How Much Content is Too Much Content?
We’ve all had that moment.
You open up your social media app of choice, navigate to your feed, and experience what it must feel like to drink from a fire hydrant. There’s so much content — so many friends, colleagues, and businesses screaming for your attention. So rather than read it, you mark it all as read.
This raises an interesting question. If you’re a company producing content in order to express and clarify your brand (as well as to be useful to your customer), then how do you know how much content is too much content?
Well, as funny as it sounds, only you can answer that question.
You’re not all alone, however. We’re here to help.
So here are few tips to lead you in the right direction.
Figuring Out Your Content
One, you need to dial in your brand. We’ve already written about that, so if you need help with brand clarity, then check out our other articles.
Two, you need to do what’s called a content audit. I know, I know. That sounds terribly boring, like hanging out with an IRS agent, but it’s not too bad. A content audit is simply going through all of the content that you’ve already produced to see if it aligns with your branding.
If it doesn’t, fix it. If it’s out of date, delete it. And don’t be nervous, content has a lifecycle. When it’s no longer useful, then it’s perfectly fine to get rid of it.
Three, when conducting your audit or when moving forward with new content, ask yourself:
Does this particular content support a key business objective and/or fulfill my users’ need?
If the answer to your question is negative, then you know what to do. Throw it out with the trash!
Four, do less not more. “Wait . . . what?” That’s right. Do less.
Here’s the thing: doing less isn’t a hard and fast rule. There’s no number attached to it. If you’re a large company, then you’ll have more content than a small one, so long as it meets business objectives and fulfills users’ needs.
If you’re a smaller company, you’ll have less. No big deal.
Find what’s right for you and your business, and then do less of it. Another way to say that is to produce quality over quantity. Your team and your customer will thank you for it.
Less content is easier to manage, more user-friendly, and it costs less to create.
Here’s some great advice from Kristina Halvorson, which comes from her book, Content Strategy for the Web:
How can you begin to scale back on content? Ensure that your website content maps back to key business objectives and user goals. Create a web editorial calendar that specifies when and why new content will be published. And, moving forward, stop creating so much “just-in-case” content.
Five, and finally, have a strategy or plan, not just a bunch of tactics.
You want a roadmap that will help you decide the when, where, and why of content. Don’t start with questions like: Should this go on Twitter or Facebook? That’s a tactic, not a strategy.
A strategy is made up of a core content strategy, which defines how an organization will use content to achieve its objectives and meet its user needs.
Then, surround your core strategy with substance, structure, workflow, and governance.
Substance: What kind of content do you need?
Structure: How is content prioritized?
Workflow: What’s the process for content?
Governance: Who’s in charge, again?
Once you’ve developed your strategy, then you can start considering tactics.
Conclusion
The whole cycle can feel a bit daunting but you, your business, and your customer will benefit.
Brand > audit > set goals > strategize > produce necessary content
And in the end, just remember this: meet business and customer needs. If a piece of content can’t do that — dump it!
Producing original content and maintaining a digital marketing plan can be overwhelming and time-consuming. Brand Viva Media is a Denver-based agency that creates custom content and marketing strategies for our clients. When you have the marketing plan you need, your brand gains exposure, customers engage more, and your business flourishes.