Content Lifecycle

What is the content lifecycle? 

The Content Lifecycle describes the whole process it takes to create content from beginning to end. Usually, the content lifecycle included everything from ideation and creation to publication and promotion, ongoing updates or eventual archival. 

In general, when working on your content strategy, you should approach it with the lens of constant evolution, meaning regular updates, reviews, repurposing, expansion, and more. Content Lifecycle brings this concept of continuous evolution of content into a concrete work item.

Why have mapped out your content lifecycle

Having a clear understanding of your content lifecycle will make your content creation strategy more efficient and will yield better results

  1. It helps be more Strategic with Content Planning
    Having a better understanding of your content lifecycle stages will help you help plan the right content at the right time and never let content go to waste with regular checks and updates. 

  2. Improved Efficiency
    Mapping out your content lifecycle can also help you streamline your operations by giving clear responsibilities when it comes to writing, editing, design and promotion of content. 

  3. Consistent Quality
    With a clear content lifecycle approach, workflows and responsibilities, you ensure that each piece of content you release is up to the brand standards at all times. 

  4. Better Content Performance
    It is no secret that to improve SEO rankings, your content needs to consistently be updated and optimized. Being proactive can help your ranking, engagement and lead generation over time.

What Happens When Content Management is not Streamlined?

  • Outdated or Inaccurate Content: Leaving content without attendance means it loses its initial appeal and no matter the work involved it will fall in the cracks of the internet and disappear. Without regular reviews, your site can end up with misinformation that confuses your audience.

  • Inefficient Workflows: When the process are not clear, marketing teams often en up doing last minute updates trying to fix the piece of content that once was a high-performer.

  • Missed Repurposing Opportunities: A robust content lifecycle mindset will help you find new opportunities for existing content and repurposing it for new channels or formats. 

  • Lower ROI: Content creation is expensive. Failing to manage and optimize content management means losing out on its full potential value.

FAQ

What are the Content Lifecycle stages?

There are 5 stages to the content lifecycle. Each stage will ensure that marketing teams are always delivering great content and ensuring the business stays relevant and drives engagement. 

  • Ideation & Planning: This is the first step before any piece of content is created. Doing proper content research, topics ideation, goals setting, and defining target audiences will help avoid missteps later on. 

  • Creation & Editing: This is the doing phase. Once your topics are set, it’s time to produce the content - writing, design, video, then review and refine.

  • Publication & Promotion: This is the phase when your content comes to life when it meets your audience. Put your content and make sure it is promoted across all your channels and platforms. 

  • Maintenance & Optimization: Now we get into keeping things great! After all that effort into creating, regularly updating stats, links, and formats will keep your content relevant and high-performing.

  • Archival or Retirement: Know when to say goodbye. Remove or repurpose content that’s outdated, no longer aligns with your goals, or fails to meet performance benchmarks

A content strategy without a content lifecycle is like a chicken with its head cut off. It is very hard to yield great results if you don’t have an understanding of why a piece of content should be created, that its purpose, and how it is performing through time. 

Creating a content lifecycle means you understand your audience and your brand you can work with precision to create, maintain and optimize content. Adding content lifecycle to your marketing strategy will result in better understanding for your audience and what resonates with them. The consequence will be better content and better results. 

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