THE year 2023 is in full swing and most business owners are still in the process of coming up with plans and strategies for how they want to market their business this year. It’s understandable, since growing on social media has never been this hard before or confusing.

Do we try making content on TikTok? Growing on Instagram seems almost impossible! Twitter seems unstable at the moment. Facebook, whilst still having the largest following, is truly a pay-to-play platform to get any reach, and not everyone feels comfortable enough leveraging LinkedIn.

Creating content is an area wherein Caribbean businesses tend to struggle a lot, which is why they tend to outsource to third parties like agencies, social media freelancers and influencers to create all of their content.

The major issue with only using third parties is that they never fully know your business intimately; they cannot craft content with expertise that your internal team has. Caribbean businesses tend to use influencers based on these persons having large followings but who have neither have ties to their industry nor are connected to their ideal customers. This is a trend that we need to slow down on.

I wanted to give you 10 types of content that your business should be creating for 2023, and the best part is that these are things you can and should be doing internally. If you need to outsource aspects of creating your content, your teams should be heavily involved in giving the direction or the information to be used in the content.

When you go through the content types you will realise that it is hard for external parties to craft a lot of this content since it’s going to be based on much of the knowledge your internal experts have, unless the third party you work with happens to also be an expert within your industry.

Here is the content your business should be creating:

1) Blog posts: These can be educational, informative, or entertaining pieces of written content that provide value to your audience and help establish your business as an industry thought leader. Search engines pull much of the information they display in the search results from articles or blogs that come directly from websites. This is also one of the top ways to bring traffic to your website.

2) Video content: This can include things like product demos, behind-the-scenes looks at your business, interviews with industry experts, and more. Short-form video content should be a big part of your video strategy — from TikTok to Reels and YouTube Shorts.

3) Infographics: These are visual representations of information that can help make complex ideas easier to understand and more engaging for your audience.

4) Podcasts: These are audio-based content that can be a great way to reach an audience on the go. You can use podcasts to share industry insights, interview guests, or simply have a conversation about a topic related to your business.

5) Case studies: These are detailed accounts of how your business has helped a specific customer or group of customers solve a problem or achieve a goal. They can be a great way to showcase the value of your products or services.

6) E-books: These are longer-form pieces of content that can be downloaded and read on a device like a tablet or an e-reader. E-books can be a great way to dive deep into a particular topic and provide valuable information to your audience.

7) White papers: These are in-depth, research-based documents that delve into a specific topic or issue related to your industry. They are often used to provide information and insights to decision-makers and thought leaders.

8) Social media posts: These are shorter pieces of content that can be shared on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. They can be used to promote your products or services, share industry news, engage with your audience, and build a community which is going to be extremely important in 2023.

9) Webinars: These are online seminars or workshops that can be attended by anyone with an Internet connection. You can use webinars to provide educational content, demonstrate your products or services, or simply have a conversation with your audience. This is a great way to bring in customers from new parts of the world and it’s a great source of digital revenue.

10) Email newsletters: These are regular emails that you send to your subscribers with updates about your business, industry news, and any other relevant information. They can be a great way to stay top of mind with your audience and nurture relationships with potential customers.

These types of content are going to be new for most Caribbean businesses but you will need to dive in head first and experiment —you will be surprised at the results you get. These strategies will also allow you to expand your brand beyond social media and build a bigger digital footprint for your brand.

Remember, your audience consumes content differently based on the types of content, the media utilised (written, video, audio), and through various channels. Each type of content will cater to each of those needs.

Keron Rose is a digital strategist that works with Caribbean entrepreneurs to build their digital presence. To learn more, visit KeronRose.com or listen to the Digipreneur FM podcast on Apple Podcasts/Spotify/Google Podcasts.