Have you heard? The conversation around social media marketing has changed! It’s not all about how many likes and followers you have anymore, especially if you’re a business. That’s so 2010! The new focus now is C-O-N-T-E-N-T, CONTENT! And we’re talking quality content, business professionals, and lots of it to attract quality leads and customers! So in this post I’m going to share with you my content creation and toolkit.

**UPDATED 8.19.15**

CONTENT CREATION

THE VISUALS

Unless you’re writing an essay or script online, you’ve got to have strong visuals. There’s no debating it in social media marketing. So how do you create and curate them, especially on the go!  ?  Add these fav tools of mine to your tool kit.

content creation toolkit

    • Smartphone.  This should go without saying, but I’m learning never assume people know what you think they should.  When it comes to capturing and creating visuals these mini talking computers and their apps are essential. If you only use it for talking, then you’re limiting the  your capabilities of creating great content quickly and easily.
    •  Instagram and Vine, are great for creating visuals via mobile as most know!
    • If being limited by time a six or 15 second recording time frame cramps your creative style, use my personal fav app, SocialCam.  Capture videos, add filters, music, graphics, and talk as long as you need to get your message across. Trust me, this app doesn’t get all the pub those “others” do, but it should!  I’ve used it to cover live events, including the Oscars!  Point, shoot, add creative elements, then post to YouTube and other social profiles in minutes.
  • YouTube’s mobile app is great too for quickly capturing mobile video and sharing instantly online via social profiles. Need to do a quick edit of your YouTube video? Use YouTube Editor
  • For editing photos and images quickly I use Picmonkey. Its great for creating Instagram-esque photos and collages.   If you need something more advanced like Photoshop, but without the price tag, use SumoPaint
  • Need an image library  that also provides graphics, fonts, and editing?  Use Canva
  • Want to combine photo and video from your computer, try Animoto’s free or paid versions to creat and edit videos and slideshows.
  • Need to record and share video testimonials or interviews about your business? Try Oneshare and crowdsource the effort using webcams.
  • For screen recording:   Try the free version of Screencast-O-Matic to record up to 15 minutes. As a Mac user, Quicktime 10.1 is great. Screenflow and Camtasia are  also awesome!  Neither are free but you get your money’s worth when  creating video tutorials.

 

 LIVE STREAM CONTENT

  • Google Hangouts On Air is fabulous for creating recorded videos, live stream events, and even webinars.
  • Periscope and Meerkat are fabulous for creating content via mobile phone. However, to date, only Periscope natively allows you to keep your broadcast available for 24 hrs after the initial live stream. Read more about mobile live streaming apps on my post “Mobile Live streaming For Business”

DESIGN ELEMENTS

Free Flat Icons and Web Design Elements.  These free downloads are perfect for adding user interface icons and creative graphics to your blog posts, websites, or presentations this resource has it covered.

 

FREE OR ROYALTY FREE IMAGES

  • Did you know that Getty Images is now allowing us to use ROYALTY FREE IMAGES! Pricing is based on image size so if you’ve got a small budget  definitely give the site a visit.
  • Stock Photos That Don’t Suck, I think the title is self-explanatory!
  • Flickr.com/creativecommons Be sure to pay attention to attribution and CreativeCommons guidelines.

 

WRITTEN & VISUAL WORD

It’s true! Most people like to scan information online.But for those that actually read as well as watch these tool come in handy for creating readable materials online. These tools not only create but also help curate online content.

  • Medium provides a great environment for writers and bloggers that don’t want to be distracted with widgets, call to actions, and sidebars.
  • Paperli creates your online newspaper! Become a publisher instantly with published content online. Publish weekly or monthly or however often you desire and share your edition via social media.
  • Storify is a great tool for telling the story using online content from across various social profiles. Curate tweets, Instagram photos, videos, and provide your own written content.
  • Infographs are great for providing written data in creative and visual ways.  To create them easily use Infogr.am, Piktochart,  Hubspot Powerpoint templates  or Easel.ly

Image Credit: Flickr.com, Dani Nofal