9 Ways To Stretch Your Blog Content | by Systems & Workflow Educator for Creatives (Dolly DeLong Education)

Are you a solopreneur who runs a business, and are you looking for ways to stretch out your content to better organize and streamline your business to better save time (and stress) for your own sanity? Here are 9+ creative ways you can stretch out content from your pillar content (for example a blog post) over 2 weeks!

Let’s face it, if you are running the show as a solo business owner you are wearing 25,000 hats at all times and one of those hats includes content creation. In the beginning years, you may not have the means to hire a copywriter because you may be on a shoestring budget as you continue to build momentum toward your small business dreams! Instead of running on fumes when it comes to content creation, why not actually sit down and create a content calendar for at least 2 weeks for yourself so that you can have one less thing on your “to-do” list for your small business? Yes, actually sitting down to batch out work for 2 weeks may seem intimidating at first, but planning ahead and scheduling out a block of time to do this type of planning will benefit you in the long run! (And I know that there are many who batch out content for upwards of 3 months at a time…but if you are just now starting out…I encourage you to start out small and don’t overwhelm yourself!) 

😊(Disclaimer: I am a huge supporter of BATCHING out 30 days of content in 4 days, but if you want to start dipping your toes into the world of content planning, start off small…and follow this 2-week method!) 

Before I share the 9+ creative ways you can stretch out content from a single blog post over 2 weeks, I really want you to sit down and write down your ENTIRE schedule using the 168-hour method by Laura Vanderkam.

➡️The premise is this: you actually have more time than you think, and everyone is granted the same amount of time every single week (168 hours). So yes, Beyonce and you have one thing in common…you share the same amount of time every week! Although Queen B may have an entourage of people helping her accomplish all of her goals in a week, I am confident you will quickly discover that you actually do have some extra hours available to you once you fill out the ENTIRE worksheet. Yes, this is a one-week homework assignment (because you will literally write out what you did every hour you’ve gotta be honest) but when you look back you’ll discover SO much time is wasted (believe me, I have done this exact homework and I discovered I had 10 extra hours every week, and yes even as a Toddler MOM and…I was still sleeping between 7-8 hours a night…so no I did NOT cut out sleep from my schedule!)

🤗It really works!

I digress…

Once you do this homework I am confident you will “gain” some hours you can actually sit down and do some batch work for your small business (from just one blog post!)

So let’s jump straight into the 10 creative ways you can stretch out a blog post for your small business once you have created a blog post

1. Create a content-rich blog post

Make sure you have a pre-determined day you will always post your blog for your small business. The reason why I bring this up is that you want to start having a consistent posting schedule. In the beginning years, you may “feel” like it’s pointless to blog because the only people reading your blog posts are your mom or your grandparents. But push past the feelings of insecurities, and just do the dang thing of posting great content for your small business! Need a reason why blogging is not dead? Read one of my most popular blog posts here.

After you post your blog, do not forget to head on over to Instagram stories and talk about your newest blog post (get creative with Instagram stories here, the sky is the limit with how you can communicate to your audience!)

2. Post To Your Instagram Newsfeed

Have an Instagram post dedicated to talking about your latest blog post. Have your link to your blog post in your Instagram bio (a creative way to do this is by creating your own version of Linktree) so that way your audience on Instagram can click on your blog post!

*on a specific note, you should be posting to your Instagram stories daily (show up) so that you can always be interacting and engaging with your audience (I’m going to be repeating this at the end of this blog post because it’s super important)

3. Create an engaging Instagram Video (Reel)

Create a long-form video (of 90 seconds for Instagram Reels) talking about your current blog post. You can link to your blog post from your Instagram and you can highlight certain aspects of your blog post in fun and creative ways.

✅Note: be sure to OUTLINE your talk for your Instagram otherwise you may end up rambling and going off on tangents. The goal is not only to be educational, but you should actually stay on TASK with your time (don’t be scattered!)

4. Create a Facebook Post

Link your recent blog post to your business group on Facebook!  (Having a Facebook business page is another great way to engage with your audience just in case they do not have Instagram)

I know that Facebook seems to be dying out, but if you think about it, Facebook pretty much owns a lot of the popular platforms that people are on (aka Instagram) and they are the top social media platform (STILL) despite people thinking “it’s not a relevant platform” anymore. Take advantage of creating a Facebook group that aligns with your business and see how you can engage with your clients (or future clients) in new ways on that platform!

5. Create a LinkedIn Post

If you do not have a LinkedIn profile, now would be the time to reconsider truly optimizing a LinkedIn profile for your small business. You can reach a new audience as you continue to build awareness of your brand.

Personally, I spend about 1 hour a week on LinkedIn (I have a small network I am growing but it really is a powerful platform to grow your business’ brand awareness on, and it’s a great way to connect with other business owners!)

6. Link Your Blog To Pinterest

It’s no lie, I LOVE Pinterest (and no, it’s not because I have everything perfectly curated in my house & it looks like a Pinterest dream-my house is ruled by a toddler ya’ll so it’s CRAZY)

(I love Pinterest because it works like a search engine and people are literally flocking to Pinterest to find answers to their questions 😲)

You can actually do this the same day you post your blog and you can create 8-10 pins with an online graphic design tool, like Canva, and post these fresh pins into Pinterest to lead back to your blog. To take it a step further, you can automate your fresh pins in a planning tool like Tailwind, after you have posted them to Pinterest!

📌If you want to read more about Pinterest and how to use it for your small business, I have created so many helpful blog posts here & here

Pinterest + Google are my top traffic drivers to my own website and brand, so you betcha I’m utilizing Pinterest on so many levels! As a matter of fact, I teach other business owners about how to use Pinterest in their own business with three different tools I have created, and you can read about them here (click on the images to be taken to the specific resource)

7. Send out your Blog Post To Your Email List

If you haven’t heard this enough, you need to hear it again: start to build your email list. You do not own any social media platforms (regardless of how many people follow you, you should not just depend on building your brand on the “borrowed land” of social media). A great email service provider is Flodesk.

Want more reasons as to why you should grow your email list? Check out this blog post I wrote HERE & HERE

If you feel stuck with wanting to grow your email list, check out my foundational mini-course (the Lead Magnet Mini-Course) which is a crash course on how to get started with growing your email list with strategic lead magnets (freebies to grow your email list)!

8. Create a Facebook LIVE

Engage with your Facebook audience (what if your Facebook audience is not present on Instagram or other social media platforms?) Plus, if you let your audience know ahead of time you are going to be hosting a Facebook LIVE, you can always have real-time engagement and help answer any questions they may have about your blog post!

9. Repurpose your Blog Post To A Podcast Episode

Converting a blog post into a podcast is relatively straightforward (but I will admit, it takes time).First, the written content needs to be adapted into a conversational script, ensuring it sounds natural when spoken aloud. Then, with basic audio recording equipment and software, the script can be narrated and recorded. After recording, editing tools can be used to enhance the audio quality, add music or sound effects if desired, and remove any mistakes. Finally, the finished audio file can be uploaded to a podcast hosting platform, making it accessible to listeners. While the process might require some learning and practice, it’s quite achievable with readily available tools and resources.

10. Create a Youtube Video

You can always create content that links back to your original blog post, and you may reach an audience who prefers video over reading blog posts. (Either way, start getting creative with how you show up on video because marketing is moving more towards video!)

Again I know that the last two points are more time-intensive, but if you have already put so much time and effort into creating a content-rich blog post, why not see how you can repurpose it into audio format AND video format as well?

Summary

I hope you are even more inspired and encouraged to know that you can stretch out your blog in so many ways. Again, it is important to show up online for your audience with a consistent schedule, but you do not have to be a slave to your computer and your small business if you are intentional with creating a realistic schedule that works for you and your life.

If you are even more inspired to be strategic in how you plan out your content for your business, I have created a free class on how to get started with systems and workflows to impact the BACKEND of your business, and content creation is one of those systems I hit heavily on! Check it out here: 

If you are wanting to listen in to a similar podcast episode I highly recommend checking out The Systems & Workflow Magic Podcast here:

https://systemsandworkflowmagic.com/2021/12/20/4-how-i-batch-out-30-days-of-content-in-4-days-my-strategy/

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