Out of blog post or ebook ideas? No worries. You can reuse, repurpose and recycle the posts you have already published in a variety of ways. Today, Beth Bauer (@JourneyofBethB) gives you some ideas for how to do so.
Does the thought of having to come up with another new topic to write about make you break into a cold sweat? Do you feel like you’ve written on every subject possible? Perhaps it’s time to give yourself a break from continually coming up with new content, and instead, begin to reuse and repurpose your past blog posts. Here are some great ideas on how to do precisely that.
Showcase Your Most Popular Posts
By now you probably have some posts that you know are a good example of your best work. Those are articles that received hundreds of comments, likes, and shares. Instead of coming up with new material, recycle those old posts.There are a couple of different ways to do that.
The first is to create a section on your website with your most popular posts, and then drive people to that section of your site. Another way to reuse your most popular blog posts is to do a marketing campaign highlighting your top ten articles.
Recreate Your Old Articles in a Different Format
If you want to give your fingers a break from the keyboard, consider reusing your old posts in a new digital format, such as a video or podcast.
Some people prefer to listen to or watch content, instead of reading it. Truck drivers and other people that travel a lot are potential new audiences that require podcasts and videos. Podcasts are as popular as audiobooks and relatively simple to produce.
Re-post on Other Blogging Platforms
There are many blogging platforms, such as Medium.com, that may allow you to publish your previous posts in the same format. It is not considered plagiarisms if it’s your original content and they agree to let you repost it on their website.
Websites such as Lifehacker, Vox, and Medium probably have a much larger audience then you do, so it’s a great way to pick up some new followers and grow your audience.
Update Your Old Posts
Another way to reuse your old posts is to update them and then repost as new content. Just like your house sometimes needs a fresh coat of paint, so do your old articles. Recently I went back and read some of my very first blog posts and was quite embarrassed because I have learned a lot about blogging best practices since I first began. So, I rewrote them, used better images, and updated the format.
There are some important issues to keep in mind when updating or republishing posts. Keep in mind that Google may have ranked a post, and if you change the URL, you will lose that ranking, for instance. You also need to be careful about Google’s duplicate content rules, which have long been feared and debated.
Turn Your Blog Into an E-book
If your blog focuses on a particular niche, such as travel, and you have a bunch of posts on the same subject, like traveling through Asia, you probably have enough material to create an e-book. E-books are hugely popular, and if successful, can generate a nice passive income for years ahead.
You may not need as much content as you might think. Fifteen thousand words are plenty for a typical e-book. That is about ten posts. Of course, you’ll need an introduction and conclusion, professional editing, and a cover image, but you’ve already written most of your e-book.
Create a Spin-Off
Just like favorite television shows often have spin-offs, so can your blog posts. For example, sometimes in my articles, I have mentioned exciting people that I’ve met during my travels. Later, I went back and wrote an article about that person. I called the section “Fascinating people I’ve met on my travels.” I then sit down with them and conduct a comprehensive interview and share those intriguing stories with my audience.
Make sure you include a human connection, whatever makes that person unique. Engage your audience with emotional language that will help them connect with that person’s story.
Having a successful blog isn’t always about writing on as many new topics as possible. Sometimes it’s about working smarter, not harder.
Successful bloggers know themselves and their followers well, and part of that is learning to reuse and repurpose old content in new ways. Rewriting your posts, updating them, resharing your old articles, or creating interesting podcasts or professional looking videos, are all great ways to accomplish this goal.
Of course, creating an e-book is probably the most effective way to reuse your old content. So, why not give it a try? You may have already blogged a book without realizing it, and that content is just waiting to be “booked.”
How do you repurpose or recycle your blog posts? Tell me in a comment below.
About the Author
Beth Bauer is a freelance writer, travel blogger, yoga instructor, and entrepreneur currently working on her third novel. She has traveled to over 20 countries in just the last two years and enjoys life as a digital nomad. She is originally from the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.A., and when she’s home lives on the Long Beach Peninsula with her dog, Ozzie.
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