Content Distribution

Content distribution is a part of the entire content cycle and stands in German for "distribution of content". It must therefore be clearly defined which channels, whether website, social media, external blogs, newspapers, video channels or similar, are used to distribute the content to the appropriate target groups. After all, the best content is useless if it reaches no one or the wrong people.

What is meant by systematic content distribution?

If we look at the content marketing process, we see that content distribution is located between the two phases of content production and content evaluation. However, the production phase is clearly characterised by the content conception phase. Here it is decided which content, whether text, pictures, videos or infographics, will be created. From the medium, there is usually already a clear plan for distribution, so that content distribution is primarily oriented towards the corresponding format, goal and purpose. The term content distribution is often equated with other terms, resulting in a risk of confusion. However, care should be taken that content distribution is not equated with the following terms:

• Content Outreach:

This is a small part of the overall content distribution. Here, the content should receive a higher reach through multipliers. This happens, for example, through influencers or certain media. In other words, content outreach means online pr.

• Content Seeding:

Usually refers only to the company's own internal channels. This includes, for example, sharing content on social media or the company's own website.

• (Paid) Content Promotion:

This refers to the paid placement of content, such as advertisements, influencer cooperations or native advertising in the editorial area.

Why should content distribution be considered more strongly?

According to statistics from Statista, 77 million blogposts alone are published by wordpress users in Germany every month. Accordingly, it is not surprising that it is becoming increasingly important to prepare one's own content in such a way that users can also find it in the content oceans, precisely because of the flood of information that is pouring in on users.

Statista - Number of monthly blog posts published by WordPress users from December 2016 to October 2020 (in millions)

In order for this to be found in the flood of content, channels are needed in which the corresponding target group is present and also uses them. This is the basic framework of a targeted, successful and above all meaningful content distribution.

What types of content distribution are there?

There are two different ways to distribute your own content:

• Content distribution for the announcement/promotion of own platforms

This is primarily about the company's own website or blog. In this type of distribution, distribution forms means channels that lead users to one's own website or blog. The advantage of this type of distribution is that the traffic gained can be classified and reused several times. Terms such as retargeting and marketing automation can play a role here.

• Content distribution for publishing content on social media platforms

This type of distribution focuses on the presentation of the brand or the product. The distribution is done with the help of guest articles, blogs, magazines or other media. The advantage here is that the reputation and authority of the selected distribution medium can have a positive effect on the own brand or product. However, direct multiple use of the generated traffic is not possible here.

The PESO method as a tool

When the content is ready and you are looking for the right method for content distribution, the PESO model can be very helpful. PESO is the abbreviation for Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned Media and thus combines all digital media types.

• Paid Media (distribution for which you have to pay as a company)

Paid media is characterised by specific targeting and scalability. Paid media offers some advantages with the immediate reaching of potential customers and interested parties, the target group-specific targeting and the high scalability. However, it should be noted that the possibilities are limited to the existing budget of the company, do not necessarily have a sustainable character, are accompanied by scattering losses and show less trust towards the users, since they have paid for the distribution. Common examples of Paid Media are Google Ads, Facebook Ads or other sponsoring ads. Even though paid media has some disadvantages, this variant is especially useful for content distribution if the company does not yet have a very high brand awareness, because it can generate reach and also traffic.

• Earned Media (distribution that the company has earned)

This variant of content distribution means advertising for one's own company that one has "earned". It can be differentiated into two sub-areas:

• The first area deals with cultivating customers with influencers and multipliers and convincing them of one's own company, without letting monetary means flow.
• The second area deals with the influence or persuasion of technical algorithms, such as that of the Google search engine.

Practical examples of Earned Media are PR campaigns that are reported on in online newspapers and magazines or also in the media, or one's own innovative concept for a video that is reported on by a blogger. The Earned Media variant offers the great advantage of reputation. The recommendation by, for example, a blogger or influencer through a link can lead to traffic on one's own website or medium. The main advantages are authenticity and credibility of the company and free reporting. However, it should not be forgotten that in exceptional cases negative coverage is also possible and one has little control over this. However, the earned media variant is not only relevant for the PR department, but can also be of interest for a search engine optimisation if valuable backlinks are placed on the pages.

• Shared media (distribution, through voluntarily shared content, mentions, etc.)

The third distribution variant is shared media. This means that users voluntarily share the company's own content in social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube or others on their social media profiles. In a broader sense, this variant also includes the time-honoured word-of-mouth advertising. Shared media offers above all a high level of credibility through the voluntary sharing and sharing of users. Another plus point is that the company does not incur any costs for the shares. However, it is important to note that the company has little control over the users' shares and that negative reactions are possible here as well, over which the company can have little influence.

• Owned media (distribution on company-owned channels and profiles)

The fourth variant, Owned Media, includes all communication channels of the company. This can include, for example, a company magazine, company profiles in social networks such as Facebook and others, or newsletters. Due to the controllability, measurability and longevity of owned media, this variant for content distribution offers great and, above all, secure advantages over many other variants. The only thing that needs to be taken into account here is regular and sufficient traffic.

Conclusion

Whether infographics, checklists or inspiring articles - there are many ways to be active on your own platforms and numerous possibilities for your content distribution. The PESO model can be used as an overview or as a basis for distribution. Which variant or combination of variants the company decides on is always individual. But in the end, with all variants you will distribute your content more and bring it closer to the users. With this in mind, let's get started with distribution!