Learn two effective content marketing strategies for small businesses and see the exact approach we use at Launch Kit. Maximize your social media presence and share your story with the world.
As a small business owner in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I get it—content marketing can feel like a big, overwhelming task. You're passionate about your business, you know you need to be creating content, but where do you start? Trust me, you’re not alone in feeling this way. Whether you're a beloved local shop or a business expanding across the country, content marketing is about sharing your story with the people who matter. But here’s the thing: creating content consistently? That’s where things get tough.
It's like going to the gym. Signing up? Easy. Seeing the benefits? Obvious. But getting up and showing up regularly—that’s the hard part. The same goes for content creation. You know it works, but keeping the momentum going can be a challenge. The businesses that rise to the top? They’re the ones that show up again and again. So, let’s dive into some practical strategies that can help you show up consistently—and get the most out of your content.
In 2024, having a solid presence on all major platforms is key to building brand awareness. That means keeping your business active on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Google. The goal is to have an up-to-date business profile on each of these platforms. Why? Because you want potential customers to find a consistent and professional image of your business, no matter where they search.
This brings us to our next challenge: creating content for all these platforms without losing your sanity.
It’s easy to see why creating omnipresence is important—but pulling it off consistently is another story. To make it easier, we need to create a strategy that lets us take one content idea and tweak it for each platform. Here are two strategies that can help you maximize your content with efficiency.
This approach is all about long-form video content. Start by creating full-length YouTube videos—anywhere from 5 to 60 minutes. Your focus should be on crafting the best possible video that tells your story or shares valuable insights with your audience.
From there, repurpose the video into smaller pieces. Create short-form videos for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and TikTok. Then, share a text-based post on LinkedIn with a link to the full YouTube video.
Thoughts:
The YouTube-first strategy is powerful because YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world. A well-optimized YouTube presence can do wonders for your visibility. However, this strategy can be the most difficult to maintain. Even top creators like Casey Neistat , David Dobrik and Nate O'Brien have stepped back from the platform because of the workload.
That said, some brands, like Alex Hormozi and Gary Vee, have built massive audiences using this approach. If you can pull it off, the rewards are worth it—but for most small businesses, this strategy may feel too demanding.
Now, let’s talk about the Shorts-first strategy. This is what we use at Launch Kit, and it’s an excellent choice for 90% of businesses. It focuses on creating short, under-one-minute videos that can be posted on all major platforms—Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, LinkedIn, and even Google.
Here’s how it works: You create 60-second, vertical videos and customize the captions for each platform. That’s it. With one video, you can be present across multiple channels, maximizing your reach without doubling your workload.
Thoughts:
This strategy is perfect for most small businesses, especially if you're not trying to build a large nationwide brand like Represent Clothing. Shout out to George Heaton and his team, they've done a great job with the content marketing. This podcast is great if you'd like to learn more about them.
The Shorts First strategy is great because it keeps things manageable while still giving you that omnipresence you’re aiming for.
At Launch Kit, we’ve refined our content marketing process into a system that works for us—and it might work for you too. Here’s our exact strategy:
1. Weekly - Capture Ideas: We jot down content ideas in ClickUp (our favorite project management tool).
2. Monday - Decide Format: We decide if each idea is best suited for a short video, photo, or graphic.
3. Monday and Wednesday - Short Videos: We create two short videos each week and post them across all major platforms.
4. Thursday - Blog Post: On Thursdays, we publish a blog post on a relevant topic that excites us and helps our audience.
5. Thursday - Blog Based Newsletter: Using the blog content, we create a newsletter that delivers valuable insights straight to our readers’ inboxes—no sales tactics, just helpful info.
6. Thursday - Blog Based Social Media Post: We design a graphic based on the blog article and post it on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google.
7. Friday - Website Portfolio: On Fridays, we write about a recent project, detailing the client, the scope of work, the challenges, and the results. We call this our portfolio (a less formal take on “case studies”).
8. Friday - Portfolio Based Social Post: Lastly, we create a carousel post for social media with images, text, and behind-the-scenes content from our portfolio project, inviting users to visit our website for the full story.
And that’s our weekly routine. It allows us to create content that we’re passionate about while keeping the process streamlined.
At the end of the day, the best content strategy is the one you actually do. You could come up with the most elaborate plan, but if you don’t take action, it’s not helping your business. The key is to find a routine that excites you—and reminds you why you started your business in the first place. Sharing your story should be fun and fulfilling, not a chore.
So, if you're a local business owner in Grand Rapids who's passionate about what you do and you want to share that passion with the world, let’s talk. At Launch Kit, we love helping businesses like yours tell their stories online through creative content marketing.
As always, if you get stuck or need a hand, feel free to reach out. We’re here to help!
Each year, we take a fresh look at the various marketing efforts a small business can make. We've built this framework to get started optimizing your business's online presence.
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