Interactive content. Automated chatbots. Machine learning. We’ve seen some wild innovations in content marketing over the past few years. And if the disruptive waves of ChatGPT in Q4 are any indication of what’s to come this year, things are about to get wilder.

With chaos comes an opportunity to focus. Whether you’re a business owner, marketer, or solopreneur building your personal brand, resolve to NOT do these 5 things in 2023.

1. Don’t create more content.

Okay, I don’t mean you should literally create no content in 2023. But if your goal is something like, “We published X blog posts in 2022, and we want to publish Y in 2023,” I’d love for you to rethink it.

You almost certainly have excellent content with a lot of life left that’s currently gathering dust. Get out the metaphorical juicer, because you’re about to squeeze. Here are a few ways to repurpose an existing blog post:

• Create a series of social posts
• Outline the key points in an infographic
• Make an animated video (use Canva!)
• Find a related customer success story
• Record a podcast episode on the topic
• Share content as Quora answers

2. Don’t freak out about AI.

I’ve seen a ton of insightful discussion around ChatGPT recently. I’ve also seen a considerable amount of anxiety from my fellow content creators. AI has entered the content creation realm, and it’s here to stay. Our only option is to lean into it.

If you’re creating mediocre content just for the sake of it, then okay – ChatGPT might take your job. But if you’re synthesizing information in interesting ways and adding new insights to your content, ChatGPT is simply your intern.

Start learning to use it to your advantage now so you don’t fall behind your peers and competitors. Some ways for content marketers to use ChatGPT:

• Researching and curating sources. Always confirm your research as the tool is still new and could produce incorrect information.
• Generating headlines, hooks, and titles.
• Writing an outline or first draft.
• Generating related questions, new topics, and FAQ content.
• Building Excel/Google Sheets formulas. Not strictly content related, but as someone who’s spent hours troubleshooting formulas, I love this use case.

3. Don’t keep avoiding video.

If your brand has been late to the game with video, 2023 is your year. It’s never been easier to create your own polished video content. And although I think you have a great face for video, keep in mind – videos don’t have to feature a human. You can create exciting, engaging video content with Canva using animations and stock footage.

Here are a few ideas to make your video debut this year:

• Stories: Since these short-form videos are a few seconds long, they don’t need much detail. Choose either one focused topic or a high-level list. You can commit to that!
• Live streams: Give your audience a real behind-the-scenes look at the people behind your brand. Authenticity is key here, so you don’t have to worry about creating polished content.
• Text-based explainer video: Use content you already have to create a video with animated text, like this example.

4. Don’t neglect your backlink strategy.

As content marketers, Google’s search algorithm is a mighty and mysterious force in our lives. While no one knows the secret formula to ranking high in the SERP, we do know that the algo gets more sophisticated with every update.

One factor that’s unlikely to change anytime soon is backlinks. If you’re not actively pursuing backlinks for your best content, you’re leaving website traffic on the table. Here are the steps to include in your plan:

1. Start with your best content – excellent pieces that are already performing well.
2. Identify popular, trustworthy sites that attract your target audience.
3. Track down the person responsible for the publisher’s digital content.
4. Craft a thoughtful message suggesting where they could link to your piece and the anchor text to use. Focus on building a real connection and spell out the value for their audience.

5. Don’t feel like you have to cast a wider net.

If you’re feeling pressure to accomplish more with less (who isn’t?), fight the urge to default to the old-school “numbers game” approach. More social posts, more impressions, more outbound sales calls.

Instead, look for opportunities to hone what you’re already doing. Personalized content and account-based marketing are more practical than ever. A few examples:

• Build on momentum with a top-performing audience segment by engaging a micro-influencer in that space.
• Repurpose a generic email sequence into several industry-specific sequences with tailored language and resources.
• That video that did amazing on social last year? Use the same format to create more videos for each stage of the customer journey.

Keep it simple in 2023

The past few years have been weird, and we’re all a little burnt out. When it comes to your 2023 content marketing strategy, you don’t have to do more. You can just do better. By creating intentional content, repurposing what you already have, and strategically promoting it, you can get better content marketing results this year without a ton of stress.

Not sure where to start, or need some support creating your content? Let’s chat.