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It’s a question as old as social media: should you be reusing content? The answer, simply, is yes but no. If that sounds confusing, let us clear it up. Take a look at our guide as to how and when you can reuse your social media marketing content.
Your own content on the same platform? No
But repeating content two or three times? That’s going to get irritating to your users quickly, and thankfully, has fallen out of practice amongst social media marketers. This is probably because a lot of algorithms were updated to not favor a certain number of posts and consistency like it did before, and instead focus on quality. So, posting the same thing 3x because you have a gap in your content calendar isn’t likely to help you. You can keep a better track of your content calendar with some help from oktopost.com.
Your own content on different platforms? Yes
If we’re talking about repurposing your own content and posting it to different social media platforms, there is a lot of opportunity there. But you can’t copy and paste across every platform and call it a day. If only life were so kind. Every social media platform is different, with people visiting it for different reasons. Ever scrolled through Pinterest and thought “I’m tired of this” and opened Instagram? It’s because there are two different personalities there even if the initial gimmick of photo-focussed social platforms is at their foundation.
So, when you’re repurposing your content, you need to think about two things: the format and the personality of the platform. So, sure, short-form video content can go on TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, but on Instagram you’re focussing on aesthetics, so the sound is only there to trend, and might well be turned off. You can take clips from live streams on Twitch or long form videos on YouTube and post them on TikTok and Instagram. On TikTok the point is entertainment whereas Pinterest and Instagram focus on the look and learning tips, so be aware of what clips you’re sending over the internet.
User-generated content
As long as you understand what you need to do in terms of crediting, you can post user-generated content to your brands’ social media profiles. Once you have permission to post and the credit in the caption, you can post it as many places as you like.
Some brands lend themselves better than others to user-generated content, like designer labels and maybe photoshop software that the photographer wants to shout out. That will get more user-generated content than say, a perfume or a project management software.
You can encourage user-generated content with engagement. If you are answering comments, tagging people, and making a conscious effort to engage, users will see that their effort to include you in their content will be rewarded with recognition.
Curated content
Curated content is a great way to fill a gap in your content calendar and offer a shoutout while you’re at it. Why would you want a shoutout? Because the partner will feel obligated to give you a shoutout in return. That way, you share audiences and hopefully gain a few new followers.
