Its day 3 of our Learn from Us Week series. Today the topic is Delivering on your Content Strategy. When the imperative for innovation is constant, how can you keep things fresh? We’ve got  tips.

Creating cross platform content that looks great, reads well and performs well doesn’t have to cause pain or stress. I’ve pulled together a few of my top tools that can help you get your message across.

Writing that has more punch

My new most favourite toy is the Hemmingway App. Papa Hemmingway was known for his writing style – short, sharp, not too many big words. His simplicity let the big ideas in the stories come through. The Hemmingway App will analyse your prose check your writing. It looks for long or hard-to-read sentences. It highlights passive voice, adverbs and phrases you could simplify. It also gives your writing a readability score, to keep things accessible.

Graphics that look great cross channel

I’m no designer. I fall to pieces in the face of a design tool like Photoshop. Which is why I’ve been using Canva a lot since I discovered it. Canva has a whole range of pre-set templates – for social media and lots of other publications – that you can use for your own content. Its got drag and drop functionality, which is simple enough to give you good results on the first try. It limits the number of options, which for an amateur like me is a huge help.

Images that come to life

No matter how you pronounce it (yes, it’s a thing), everybody loves a GIF. They’re fun. They tell a story in a moment. There are plenty of free GIF tools out there but I like Giphy. It has a simple interface, you can upload your own video or use a file that’s already published online. Plus Giphy offers a vast library of silly GIFs from other users that you can draw on.

via GIPHY

Keeping things together

Pre-planning your content will keep you sane when things get busy. You need to start with your own key dates and plan your push around them. There’s free planners that you can use as a template. We’re using Hubspot but there’s loads out there. There are free tools (like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck) that you can use to pre-set your messages. Make sure you’ve turned on alerts. When your content starts generating conversation, you’ll be ready to respond. Finally, don’t forget to tap into key marketing dates, annual #hashtags and holidays. This lets you make sure your plans are making the most of wider conversations online (see my earlier article on these).

Get help if you need it

You don’t have to struggle on your own! If you want to find out more about content strategy, let’s talk at the Learning Week in November. I’ll be available with Board member Colan Mehaffey to work with you 1-1 on your ideas and challenges. Remember the whole Culture Republic team are available for consultancy too. Get in touch to discuss.