Sometimes it seem that the Internet marketing world never runs out of buzz words. Some of these buzz words last while others have not been discussions long enough to be re-Twitted or re-posted on Facebook.
If you have been following the “scene” then you’ve probably come across the term content curation, one of the newest buzz words in town. It is such a new term that the word curation is not even recognized by any dictionary yet. So what does content curation mean? What’s the difference between content creation and content curation? Most importantly, why should Internet marketers care at all about content curation?
If you want to know the answers to these questions and more, then you should stick around for a while.
Content is Still King
In the world of Internet marketing, one principle has endured the test of time and that is that content is king. Content has never relinquished its reign even with the dawning of different kinds of new media, strategies and modes of doing business on the Internet. Even the social web relies so much on content.
People surf the web for one reason and that is to search for content that they find interesting or useful. Content can even be considered as the unofficial currency of the Internet, particularly of social media. It is exchanged, borrowed, bought and, yes, stolen. Content – specifically relevant, high quality content – is very valuable and if anyone does not believe or know this then he does not deserve a place in the Internet marketing arena.
Content Creation is a Challenge
There is one problem with content though and that is not everyone has the capabilities to create content that are of high quality and relevance. Creating valuable content is one thing that has continually challenged many entrepreneurs and companies. This is the reason why many businesses and even individuals outsource content creation. What many fail to realize is that they don’t really need to create content from scratch in order to have some in their websites or campaigns.
Entrepreneurs and companies who find it challenging to create new content can turn to content curation. In this document, you will learn all about content curation and what it can do for your business.
Definition of Content Curation and Content Curator
Content Curation can be defined simply as the act of searching, grouping, organizing and sharing the most significant content on a particular topic on the Internet.
By this definition, a content curator is someone who tasks himself to scour the web of content relevant to a specific subject within his niche and passes it on to people in his network in an organized manner.
Surplus of Information
The basic idea behind content curation is that there is already a surplus of information on the Internet and that for all of the information to become useful, it must be gathered and disseminated in a manner that is manageable.
Contrary to what many people believe, curation is much more than simply pointing people to content from other sites. Steve Rosenbaum, in his book Curation Nation: How to Win in a World Where Consumers are Creators, qualified curation excellently when he write that, “Curation is about adding value from humans who add their qualitative judgment to whatever is being gathered and organised.” Indeed, if you are not adding value to existent content that you are passing on, then you are not a real curator.
