Are you thinking of adding content curation to your blogging strategy? Wondering how to fit it into your schedule? A good content curation system will help you gather interesting content and share it in a way that’s compelling to your target audience, without cutting into your billable hours or precious personal time. Here’s how!

1. Schedule Your Content Search

Don’t make the mistake of trying to do your content curation for the next month all in one sitting. If you spend a little bit of time at it every day, not only will you be able to find and share the most up-to-date content, but you won’t burn out from trying to accomplish too much at once.

Try to find a time when you’re most likely to enjoy the search. It might be more fun for you to scan the Web for news first thing in the morning, before your workday gets started, than late at night when you’d rather be watching television. Or, you might like to search for content on your tablet or smartphone during the evening, while your significant other watches a program that doesn’t interest you.

Searching for content is also a great way to pass time while you’re on hold or waiting for someone. These small pockets of time aren’t much good for serious, focused work, but they’re perfect for finding content.

2. Resist “Shiny Object Syndrome”

You know how easy it is to get distracted when you’re searching the web for information, but it’s essential to stay focused during your designated content search time.

Whenever you begin to read something, ask yourself how likely you are to share that information with your readers. If you probably won’t, save the link so you can read it later in your spare time, and return to the task at hand.

3. Think Outside the Box

When considering whether content is shareable, be open-minded – there just might be a way for you to tie it into your niche. You can set yourself apart from your competition by successfully using creative ideas from other industries or news that impacts your target market. For example, if your blog is geared toward busy moms, you might share a recent news article about the impact of poor nutrition on children and tie that in with a few kitchen organization tips.

Don’t forget that you can also share content you disagree with – including your own perspective on the subject, of course. Controversial topics often gets the most reader engagement!

Your audience’s response to your content will tell you whether it was a good find and help you decide what type of content to share in the future.

Do you already have a content curation system? What strategies are working (or not) for you?

Image © prykhodov / depositphotos