Guest Post: 10 Easy Ways to Repurpose Your Content

Do you ever feel like a hamster on the content wheel?  Constantly creating content, but never getting ahead?  The secret to getting off the wheel is to make your content work harder for you by repurposing it. Repurposing lets you squeeze as much value as possible out of the content you've worked so hard to create. Here are 10 easy ways to repurpose your content so that you get off the hamster wheel and provide more value to your readers at the same time. Win-win!

1. Write your social media posts

Let’s start with the easiest way to repurpose your blog content. Pull out tips & short passages to share on your social media channels. I normally write 5 tweets for each blog post. With a list post like this one, you could re-use your main topic sentence and then pull out something from four of the list paragraphs, like this:

• Constantly creating content, but never getting ahead?  Make your content work harder for you by repurposing it.
• Wondering what to share on social media? Pull out tips & short passages from your blog posts.
• Wondering what to include in your email welcome series? Write 1 email for each of your blog categories.
• Do you have several blog posts on a similar topic?  Why not package them up into an e-book?
• Have you been wanting to dip your toe into live-streaming? Try re-purposing a blog post.

Boom. That’s 5 tweets written in less than 5 minutes.
Then take longer passages to use on your Facebook page and Instagram. Use your introductory paragraph on day 1. Then, depending on how long your blog posts are, you could pull out 3-5 individual passages and share throughout the rest of the week. Create a different graphic for each tip using a tool like Canva or PicMonkey.

2. Write a round-up post

Once you have a decent amount of content built up on your blog, you can pull together a round-up post. Find several related posts from one of your blog categories. Write an introductory paragraph for each post, then include a link back to the original post. Not only is this a way to re-use your content, but also it exposes your audience to older posts that they may not have seen before.

3. Write your newsletter

Wondering what to send to your email list? Repurpose your blog content. Rather than sending your whole post to your email list, write a short introduction – 2 or 3 paragraphs – and then include a link to your blog post. You could even re-use one of those longer passages that you wrote for Facebook and Instagram as your introduction (see what I did there?  Re-used the repurposed content).
Don’t worry about annoying your readers with duplicate content. Different people prefer different platforms. Not everyone who reads your blog is on your email list and not everyone who is on your list remembers to go to your blog. You are helping them out by providing different forms of access.

4. Create a content upgrade

Content upgrades are small opt-in freebies that are closely tied to the content of a single post. Look at the content of your post and think of ways that you can add more value. If your post is a step-by-step tutorial, then you could create a checklist in pdf form, so that your readers don’t miss a step. Or, you could create a worksheet to help your readers dig deeper into your topic. Or a tracking spreadsheet to help them keep up with a process.

5. Create an e-mail series

There are two ways you can use this strategy: a) to attract new email subscribers, and b) to connect with new email subscribers.

A. Create an e-mail course as an opt-in freebie
Take several posts that collectively teach a skill and package them together as a free 5- to 10-day e-mail course. (Alternatively, if you write super-long posts, break one post down into individual steps and email one step each day). This is a great way to build your email list and you can also sprinkle in pitches for your paid content.

B. Create a welcome series for new email subscribers
A welcome series is a series of several emails that go to new subscribers over a period of several days.   Write one email for each of your blog categories. Write an introductory paragraph and include a link to 3 to 5 of your top posts in that category. This introduces your new subscribers to your best content, and it gets them in the habit of opening your emails and clicking on your links.

6. Write an e-book

Once you have several blog posts on a similar topic, you can package them up into an e-book. Each post can be a different chapter in the e-book (be sure that you take out any irrelevant sentences, such as a call-to-action asking for comments). Then, write an introduction and conclusion that ties the whole thing together and add a table of contents.
You can create your e-book in Canva, or use a program like Microsoft Word or Apple Pages, or even Adobe InDesign (if you’re a control freak, like me). After you’re done, convert it to a pdf and you have a product that you can sell or use as an opt-in freebie to grow your list.

7. Go live on Facebook or Periscope

If you’ve been wanting to dip your toe into live-streaming but weren’t sure where to start, then try re-purposing a blog post. You don’t want to read the blog post because that won’t sound or look natural. Instead, use your outline to create some talking points. Do a quick introduction, then share a few points from the post. Close by telling viewers what they can do next – check out more info at your blog, sign up for your newsletter, etc.

8. Record a YouTube video

If you’re not quite ready for live-streaming, then you can record a video and post it on YouTube. If you’re comfortable going in front of the camera, then follow the same process from tip #7. Alternately, you can create a slideshow in PowerPoint or Keynote. Create one slide from each sub-heading in your post and then record the slideshow as a screencast, with you talking through the points.

9. Host a webinar

A webinar is really just a longer version of a Facebook Live or Periscope broadcast. Similar to packaging up content for an e-book, you can pull together several posts on a similar topic and re-work them into an outline and talking points for a webinar. A webinar gives you a chance to showcase your expertise on a topic. Plus, it’s a great way to both connect with your existing audience and build your email list at the same time.

10. Republish your post on Medium

If you aren’t familiar with Medium, it’s sort of an uber-blog, where anyone can share content and interact with other members of the Medium community. The advantage to republishing on Medium is that it can get your content in front of new readers. This is a long-term strategy – you don’t want to publish one post and give up. Neither do you want to republish all your posts on Medium – after all, your ultimate goal is to get traffic back to your blog.

Remember, there's no need to use great content once. This post gives you 10 easy ways to repurpose your content. Not all methods will be appropriate for every post, so pick and choose what you think will work for you.

Have other ideas for repurposing content?  Leave them in the comments!

About the Author
Tonia Kendrick of Solopreneur Diaries helps solopreneurs grow their side-hustle and startup businesses by teaching them how to create & execute strategies, hone their marketing skills, & level up their productivity. Ready to start repurposing your content?  Get your copy of the spreadsheet here! Tonia uses to stay organized and squeeze more value out of each blog post. Download it here.