5 Easy Steps to Content Curation

By kim.liebenberg | May 9, 2016 |

Two weeks ago I gave you my Top 10 Ideas for content creation which I hope you have been able to implement and share across your social media platforms. This week I want to look more at content curation – which according to Hootsuite – is defined as the process of

“adding your voice (and value) to a handpicked collection of content. Gathered from a variety of sources, around a specific topic, that you publish and share with your fans. Wherever they may be..”

Content curation becomes important for you as a small to medium allied health practice owner because it saves time. You already do not have enough hours in your day to get through your caseload, so having to consistently come up with and create original content for your audience leaves you even more strapped for time. Content curation enables you to source and share interesting, relevant and evidence-based content that is going to add real value to your target market. In doing so it builds authority and enables your audience to trust you. In this information-saturated world we live in, trust and authority help you stand out from the crowd.

We are big advocates for knowing your audience, and when it comes to content curation, this definitely still applies .  This forms the basis of almost everything we do on social media. If you know who you want to share information with and what their needs, concerns, and interests are, it will be easy to find content that matters to them. Unless this first step is clearly defined, you will struggle to make an impact and may even turn off your audience or potential clients.

According to Neil Patel, the co-founder of Crazy Egg and Hello Bar, there are five essential steps to curating content the right way. I’ve taken Neil’s steps and made them relevant to the allied health sector:

Step 1: Find a type of curated content you can publish relevant to your Allied Health Practice

As an allied health professional, you want to curate content that is of interest to your audience and will add value, keeping them coming back to your feeds to find out more. Some examples or resources to share include:

  • ‘The definitive guide to …’ (where ‘…’ could be a topic of interest like
    • best core stability exercises,
    • top 10 running shoes with orthotic support,
    • or correct lifting techniques)
  • A summary or questionnaire –  This could be on topics such as
    • top 3 techniques for ankle rehab or
    • best tips for staying fit in the off-season
  • Video tutorials for a specific condition, technique or exercise program
  • Case studies – share good case studies on a particular injury you rehabilitate regularly or a new technique that has been trialled. If it’s an exceptional resource you will not only stimulate interest from your target audience but also from your peers. For information on evidence-based treatments, trials or reviews you can consult Pedro which is a free database of over 33,000 randomised trials, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines in physiotherapy. I trust other allied health disciplines have their own database whereby you can access the same.

Step 2: Understand the finer details of curation that will make your piece stand out

Only curate quality resources and make sure you read and understand what it is you are curating. If your audience is looking for you to provide interesting and valuable content they expect that you have looked at everything available on the topic and selected only those resources that are of the highest quality.

Also, make sure the content is trending or at least current. Most content on the web has a publish date, so keep an eye out for that.

Step 3: Have a strategy

  • Choose which type of curated content you are going to focus on, for example, case studies relating to the conservative management of low back pain.
  • Define the scope of your content; as you are not having to write all of this content, curate as many examples of – continuing with my example above – quality conservative management of low back pain protocols you can find. With a large scope, you are likely to include resources others have failed to.
  • Create your own angle. If you have chosen a topic to curate, chances are a lot of content has already been produced on that topic. You need to find a way to make it stand out and become an authoritative piece. Neil advises his clients to:
    • go bigger – in some cases, more is better (e.g., find as many case studies as you possibly can on conservative management of low back pain)
    • increase the scope – cover a large topic that everyone else is too scared to do (low back pain is a mammoth topic and dependent on the profession, often polarises opinion.)
    • go after a unique aspect – if there is much-curated content on a topic, stand out by modifying it for a more specific patient population (instead of “case studies on conservative management of low back pain”, do “case studies on conservative management of low back pain following cesarean birth”)

Step 4: 5 Tools to track down amazing health-related content and work more efficiently

There are numerous ways to find great content on the web. The tools listed below are free and the ones we use regularly to source and organise content that is relevant to our target audience:

  • https://www.buzzfeed.com/ allows you to source content relevant to Australia in categories including health. Search option available for more refined searches.
  • https://feedly.com/ is a news aggregator which compiles news feeds from a variety of online sources. It allows you to organise content into topics and search.
  • https://news.google.com.au/ is a computer-generated news site that aggregates headlines from news sources worldwide, groups similar stories together and displays them according to each reader’s personalized interests.
  • https://www.scoop.it/ is part content curation tool and part social network. Scoop.it allows you to create boards of curated content based on topics you choose, share your thoughts on that content, and connect with others who have similar interests.
  • https://evernote.com/ lets you take notes, sync files across your devices, save webpages, capture inspiration, and share your ideas with friends and colleagues.

Step 5: And finally…

Ensure the information you are presenting is the best of the best and make sure it looks A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. Design matters and showcases you in a professional light. There is simply too much content out there for your piece to look under-dressed and fade into the background! Don’t forget to tell your audience why you are sharing a certain piece (i.e. give your opinion or take on the content) and what value you think it has for them. Always give credit to your original source and provide a link back to their article.

Curating content is not hard and just takes a little time and organisation to get you started. Knowing your audience makes the task a lot easier and having a firm grip on some good tools could have you on your way in no time. As always, feel free to contact us for more topical ideas, and we would love to hear your thoughts on other content topics that work well for your audience. Happy curating!

References

 

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