The world of social media is a fast-paced environment, and keeping new content in the pipeline can be a challenge. That’s why we’ve created this handy-dandy content creation engine for you. Just follow these instructions and you’ll be generating enough social content to last you for weeks.

Before we get started, you’ll need the following:

• One standard six-sided die. Go ahead and steal one from that copy of Monopoly you’ve got shoved in the back of your guest room closet. We won’t tell anyone.
• A little imagination. The content engine will get you started and give you a seed of an idea. You’ll have to plant the seed, water it, and make sure it grows.

Instructions:

So you’ve found yourself in need of a new blog post or content for your company’s Twitter feed, but you’re staring at a blank screen praying with zero ideas. Fear not! Simply reach for your six-sided die and give it a roll. Now find the result on the table below and read what’s written under the “Format” column. That’s the type of content you’ll be creating. Roll the die one more time and you’ll have your topic.

EXAMPLE: Your first result is a 5, so you find that row on the Content Engine table below. Looks like you’ll be putting together a photo essay! Time to grab your camera. But what is your photo essay going to be about? You roll again and get a 3. Employee Spotlight? Follow one of your employees around and create a day-in-the-life style photo essay.

HARD MODE: If you’re feeling particularly confident, you can roll your trusty die a third time and add a Unique Spin to your content. One bit of advice, unless your company’s social tone is particularly odd-ball, we only suggest putting a unique spin on your content once out of every ten posts. (This is called the 10% wacky rule.)

HUB AND SPOKE: Once you’ve taken your new content from concept to finished product, look for ways of repurposing your new masterpiece for different social networks. The hub and spoke method of marketing works just as well on social media as it does elsewhere on the internet. You can mine a single blog post for 5-10 Tweets at least. That Live Streaming Video you just made about a hot industry topic? Transcribe it and turn it into a blog post…and then share that blog on Facebook and LinkedIn (and break it up into Tweets).

With a little imagination and a little hard work, you’ll never lack for quality content. If you end up using the engine, tag us in a Tweet or Instagram post with a link to your content. We’d love to see what you come up with.

The Content Generation Engine