Marketing dilemmas answered: Do I have to be original?
No.
Simple eh?
Original is great but it's not essential.
There's no reason for you not to put your spin on something just because a topic has been covered before. I'm not the first person to write about marketing. I'm not even the first to talk about the importance of originality in marketing.
This content is still unique.
I'd like to think it goes without saying that this does not mean the plagarism, wholesale copying ideas, is ok. It's not, it's atrocious, don't do it ever.
But you don't have to reinvent the wheel every time. There isn't one film review for every movie. There isn't a single list of stock tips for ISAs. There isn't one under 'ten minutes to a flatter belly' abs workout. And that's fine that - great in fact. A range of views and takes on a subject isn't a bad thing at all.
There are a few things you need to consider though.
- Is your work different from the others? It doesn't have a to be a completly new idea but your 'take' on the concept need to be distinguishable.
- Is it worth it? Lets take the '10 min abs workout' example'. There are 47 million results on Google, your content will be competing against Joe Wicks and a former cheerleader with the most impressive six-pack I've ever seen, it might even have been an eight-pack. Your content will take time and energy to produce, is it worth it? Would you energy bet better spent creating something else?
- Is it right for your brand? Are you just jumping on a bandwagon or getting swept along by a trend? It's easy to see content working for another brand and think 'I could do that' but you're businesses may well have different target demographics and this content may not be right for you.
- Is there a way you could be first? Could you produce your content in a unique format such as an infographic or a podcast? Is there a different language you could publish in?
If you're struggling for content ideas or haven't got the time to execute the ideas you do have please get in touch and I will help.