You’ve created your most brilliant piece of content and you’re ready to send it out into the Internet ether. But where do you share it to ensure you reach your desired audience? This is where distribution comes into play, and your success is directly proportional to your strategy.
There are three basic distribution channels:
- Owned media. These are the channels that belong to you and that you control, including your website, email newsletter, blog, and social media profiles.
- Earned media. This is based on who shares your content, including social media shares, mentions, and likes, articles you’ve written that are featured on another website or blog, and media coverage.
- Paid media. This is the exposure you pay for, including social media ads and Google ads.
For a financial advisor, we recommend focusing on the first two, as that’s where you can see the greatest success. With these two basic channels in mind, let’s review some of the lesser known distribution channels that go beyond the basics.
Buffer or Hootsuite
A social media schedule is essential for publishing and sharing posts on your social media profiles. Buffer and Hootsuite are the two most common options. Hootsuite has been around forever, so many people are used to using their platform. However, Buffer offers a more sophisticated interface and in-depth analytics.
WiseStamp
As an advisor, you likely send a lot of emails everyday to prospects, clients, referrals, and strategic partners. Your email signature is prime real estate for reminding your contacts of your main content channels, including your social media profiles, website, and blog. With WiseStamp, you can create an attractive email signature with all of your marketing links. They claim that by adding your image and social media links to their signature see a 32% increase in email replies and a 10% increase in social network reach.
Edgar
Once you’ve been curating and creating content for awhile, it’s easy to forget about your older posts that are still relevant. Edgar is an easy tool that reposts content from your archive onto your social media channels. The company explains that, “the typical half-life of a blog post is 10 days. That means that within the first 10 days of being published, a post will receive about half of the traffic it will ever see in its life. Edgar turns that on its head by automatically republishing links to your posts. This makes sure you’re always driving new traffic to your site, and gives new life to all the blog posts you’ve worked so hard on!” The great thing about this tool is that it kills two birds with one stone: it helps you squeeze more juice out of your content and makes it easier to keep your social media profiles active with frequent postings.
Quora and Yahoo Answers
Answer sites, such as Quora and Yahoo Answers (the two most popular ones), are a great place for you to share your expertise while simultaneously establishing yourself as a knowledgeable resource. Search through these sites for topics that relate to your services and expertise, whether someone has a question on rolling over their 401(k) or understanding how the financial markets work. Provide a relevant answer and a link to an article on your website that you may have created on the topic or a similar one. This helps your SEO (by featuring links to your website on other sites) and gives you an opportunity for a new audience to see your content. Although not an answers website, GrowthHackers works on a similar premise: you help out others and, in return, you can build your audience.
HARO (Help a Reporter Out)
Help a Reporter Out (HARO) is the most popular sourcing service that connects journalists with expert sources. This benefits both parties, as journalists can cite and quote professionals in their articles and the source can establish himself as an expert. For articles on financial planning, retirement, or market changes, you may be able to provide tips or advice and then be cited within the article. Before signing up for a service like this, check with your broker-dealer on any limitations or requirements.
Buzzstream
One of the best ways to get your content shared and seen by a larger audience is by linking up with an influencer who shares your post. BuzzStream is an app that allows you to find and research influencers. From there, share your post and, if they’re interested they’ll share your post with their audience.
These tools can help you increase your online reach and get more bang for your buck with each piece of content you create. Start small and try one or two tools based on your marketing goals. As you start seeing results, take note of which pieces perform the best and which tools garner you the most results so you can adjust your strategy as needed.