APU Business Careers Careers & Learning

Content Curation: One Avenue to Enhance Community Engagement

marketing-influencer-networkBy Brian Muys
Online Career Tips Contributor

Content curation is all the rage among today’s communications and marketing professionals. However, while the nomenclature may be relatively new, the concept itself has been an integral component of integrated communications campaigns for some time. In fact, it represents the core mandate of any savvy practitioner: identify the impactful messages (read, stories) that best resonate with your core audience(s), and package and deliver them in the most engaging fashion possible.

One such approach is giving the traditional, one-dimensional newsletter new life by reinventing it as digital (read, shareable) content drawn from across a variety of diverse, yet complementary, sources. From executive blogs or podcasts demonstrating industry thought leadership to partner testimonials, customer case studies and vertical subject matter expert interviews, there are an almost infinite number of content assets that can be aggregated thematically in support of campaigns to drive brand and/or customer “buzz.”

In academia, securing this mindshare with both current and prospective students is essential, especially where academic reputation is concerned. Once these key stakeholders are initially engaged, your mission is to further inform and expand that community, while also identifying and effectively leveraging content assets that strike a positive chord with your alumni, faculty, staff and, potentially, media.

Chances are, your college or university may already be publishing a high volume of timely content across a wide variety of social media properties, including blogs and vlogs, videos, podcasts, authored articles and earned media placements on both academic and career-oriented topics. At our school, such topics include student and alumni news and faculty accomplishments, along with noteworthy institutional news like industry awards and leadership recognition. One-off content ideas also arise through interactions with vertical academic program managers and both academic and executive leadership.

From a curation standpoint, email subject lines, headlines, and editorial leads are carefully developed by our editorial board around a call-to-action to drive open-rates, click-throughs and, most importantly, shares within each reader’s own social media community. While less than a year-old, our e-newsletter initiative has been instrumental in identifying and driving thought-leadership content, while supporting SEO strategy and related enrollment goals.

About the Author: Brian Muys is associate vice president of public relations for American Public University System. He has nearly 30 years of experience in developing and implementing earned/social media relations, corporate and internal communications programs for public and private organizations. He received an English degree from Dickinson College and an MS in Communications from the American University Kogod School of Business.

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