We've all heard it before... "someone's trash is another's treasure".
And now that it's officially springtime, it couldn't ring more true for many folks including myself. We often look to spring as an opportunity to reflect, reboot and debate the necessity of random items in our household or workspace... To keep or not to keep? To reduce, reuse, recycle, or in some cases, upcycle?
I'm a big fan of finding a new purpose for an item, repackaging it in a different way – giving it new life, if you will. Creative reuse.
It got me thinking about how to leverage your existing archive of digital assets – the (vintage) content in your back pocket that is still useful and relevant, albeit a bit dusty and neglected...
- Those blog posts you wrote three years ago that may look a bit dated, but still do a bang-up job of explaining the do's and don'ts of your industry
- That how-to video demonstrating an easy fix to unclog your kitchen sink
- That running list of the best dog parks in the city or your favourite local spots for vegan eats
- Those old arty photos kicking around on your cloud that you snapped on a photography walk in the park
Dust off those old content gems and bring them new life. Somebody is bound to find them bright, shiny and helpful.
Take, for example, @bonappetit and @hootsuite. Both brands do a fantastic job of pointing their audience to mix of articles, blog posts, videos and infographics from a couple of years ago, in addition to new content from today. They highlight the relevancy and value of the content and make them fresh and popular again through snappy headlines and clever, witty banter.
The secret sauce is to keep an eye on trends and hot topics, know your audience and understand which pieces of your existing content still ring true for that given trend, topic or best practice. Think about how you might repackage the content with a new headline or fresh artwork, or revamp into a "best of" compilation. Better yet, start doing some simple legwork now by cataloguing and tagging your content by keyword or category in your archives. It's an easy find when you're on the hunt for great content on topic XYZ.
Are you rich in content gems and you just didn't realize it?
Want to chat about how to get started with a content audit? Book your consultation today.
- michelle