Today, we’re going to talk about the difference between content creation and content curation. It’s like the difference between baking a cake from scratch and buying one from the bakery – both can be delicious, but they require different skills and approaches. So let’s break it down and see what sets these two approaches apart.
Originality vs. Relevance
The biggest difference between content creation and content curation is the source of the content. With content creation, you’re starting from scratch – you’re the master chef, whipping up something delicious and unique. With content curation, you’re sourcing content from other creators and presenting it in a way that’s relevant to your audience.
Time Investment
Creating original content takes time and effort. You need to brainstorm ideas, research topics, write and edit drafts, and design visuals. Content curation, on the other hand, can be done more quickly and efficiently. You’re not starting from scratch, so you can focus on finding and sharing the best content out there.
Audience Engagement
When you create original content, you have more control over the messaging and tone. You can tailor your content to resonate with your audience and encourage them to engage with your brand. With content curation, you’re relying on other creators to spark engagement – but if you choose the right content, it can still be effective.
Brand Voice
Creating original content allows you to infuse your brand’s personality and voice into your content. You can showcase your expertise, share your values, and build a connection with your audience. With content curation, you’re not the primary voice, but you can still showcase your brand’s perspective by carefully selecting and presenting content that aligns with your brand.
Scalability
Creating original content can be time-consuming, but it’s also scalable. Once you’ve created a piece of content, you can repurpose it in a variety of ways – turn a blog post into a video, an infographic, or a social media post. With content curation, you’re limited to the content that’s out there – you can’t repurpose someone else’s content without their permission.
So there you have it – the top 5 differences between content creation and content curation. Now, what can businesses of all sizes take away from this?
For small businesses: If you’re short on time and resources, content curation can be a great way to keep your social media channels active and engaging. Just be sure to curate content that aligns with your brand and adds value for your audience.
For large businesses: Creating original content can help you stand out in a crowded digital landscape and build a strong brand identity. Just be sure to invest in a robot… I mean ROBUST content strategy and work with skilled creators to ensure your content is top-notch. 😉
No matter which approach you choose, remember that great content is all about adding value for your audience. So get out there and create – or curate – some content that your followers will love!
*Disclaimer: We’ve had several clients ask us about AI tools and so we decided to learn the quickest (and possibly hardest) way we could think of – we recruited an AI chatbot/tool to create the web content you just read as well as the corresponding graphic (although we don’t want the bot getting ALLLLL the credit, we did do the hard work of…um… copying and pasting). We named her Bitsy and her work is… interesting… but surprisingly adequate. For training purposes we would love your feedback – and don’t worry, Bitsy will get a glowing performance review, just not a raise. (Sorry, machines – don’t come for us!)
