Content Distribution Platforms: 3 Type of Platforms You Should Know About
As technology advances, the way we consume content is changing. With people spending more time on mobile devices and social media, content distribution platforms are becoming more popular.
These platforms allow businesses to share their content across multiple channels, reaching a wider audience. Content distribution platforms (CDP) also provide analytics, which helps businesses track how well their content is performing and make changes as needed.
The market for content distribution platforms, or CDPs, is heating up. These days, there are a growing number of options for companies looking to manage and publish their content. But what exactly are CDPs, and why are they becoming so popular?
Simply put, a CDP is a platform that helps companies to create, manage, and publish their content. Unlike traditional content management systems (CMS), which are limited to managing text-based content, CDPs can handle a wide variety of digital assets, like videos, images, and audio files.
Importance of Content Distribution
Content distribution is a vital component in any digital marketing strategy; with it, you can build loyal followers, solidify your brand's authority, and increase brand awareness.
When you gain access to a wider audience, you will also increase your chances of earning social media shares, backlinks, and media mentions as you grow your website's traffic.
Most importantly, an all-inclusive content distribution strategy will amplify your brand's visibility and unlock greater content marketing ROI.
Channels of Content distribution
Typically, there exist three key content distribution channels, namely: owned, paid, and earned. The channel you decide to use depends on your content formats, tools available to you, and your audience. Let's discuss these in more detail…
1. Owned Content Distribution Channels
These are channels that are controlled by your company; meaning everything to do with publishing across these channels is your responsibility. Examples include social media profiles, websites, blogs, videos on YouTube, and email newsletters among others.
However, you may not necessarily be the owner of the platform on which the content distribution channel is being hosted. For instance, LinkedIn is a social media platform that you don't own.
On the other hand, your company could be the owner of a news website or blog; hence, everything would be under your control. And since the LinkedIn algorithm is what determines the reach of your content, you will have to abide by the rules of the platform.
Why does this matter?
Owned content distribution channels are your most accessible options; hence, they're the most convenient for building a brand and generating web traffic.
Earning social media shares and backlinks are secondary tasks when it comes to owned channels since the platform has full control over to who it sends your content. In order to get a good number of shares and backlinks, you'll have to put more effort into increasing the quality of your content.
2. Paid Content Distribution Channels
In these distribution channels, you have to pay for your content to reach your target audience. Here are some of the options available for paid distribution:
- Social media advertising
- Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising
- Paid influencers
- Display ads
- Press releases via wire service
- Native ads
- Retargeting social ads
- Sponsored content
The channel you choose determines the distribution you receive and the amount you pay. For example, let's consider promoting your content using Facebook ads; you will be responsible for setting the budget and you will precisely estimate the number of people your content will reach. Additionally, you will also be well-positioned to track your campaign's performance in real-time.
Estimating your results up front with influencer marketing can be difficult, as they depend on how content is promoted and how the audience responds.
Nonetheless, paid distribution channels are quite effective if used correctly. You can use paid distribution channels to target specific groups of people with similar interests. For example, to target individuals interested in your product or service, you can use advertising platforms such as Facebook, Google Adwords, and others.
3. Earned Content Distribution Channels
These content distribution channels can be leveraged to promote your content for free. It happens when your content is shared by someone. The content promotion in this case can result from direct media outreach, organic amplification, or public relations.
For example, an article that goes viral on LinkedIn after being published earns a significant distribution. Yet, nothing has been paid for the additional exposure; the quality of the content published has made it 'earn' the exposure for free.
- Some examples of earned channels include:
- Quora
- Social media shares
- Online product reviews
- Online communities
- Mentions in articles
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Word of mouth (WOM)
Types of Content Marketing Distribution
People prefer to consume media differently on varied platforms. As such, you need to mix up your content types and formats to reach the widest possible audience. Here are some of the most effective types and formats of content distribution:
Blog Posts and Articles
Articles published on your website can effectively reach a new audience. You will also add value to your audience if you consistently publish high-quality content optimized for relevant keywords. Consequently, you will benefit from increased organic traffic. If you want to rank on more Google SERPs queries, you can incorporate long-tail keywords in long-form articles. More importnatly, if you have blog posts more than one year old, cosnider giving them a content upgrade for better SEO ranking.
White Papers
Although white papers are primarily used for inbound lead generation, they can also serve as excellent content distribution channels. One of the easiest ways to create a white paper is to repurpose content from your blog posts.
Infographics
If you're not familiar with infographics, they're basically a great way of sharing data in an attractive and memorable format. They're fast to consume, easily sharable, and widely shared across social media; hence, they can provide great value to your content strategy.
Video Content Distribution
One of the best ways of content distribution on multiple channels. With about 2.3 billion users globally, YouTube ranks 2nd as the most visited website across the world.
On YouTube, you can use videos to distribute your content effectively. To be successful, you need a unique personality, an interesting story that's engaging to watch and share, and an engaging content format. You must also create high-quality video content that is easily discoverable.
When it comes to video distribution, a well-made short video can generate a significant amount of viewership for your channel and ultimately result in greater brand awareness.
Bottom Line
When it comes to content promotion, you have a number of tools at your disposal. You can pick the channels that will help you achieve your specific content marketing goals.
Content creators on the web have become the norm. This means that it is not only important for your content to be interesting and engaging but also easy to consume. A well-written blog post or article, a long white paper published on your website, or a beautiful infographic can provide you with great benefits.
Reach out to Zoey Writers to learn more about how we can help you create evergreen marketing content.
Before you go, check out our guide on content repurposing.
Photo by Adem AY on Unsplash. Thank You Adem!
