Engage: The Blog - Do You Know What To Do With That Content?

One of the best characteristics of a blog is being influential. After reading just a few articles from Engage: The Blog, some of my ideologies which I have been sticking to for so long have been brought to a battleground.

Engage: The Blog is a multi-authored blog by TMG - The Magazine Group, Inc. It focuses on content management, content creation, strategies, ideas, innovation, anything related to content marketing.

I cannot comment any longer regarding the design because the contents are nicely put - a magazine-type layout. Plus, how could they enumerate the navigation while making it look awesome at the same time?

Without further ado, let's now talk about how it is an essential part in writing and publishing your contents that you think of not just the before and the present state of it (the planning and writing parts, respectively) but how you would deliver it to your targeted audience.

Lifecycle of the thing called 'Content' (based from Engage's categories):

Strategy
Creation
Management
Distribution
Measurement

Why I called it a lifecycle when a 'cycle' needs to go back to start after the last part...

Do you believe that ideas are born from other ideas? If yes, then that's the answer. If you produce content, others will read it, or know about it. It depends on how you output your content. After the readers are entertained and/or are informed enough, something will be implanted on their minds. It could be unconnected thoughts that could go on forever floating on their minds.

But we humans are creators. We always form something when we think - thoughts that are either related or unrelated. We always connect the dots. Most of the time, we just don't connect the dots - we could revise it or create another formulation from scratch.

Okay, so what does it have all to do with this blog?

Let me ungroup that lifecycle into individual parts.

Strategy

In programming, coders do not spend most of their time writing the code; we do the brainstorming first before facing the screen and messing with the compiler. That's almost an analogy with content creation. This is where ideas find their home. Strategy first, action later.

Here are some of the articles from Engage which I recommend:

The Best Practice is Practice (Do. Not what you will, but what you shall.)
What the Top 10 Blogs in Content Marketing Are Doing That You Probably Aren’t (Learn from the pros.)
Print or Online? There’s No Easy Answer (Real home? Virtual home? - SIMS, perhaps?)
The Tragedy of the Commons and How to Kill Ideas (How to turn down an offer.)

Creation

Now that you know what to do, it's time for the most exciting part of the content's life - it's birth to existence. This is where ideas reside on its home. Though it is the fun part, it's always the most crucial part.

To help with that, the following articles are a must-read for those who are struggling for writing the good-better-best content (whichever they wish):

Conquer the Writing Process (Or Let it Conquer You) (You are moving to your new home, what to do?)
How to Kill Creativity With One Simple Phrase: They Already Have That (Don't limit the design of your house just because they looked like something. Anyway, it's just a house.)
SEO Killed the Analog Star (Is this that the person from the real estate? Not a fake, is he?)
4 Tips to Develop Engaging Story Ideas
How to Lose Credibility with One Typoe (How to lose your house in one typo on your title.)
5 Reasons You Hate My Blog Posts (Reasons why your neighbors will hate you.)
Creativity: The Cure-All (Ahh, that soft chirping sound of an architect with no sleep.)

Management

Your ideas have moved into a new home. You have to fix the furniture! Erhm, I mean the structure. (And your neighbors - Are those included?)

Here are the things you need to know about your ideas' new home which we will now officially call content (yay!):

How Google Thinks About Content (Here come's the Mayor!)
Editors Gonna Edit (Oh, you need to renovate dear?)
7 Steps to Dealing with Information Overload (Call the Home Makeover!)
Content Marketing: Forget About the Glamour, Focus on the Grindstone (You heard it - grindstone.)
Social Media Disaster Recovery: It’s All About the Response (A disaster strikes, it's all about what you tell your neighbors.)

Distribution

Your ideas just moved into your new home and you've already organized everything. It's time to tell your neighbors!

19 Boring But Effective Email Deliverability Best Practices (Be bored; get talked often.)
The Difference Between a Crowd and an Audience (The difference between a friendly neighbor from the snob one.)
3 Tips for Better Engagement on Facebook (When it's raining and you can't go outside, chat with your neighbors via Facebook.)
Why SEO Would Matter Even If Search Engines Stopped Running

Measurement

Now that your ideas are settled for good, it's time to see and analyze your home's.. err your content's status on ~~your community~~ the blogosphere, customers, or your intended audience. Make adjustments if you will.

Social Media Friends … with Benefits (Befriend your ~~rich~~ neighbors. Oops I didn't say that.)
Would You Trust This Brand? (Would you trust this neighbor? Hmm...)
Is Your Website Leaking Visitors? (Have you left your door unlocked?)

Innovation

Last but not the least, every content has its potential. This is that space between the end and the start of the lifecycle of a content. After ideas are well-created and well-distributed, it could lead to another ideas. Thus the creation of another content.

Exercise your neurons by visiting Engage: The Blog (engage.tmgcustommedia.com).

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