic.

Other ways to repurpose your content include e-courses, Internet radio (Blog Talk Radio is very good), podcasts, eBooks, and in your membership site.

We all have different learning styles and repurposing allows your prospects to take in your information in a way that suits their needs. It is also a huge time saver as you can use your same ideas to create many different final products. The life cycle of your content will continue to flow for years to come if you will think of it in this way.

About Connie Green:
Connie Ragen Green is a former classroom teacher and real estate broker/appraiser who left it all behind to come online. She works with new online entrepreneurs to help them get started online with a successful business based on their passions and life experiences. Her most popular program is the 10K Laser Coaching, where you can be a ‘fly on the wall' as she mentors her students as they build their own online empire.

Recommended Resource:

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Warmly,
Nicole Dean