Content Curation and Adding Value @e1evation

Content Curation and Adding Value

By Todd Lohenry + on December 31, 2011 in Content Management, Curation, Social Media, Thoughts, TODDx Talks, Tools

: mjfern?

If you blog, you will have critics. Recently someone took me to task for this post on this blog…

Go to the source if you’d like the rest of his perspective. Comment, call or ‘connect’ so we can talk about how this applies to you and your organization…

via A Marketer’s Guide to Content Curation | Power Tools for Thought Leaders.

The above post came to my attention today. All of the text in that post is taken verbatim from the following HubSpot article, A Marketer’s Guide to Content Curation (Oct, 2010).

The original HubSpot article provides some useful advice on content curation, including the following three important rules for great curation: 1. Find the best content, 2. Add value, and 3. Attribute.

I think point 2 is particularly important. If you want to enhance your thought leadership in your domain and drive traffic to your website, then you should avoid simply duplicating 3rd party content. You need to add your own expert perspective and provide value above and beyond the original article.

Source: Content Curation and Adding Value

In my classes I teach that when ever anyone criticizes you in social media, you have to ask ‘Is there any validity in what they say?’. In this case, mjfern of the Intigi blog, may have a point. The ‘value add’ may not be readily apparent in every one of my curation posts. Hubspot says, however, and I agree, “each thoughtful post on your blog is a public demonstration of your thought leadership, personal integrity, humor, and professional insights. You don’t have to refute one of Einstein’s theories to get respect.” and my ‘value add’ does not always need to be worthy of a Pulitzer. Sometimes, just bringing the quote to my readers attention is value add enough…

Here’s how I do it if you’re interested…

As to Point 1? I use Google Reader to find the best content and the quote in this case from HubSpot’s Kip Bodnar was a real gem. As to point 3? I always attribute content that I curate under Fair Use Guidelines so that everyone benefits; the original author, the reader and me and I always encourage my readers to go to the source and read the original author’s entire article. To come back to point 2, I frequently use a curation post simply to share great content with my clients – my standard close of ‘Comment, call or ‘connect’ so we can talk about how this applies to you and your organization…’ – is an invitation to get customized ‘value add’ that I deliver via telephone to fill windshield time as I drive across the great State of Wisconsin. I must be doing something right here as my blog is ranked 32,163 in the US at the moment…

When it comes to curation, I teach my students and clients that when curating content, there are 5 elements to every curation post;

Catchy title
Interesting intro
Curated content
Value add
and strong call to interaction

The value add, I say, can go one of three general ways; ‘yes, no, maybe so’ is my mantra meaning either agree with the curated content, disagree or say ‘maybe so’ and add something you think the author missed. When curating, however, be sure you show respect to the original author and don’t come off as just being plain, old snarky…

The final word on this one goes to Mitch Joel who posted this yesterday:

“I spent over a decade in the music industry reviewing artists for weekly and monthly magazines and newspapers. In all of that time, I rarely reviewed artists I didn’t like or albums I didn’t like from artists that I did like. Why? One, with the limited space that print offered, I preferred to use that space to talk about something that I thought the readers might enjoy spending their money on (something positive). Two, if something was so bad (at least, according to me), why even bother giving it any coverage or attention? I realize that some people may want to know why something didn’t work for me or why I thought something wasn’t worth the time or listen, but I guess I was subscribing to the old adage, “if you have nothing nice to say don’t say anything at all.”" Source: Six Pixels of Separation – Marketing and Communications Blog – By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

I just hope there’s enough ‘value add’ in this curation post!