Regardless of whether you are just launching your Instagram profile or you have been around for a while, in this blog post, we will show you what type of content is best to create based on the stage you and your business are at.
We mention this because it is not the same if you want to create a podcast and you are just starting your online fairytale, even though you have been reigning supreme offline, i.e. in the real world, for years, or if someone wants the same on Instagram (here, Instagram is just an example; our blog, by the way, covers social networks in global) for a long time and has thousands of followers.
Do not worry, we will explain why these things are not the same…
Why Does the Stage You Are in Affect What Type of Content You Will Create?
Being present in online business, furthermore, if you are an expert in your field, we know that how you use your time and resources is very important to you. We know you want to maximize the return on your investment; the so-called ROI in business.
We will take the following situation as an example:
Let us assume that you have a HUUUUGE desire to start a podcast. You also like to listen to other quality podcasts, that is what drives you, but you only came to Instagram, say, two months ago; you are just building a community and you have a certain number of followers.
Then you take the time to record the episodes, invest your time to come up with a topic, make the “skeleton” of the episode to be of good quality, record it, invest more time to edit, invest in training on podcast editing to remove the chomping and crutch words and, finally, post it to the platform. You repeat this for four to five episodes. Then you realize that just six-seven people listened to each one and that is it. During that time and with the money you invested, you could have created a different type of content that would have brought you a much, much higher ROI.
That is why we are writing this blog post; in order to see what stage you are in, whether the above applies to you, and what type of content to create. Or, if not, what strategy is best for you based on the stage your business is at.
3 Main Stages
Keep in mind that every business has a different starting position, target group, and personal brand. It depends on where it will appear and what type of content to create.
These 3 phases that we are going to tell you about are the main ones. They do not go in order and, in this case, there is no order. You will see why this is so when you read them.
- You are just starting out; you are “kicking a**” offline, but starting from scratch on the Internet as you have 0 followers on Instagram.
- You have been around for a while; you have built a community and a sizable following.
- You are somewhere between the above two stages right now; you did not start your business “yesterday” and you do not also have a huge follower base yet.
Between each of these stages, there are a million more variations and, therefore, different pieces of advice that we would give you. And this is done on online courses for content creation and optimization (SEO), where businesspeople are taken, their target groups, personal brands, and the stage they are in – and a content plan is made for them, which will be much easier to fulfill because of this; because it is created according to their “superpowers”.
DIGRESSION: Optimizing content means adapting it for search engines (hence, SEO). In this way, you help Google (if you write a blog, for example) to rank you more easily and better so that people can find you when they google a certain topic. It is the same with YouTube. It also has its own tricks and styles that you apply to your video so that people can find you more easily. It sounds scary, but it is not. We will go into this in more detail in a separate article when we will explain the types of “evergreen” content.
What type of content should you be creating? Should it even be Instagram? This depends on your target group and where it is located. It is logical that you will also appear there. If it is LinkedIn, then you will place your main focus on that medium. Given that today everyone is on Instagram (and increasingly on TikTok) and that for the vast majority, it is still Instagram, our advice gravitates towards that.
Let us dive deeper into each stage and each content type.
Stage 1
You are an expert in your field, you have been working with clients offline for years and you want to expand online. You have 0 followers on Instagram. The next model is for you.
For short-form content, you will focus on Instagram. There you will build a community, address only your “ideal” client, and call them to make a purchase (call-to-action, i.e. CTA).
For longer-form content, you will choose YouTube. Why YouTube? Because of the aforementioned ROI. It is important because one created video, which you optimize well for YouTube search, will increase the chances that people searching for that topic will find you more easily – your return on the investment in time, creation, and uploading of that video is the possibility of reaching your target group REGARDLESS of the number of people following you on the channel.
Optimize and translate your longer YouTube videos to leverage its high ROI, ensuring your content reaches your target audience effectively, regardless of your channel’s size. This strategy, including translating your youtube video content, maximizes visibility for your topic and enhances audience engagement with minimal dependency on follower count.
For this, you need to know YouTube SEO (optimization mentioned above). You can pay an expert for that, of course. Or you can educate yourself. Or wait for our new article about that. Because of this, people can find you relatively quickly, and the best thing is that they will find you in three months the same as they will find you in three years. Your video will still pop up first in search and bring you in new people and clients. This is all in contrast to a podcast which is definitely not the type of content for you; there is no one to listen to it because you are starting from scratch online and still do not have a follower base.
Stage 2
You have been around for a while, you have built a community on Instagram, and you have a sizable number of followers that you can redirect to a longer form of content where you talk more deeply about a topic you are an expert on and provide value. The next model is for you.
For a shorter form of content, you will continue with Instagram. Whatever you have been doing up until now, keep doing. Invite people to work with you and share valuable posts.
For longer-form content, you can start a podcast, a blog (which we do not recommend even though you are reading ours now), or even YouTube.
Podcast yes, for the reason that you actually have a large community that with Instagram you can invite to listen to episodes through which you will be able to better explain topics from your experience because you have more time than on Instagram to give more value, talk about the successes of your clients, and go with a sales pitch.
We do not recommend a blog as the type of content you would create… unless you are like us – a digital marketing freak and love to learn about it. For a blog, you need a little more serious knowledge of SEO in order for your texts to rank on Google.
This brings us again to the very important ROI. Why? Because your goal is not to learn website SEO (the best website builders online are aware of the importance of an effective site that will bring you the traffic and most professional results) and blog SEO (which is a whole distinct niche in digital). No, your goal is to create content through which you will convert an interested follower into a customer the fastest and easiest.
As for YouTube, it is the same thing as a moment ago from the previous stage. You will find YT in every stage actually. Its algorithm is much more supportive than any other social network. If we were starting now, it would be our choice.
Stage 3
You did not really start “yesterday”, and you have not gathered a huge community yet. You are somewhere between stages 1 and 2.
For the short form, continue with Instagram. From stories, posts, reels, live clips, carousels, and reels. Keep talking about your offer, your customers, and your experience – and invite them to make a purchase.
For a longer form? You guessed it – YouTube. By now you already understand why.
There Is a Pit in Every Plum
Take each of these tips into account and adapt them to your business, your target group, and the place (social media) where it is located.
You have these three stages and you will recognize where you are. It is clear to you that continuous content creation is the key to success for your online business. The goal is to optimize that part and come up with ideas for your content. This, however, takes a detached article…
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