Content Creation vs. Content Production with Brad Smith

“The key is not to create unique content for all of these different places. The key is to create one really good, deep piece of content that’s going to work for your brand.” Brad Smith is the founder and CEO of Codeless, a content production company for the best SaaS sites on the planet. Their articles have been featured in The New York Times, Business Insider, TheNextWeb, and more. At Codeless, content is not simply created, it is produced, and that makes all the difference. We discussed what this means on this week's show.

About Brad Smith

Brad Smith is the founder and CEO of Codeless, a content production company who’s content has been highlighted by The New York Times, Business Insider, The Next Web, and thousands more. He is also the co- founder of uSERP, a digital PR company that helps connect its clients with leading SaaS, eCommerce, SEO, tech, business, and marketing sites to boost brand authority.

Brad has been an in-the-trenches marketer for over a decade, rolling his sleeves up and doing all the dirty work from copywriting to SEO to marketing automation to site redesigns and more. All while working in-house, freelancing, consulting, and providing agency services to almost every industry that crosses your mind. Companies don’t need more content today. They need better content that actually performs. His companies fix that by producing & ranking SERP-topping content in the most competitive spaces -- tech, cybersecurity, finance, etc. — on the Internet.

Episode Highlights

Content curation vs. content production. “There’s a subtle difference that needs to be called out.” Simply put, there’s too much content today. It’s not just about creating the most content, it’s about producing the very best content.

What form of content are Brad and the team at Codeless producing the most of these days? “It’s a lot of the meat and potatoes—articles—as a lot is driven by SEO.” However, he went on to note how several are missing key SEO steps in their video and podcast production, such as transcripts.

When to outsource your content production. Brad began by impressing that this is not a binary choice—either outsourcing content or not. Rather, it depends on the project. Some pieces may be better handled internally.

How to outsource content production. “The problem in starting is that many don’t have it written down,” says Brad.

What’s needed for a good content handoff? Brand guidelines usually have info on the logo and font type but there are no guidelines for writing.” Brad encouraged brands to consider things like how formal or informal the writing should be, the use of contractions, and references to humor and pop culture. Including examples is also helpful. He also shared a simple tip: Voice Memos. Using this app on your phone to talk as the brand can be useful background info for your outsourced team.

What brand has made Brad smile recently? Brad shared the story of Stone Brewing out of San Diego, known for their signature beer Arrogant Bastard (a favorite of mine when I’m in that neck of the woods). Brad talked about how the brand is bold in both taste and vernacular.

To learn more, go to GetCodeless.com and connect with Brad on LinkedIn. You can also access a free article audit as mentioned during the show here.

Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet!

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