Marketers are always experimenting with all sorts of campaign and content ideas. Many of them may have had multiple previous reincarnations. Several unused blog cuts or email newsletters laying on the workshop floor waiting for an inspired marketer to piece them together to create the next content masterpiece. I came across the concept of Frankenblogging on our own Marketo blog, a phrase introduced by one of our past colleagues, Jason Miller, and it takes inspiration from Mary Shelley’s monster in Frankenstein, put together using parts from other people.
It’s not unlikely for creative blogger or content writer types to store up any number of half-written posts in a folder of content purgatory. These lost snippets are usually flashes of inspiration or insights that never transform into an entire post. So, what do you do with them? Do you let them waste, or do you find a way to repurpose that content? Taking inspiration from Jason, who came up with Frankenblogging, I’ve outlined how content strategists can apply and expand it into their wider content management practices.
Any content writer worth their salt wants to get in touch with the passion and emotion that sparked the idea in the first place, particularly if the idea itself could lead to a wider concept. Stitching together disparate parts can be applied to the bits and pieces lying around in your content library.
The first step on the route to Frankenblogging is to find a common theme or link between two or more of your half-written blog posts, or email newsletters and combine them into something great. For example, say you have a half-written post about identifying influencers, but you also have another half-written post about using Twitter lists. Both can be related to one another when considering an influencer relations strategy. And voila, you have a complete post about finding influencers on Twitter and following them efficiently using Twitter lists.
But, how do you keep content and assets organised enough so that you’re not frantically searching the archives looking for the parts you need? Proper content management needs consideration, and there are tools that can help. If you’re working with a lot of video and images, you’ll need something more heavy-duty. By organising your digital assets in a central location like a DropBox or Google Drive platform, you can ensure easy access to the pieces anytime, anywhere and from any device. Sophisticated search capabilities mean less time spent searching for assets.
Managing your content and media assets with a digital asset management solution also allows you to place watermarks on images, automatically embed copyright or contact information on images. You can also set embargo dates to control when image collections or press kits expire, or apply other effects that enhance the overall content.
However, it is important to be mindful of trying to shoehorn concepts together that just don’t make sense. Keep an eye on the ideas and whether they make sense in the same post, ensure the content is easy to read and it flows like a real conversation. You don’t want the start of your blog to pull in a different direction to your conclusion, it should all circle back to an overall topic. Your blog and other bits of content are meant to be a living extension of your brand, so make sure you control your message and target audience.
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