Are you thinking of entering the world of content marketing? But do you have any clue how to approach it? While doing your research, you may have come across popular terms such as content creation and content curation. Although they sound similar, they are entirely different concepts. 

Content creation implies creating your own fresh, unique and engaging content. On the other hand, content curation involves using interesting content from third-party sources to drive audience engagement. If you are thinking about building an effective content curation strategy and approach to content marketing, you need to understand each concept clearly to serve your business needs effectively. 

What is Content Creation? 

Content creation refers to creating brand new content for your business promotion tailored for your specific purposes. It is an initial step to content marketing. But in the age of social media, posting unique content every day becomes challenging. This is where the need for curated content arises. 

What is Content Curation? 

Unlike content creation, curation does not involve composing new content. Content curation requires you to collect relevant information from credible, third-party sources which may be suited to your business needs and share it by adding your comments & insights with your target audience. Although, curating content requires a good amount of effort in research and gathering information. But, some people consider it to be less intimidating. 

Advantages of Content Creation 
 

• When you create content it is your intellectual property, so you do not need to ask for permission before sharing it. 
• Unique, engaging, and SEO optimized content is a search engine ranking booster and an excellent traffic generator 
• The content is specifically designed to suit your business purposes. For instance, you may address issues in your content for which services you are offering are the best solution. 
• You may add any links or illustrations you wish to because you have the liberty to create and optimize your content as you like. 
• Creating content makes you famous among your audience. Your readers can hear your voice, your opinions and know that you have a certain level of expertise in your field. 

Disadvantages of Content Creation 
 

• It may be exhausting and time-consuming to come up with new ideas daily. 
• Not everyone is good with writing and may need to post curated content from other sources that fit their company image. 

Advantages of Content Curation
 

• Content curation does require writing skills and therefore saves a lot of valuable time. 
• An effective content curation strategy can help you expand your network and build strong corporate relationships within the industry
• It offers your readers a wide range of viewpoints on relevant topics in your area of expertise.
• It portrays yourself as less self-promotional as you are not just posting your promotional materials, but also acknowledging others' viewpoints. 

Disadvantages of Content Curation
 

• It is essential to be careful and not promote information from your competitor's websites. 
• You need to provide information only from credible sources to maintain your reputation in the industry. 
• It becomes difficult to voice your opinion and showcase your knowledge and expertise when you only indulge in posting curated content.
• Content curation involves linking to a source website that may divert your audience from your site. 

Curated content works wonders for small businesses to gain initial exposure. It is highly beneficial for people who work in social media management to fill in gaps in the social media calendar. However, small businesses benefit greatly from creating their content also. If your business is well-regulated and there is ample opportunity to create new content, then content creation may be a better choice. 

An Ideal Approach Is A 60/40 Blend

Some businesses may lean completely towards one and entirely ignore the other. It is an incorrect approach to content marketing. The best way to drive engagement is to use a mix of 40% shared content and 60% unique content on your site. Over time, you will understand what kind of content intrigues your audience and you may adjust the proportion of content mix accordingly. 

Starting with a 60/40 blend is a good idea before you begin to analyze your target audience preferences. However, it is necessary to remember, there is no perfect mixture for a business. You need to experiment with different content marketing strategies and finally discover what works the best for your business. 

Quick Advice On Best Practices 

When you are posting curated content, add an insight or encourage your audience to comment or ask questions on your post to open up a discussion forum. By doing so, your audience gets to hear your voice opinions on a topic even when the content is not written by you. 

It is essential to keep in mind that the content you post is adding value to your business. Anything you post is a reflection of your business. You need to analyze the content well before sharing it with your audience. Just like sharing content regularly is crucial, being careful of the message you send across is also vital.

Getting used to content marketing can take some time. If you are feeling overwhelmed while coming up with an effective content curation strategy you may enroll in an e-learning content curation course at https://www.learnow.live/ for guidance and a complete marketing overhaul for your business.