Social media has become an irreplaceable tool for connecting with new audiences and sustaining existing relationships with customers. 

So many people in the world use social media today. The numbers put it at 4.48 billion people worldwide. That’s a great opportunity for businesses to market themselves and share relevant content. 

But wait, sharing relevant content isn’t just about creating an infographic, short message, or video that can be shared on social media. It involves a much more important skill – content curation. 

In this piece, we’ll be sharing 9 content curation tips for social media that every business should know.

What is content curation?

Content curation is the process of finding, choosing, and sharing high-quality content from different sources that fit with your brand and speaks to your target audience. It means going through a lot of information and picking out the best pieces to share on your social media sites.

Importance of content curation for social media

Content selection is important for social media because:

• Provide value to your audience by sharing relevant and interesting content.
• Establish credibility and authority in your industry by curating content from reputable sources.
• Keep your social media channels active and engaging, even if you don’t have original content to share.
• Save time and resources by leveraging existing content instead of creating everything from scratch.

9 Content Curation Tips for Social Media

Identify Your Target Audience

Before you start curating content, it’s crucial to have a clear understanding of your target audience. When you have a clear understanding of your target audience, you can create content that resonates with them, speaks their language, and addresses their specific pain points. 

If you market services that are attractive to Gen Z for instance, you need to understand what motivates them to interact with businesses on social media; and what type of content they consume on social media apps like WhatsApp, Instagram and Tiktok.

One effective method for identifying your target audience is to define their demographics. This includes characteristics such as age, gender, location, occupation, and income level. These demographics can provide valuable insights into the preferences and behaviours of your audience.

Conducting market research is a valuable tool in identifying your target audience. This can involve surveys, interviews, focus groups, and analyzing existing data. Market research allows you to gather firsthand information about your audience’s preferences, opinions, and habits, helping you refine your content curation strategy.

Social media analytics is another powerful tool for identifying your target audience. Most social media platforms provide detailed analytics that offer insights into your audience’s demographics, engagement patterns, and interests. 

It’s important to note that identifying your target audience is an ongoing process. As your business evolves and grows, so too may your target audience. Regularly review and update your understanding of your audience to ensure that your content remains relevant and impactful.

Suggested Read: 10 Steps to Getting the Perfect Social Media Strategy for Your Business

Add Value with Commentary

Don’t just share links when you’re putting together information. Add value to the curated material by giving your thoughts, analysis, and commentary on it. This makes it clear to your audience why the information is important and how it can help them.

When you comment on curated content, you add context and help your readers understand why the content is important. Your ideas can help people understand how the content relates to your business, current trends, or specific problems. 

Commentary gives you a chance to show off your knowledge and become known as a leader in your area.

Add your own style and voice to the material you’ve collected. Share stories, experiences, and views from your own life to make the content more interesting and relevant to your audience.

Maintain Consistency

Create a content curation schedule to ensure a consistent flow of curated content on your social media channels. This keeps you organised and makes sure your audience always has something new to read.

Curating content is useful, but it’s important to find a good mix between curated content and original content. Add your own original posts, like blog posts, videos, or infographics, to curated material to show off your unique expertise.

Ask your audience questions, ask for their opinions, and start discussions about the material you’ve chosen. Respond quickly to comments and take part in the conversations to make people feel like they are part of a group.

Listen to what your audience has to say about the curated material. Change how you choose content to share based on what they like and what they suggest. Show that you care about what they have to say and try to give them what they want.

Optimize Content for Each Platform

To get the most out of your curated content, you should adapt it to each social media site. Optimise the format, length, and style of your presentation to fit the needs of the platform and your viewers.

Add images, videos, and infographics that are related to the curated material to make it better. Visuals grab people’s attention and get them involved, which makes your curated material more likely to be shared.

If you need to invest in video creation services in order to create content, it is worth doing so as such content drives higher engagement on social media platforms.

Monitor Performance

Don’t just create content, post and walk away. Check to see how well the curated content is performing over a period of time. 

A/B test different types of content, formats, and posting times to really get a sense of what is working and what isn’t. This will save time and effort from being invested in the wrong strategies. 

Regularly monitor the performance of your curated content using social media analytics tools. There are many apps to choose from depending on your specific needs. Measure metrics like likes, shares, comments, and click-through rates to evaluate the effectiveness of your content curation efforts.

Also, you can use curated content to drive engagement from social platforms to your own websites using lead-generation tactics. 

For instance, if you curate content to help your customers understand the different ways they can reach out to customer service, you can drive leads from that post to your website, taking them directly to your support team either through a live chat app, email or external knowledge base.

Suggested Read: Top 10 Effective Strategies for Acquiring Customers and Growing Your Business

Refine content curation strategy based on data

Listen to the data when curating social media content over a period of time. It’ll prevent a multitude of errors and save you from low engagement and conversions. 

Use the insights gained from analytics to refine your content curation strategy. Identify the types of content that resonate the most with your audience and focus on curating similar content in the future.

Staying updated with trends

Stay abreast of the latest trends and developments in your industry by following industry influencers on social media. Curate content related to emerging topics and leverage the expertise of influencers to provide valuable insights to your audience.

A good tip is to check out what your competitors are up to, see what content drives high engagement and replicate the same strategy for yourself. 

Monitor industry news, blogs, and forums to identify emerging topics that are gaining traction. Curate content on these topics to position yourself as a thought leader and attract a broader audience.

Leverage user-generated content

User-generated content provides a valuable opportunity for content curation. Encourage your audience to create and share content related to your brand or industry. 

Curate and showcase the best user-generated content, giving credit to the creators. This not only strengthens your relationship with your audience but also adds authenticity and diversity to your curated content.

Engage your audience by actively seeking their input and participation in content curation. Run contests, ask for recommendations, and encourage them to share their favourite content. This fosters a sense of community and makes your audience feel involved in the content creation process.

Avoid information overload

With an abundance of content available, it’s crucial to filter and curate only the most relevant and valuable pieces for your audience. Avoid overwhelming them with excessive content and focus on quality over quantity.

While it’s important to consistently curate content, don’t sacrifice quality for the sake of quantity. Curate content that provides genuine value to your audience, even if it means sharing fewer pieces. Focus on maintaining a high standard of curated content.

Conclusion

Content curation is a powerful strategy for enhancing your social media presence and getting brand recognition for your business. It connects your audience and customers to your brand, making it relatable and personalized.

With these content curation tips, you can effectively curate content that captivates your audience and drives engagement.