How to Build a 730-Day Content Library

Daily content creation can be a real grind.

When I talk to other creators, I hear a lot of reasons why churning out content feels so difficult.

• I don’t know what to talk about
• I feel like I’ve already shared everything
• I can’t figure out what’s working and what isn’t

If you also struggle to come up with content, a social media content library may be the answer to your prayers.

It’s a simple system that helps you use (and recycle) high-performing pieces of content. So instead of staring at a blank page, you pop into your social media content library and check out your options.

This kind of system is important because content is the fuel for many of our businesses.

But unfortunately, coming up with fresh content is both difficult and draining. That’s a big reason why so many creators just fizzle out — and their businesses fizzle out with them.

But it doesn’t have to be that hard. A good system can save you.

So today I’m showing you how to build a social media content library for yourself, so you can create great content easier and faster.

Here's how to do it, step by step:

Step 1: Brain Dump Sub-Topics

The first thing you need to do is list every single thing you could possibly talk about underneath your core topic (i.e. the main thing you talk about).

I call these, “sub-topics”.

For example, if you have a dream of building a marketing agency for small creators, you might list sub-topics like:

• Branding
• Networking
• SEO
• Analytics
• Copywriting

Step 2: List out 5-7 Content Styles

Once you have your sub-topics, brainstorm the different type of content styles you like using.

Styles are simply how the content is delivered and its intended outcome.

For example, styles might include:

• Step-by-step guides
• Predictions
• Contrarian takes
• Inspirational stories
• Observations

Step 3: Use ChatGPT to Build a Matrix

Now that you have your two inputs (sub-topics and styles, you can use ChatGPT to build out a matrix of ideas.

You simply explain your business, the outcome your content is intended to deliver, and use five of your sub-topics.

Here’s a custom GPT I built where you can run this. (shoutout to AISolopreneur for the prompt!)

Make sure answer the 3 questions thoroughly that the GPT asks you.

At the conclusion of using this prompt, you’ll have 25 content ideas that you can riff off of.

Each idea can produce three to four pieces of content. So suddenly, you’re looking at 75-100 content ideas that should resonate with your ideal audience.

If you don't understand how to tie content back to your website to generate revenue, make sure you watch my ContentOS short digital course.

Time to start writing!

Step 4: Create Your Library‍

As you write and publish, there’s a cool little hack you can use to build out a big library of repeatable content to use, tweak, and recycle.

I built a formula-based Notion sheet that I fill in every day to start building out that library.

Note: If you’re not familiar with Notion, it can be used in a similar fashion to Google Sheets, and this whole process can also be built in Google Sheets.

I enter the date that I posted, paste in the URL of my Tweet or LinkedIn post, and select the style I’ve chosen that day.

At the end of the day, I grade the content I published from 1 to 10 based on how well (or poorly) it resonated with my audience.

I set up my Notion sheet to automatically calculate the day that lands 6, 12, 18, and 24 months from the day I publish a piece of content. That’s because I feel comfortable repurposing high-performing content every 6 months.

Then, when those future dates come around, I recycle or edit the content that resonated, or tweak content that didn’t do as well, to see if I can improve the score.

Then I'll simply load it into Taplio (for LinkedIn) or HypeFury (for Twitter) which are the scheduling and publishing tools I use.

Here’s what my Notion sheet looks like.

To use this sheet, select “Duplicate” in the top right corner. And if you don’t have a Notion account (it’s free) you’ll just need to create one.

Takeaway

Once you’ve used this system to publish content for a few months, your future content library starts to compound.

You’ll gain valuable insights about what resonates, and you’ll have a system you can lean on when you’re on vacation, not feeling creative, or whatever.

Remember: Every great creator uses some form of content repurposing to build a massive library of content that works time and again. And without reliable systems in place, you’ll struggle to compete with those folks that do employ smart systems.

So I want you to zoom out and think about putting good systems in place, instead of just pushing out another post in a hurry.

Good systems and processes will shift the trajectory for your content, and ultimately - the success of your business.

Feel free to take this system I’ve shared today - tweak it and make it your own.

Or if you want to copy all of my systems, there are 2 options:

• Grab The LinkedIn Operating System to see the systems behind my growth from 2,000 to 550,000 followers.
• Pick up The Content Operating System to learn how to turn your newsletter into revenue-generating social media posts.

Happy content creating.