5th Issue - Distribution Channels - Make those damn decisions!

It was a Friday, and I had to upload a short video.

While I had my 3 content pillars and knew what topics people wanted to see where,

I was tired,

lazy,

And I just wanted to get it out of the way.

So I recorded one video related to AI 

and uploaded it on both IG and YT.

Waking up to see that it has generated 77 views on Reels was normal.

I didn't tailor it to the platform or spent much time on it.

But wait.

That very same video,

which was only 5 seconds long,

got over 8,000 views as a Short?!

Have you ever wondered if you're just on the wrong platform?

How stupid would it be,

if you found out that the content you have been producing,

can reach much more people,

only if it was uploaded to a different platform?

Yet, the way to drive such drastic results is not by posting what you have every where.

The real way to maximize your content reach is by knowing exactly what content your audiences want from you on different platforms. 

And just serve them that.

🧲 I know my YT audiences like AI-related content through testing and monitoring my metrics. So it makes sense for the video to be uploaded there. But uploading that on IG, where my audiences like to see behind-the-scenes footage, is a complete waste of time and effort. But I also understand that it's hard to stop yourself from repurposing content across platforms. Therefore, my suggestion is:

• Upload based on the content you have (what it's about), not the format of content you have (what it is)
• Upload for quality (potential reach), not for quantity (checking off something on the calendar)
• When something works, do more; when something doesn't, stop.

Look past vanity metrics to really justify your content effort

In my case, both Youtube and IG are responsible for my top-of-funnel goals.

I simply use them to reach more audiences, regardless of them being potential clients or not.

And in this example, YT is a clear winner (9.5K views + over 100 likes and counting).

But previously, IG has helped me achieve some promising numbers too (3.3k view + over 740 likes).

As you can tell, YT is great at spreading my content organically,

while IG garners a higher engagement rate.

While others may hence state that both should remain in my content marketing strategy,

I must remind myself that they are both here for driving brand awareness. 

If a 5 second video reaches 9.5k eyeballs on one platform,

and just 97 eyeballs on another,

a higher engagement rate doesn't justify it.

The time I spend on IG,

would indeed be much more effective if spent on YT. 

🧲 I'm not suggesting that everyone should bail on Instagram shorts. What I am saying is that to decide which platform to continue investing in, one needs to look beyond likes, views, and followers. Having a content funnel can definitely help, but if you don't, simply ask yourself: what business impact does posting on the selected platform bring? If it's not bringing much, other than the stress of keeping up with it, perhaps it's time to reassess your content distribution.

Make a choice to stay or leave

It can be scary, but spending time doing something ineffective doesn't make it better than spending time doing absolutely nothing.

Read that again.

For me, I made the decision to be off Facebook.

All I use it for is to upload and organize photos.

And now, I'm making the decision to take a step back from Instagram.

It makes much more sense for me to repurpose relevant content onto the platform instead of forcing myself to create something for it. 

Spontaneous posting of behind-the-scenes stories would be much more effective for me.

"It can be that you have 10,000 pieces of content and ideas or that you have 100.

It doesn’t matter.

You now have a framework / process for spending time in terms of content distribution on what matters most.

You can now work your way from the top left to the bottom right." - StoryLab.ai

🧲 The easiest way to decide if a platform should be eliminated from your content marketing strategy is when you only see your mother/ father/ husband/ wife/ friend's name come up every time. They're not your target audience. Your content shouldn't just be serving them. You're either creating the wrong content/ not engaging on the platform/ struggling to reach people organically. If you're not ready to improve, invest time, or invest money to address these issues, that platform isn't for you.

Cheesy but true - it's a problem only Content Marketing can fix.

The #1 problem most companies have right now?

They don't know what content they should create.

And that's not a question you find answer to by pumping out heaps of content and hoping for something to stick.

It only makes it more confusing because you have too much going on.

It's really about being selective from the beginning.

Having a content strategy.

And only creating specific content.

That's how you can actually tell what works and what doesn't.

🧲  I know for a fact that people on Instagram want to catch a glimpse into my life. Content where I talk about my own failures, share recent outings, and random solopreneur moments works. I can't force people to like content outside of these topics. That's the hardest part for many companies to accept because content distribution is really about admitting the truth and being honest with yourself. You can either focus on generating assets for this content, or accept that you're unable to upkeep platform best practices and it's better to do something else.

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