Outsource or in-house? What's right for social media content production.

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Content production for social media channels is made up of a variety of different inputs in its attempts to be engaging and relevant. What’s interesting about trying to keep content sustainable is the balance of strategic content vs original content, and whether this content is generated in-house or by an agency.

In a world where User Generated Content (UGC) is becoming more and more prevalent, we’ve seen that brands need to produce content that is authentic and original, and often this is strongest when it comes directly from the company themselves.

Sharing content stories that[nbsp_tc]have[nbsp_tc]been created within an organisation often develops a sense of trustworthiness in those receiving the content. It appears more transparent and honest and therefore creates this bond of trust between brand and consumer.[nbsp_tc]

The other benefit to generating in-house content is that those involved in your business at a direct level often know the ins and outs of the company better than any outsider ever can, and will find it easier to quickly create content that’s true to company[nbsp_tc]values and on-brand.

Of course, life is a balancing act, and there are always[nbsp_tc]two[nbsp_tc]sides to a coin.

Outsourcing content also has its advantages. Not only does it lighten the load for the organisations, but it ensures that you get an outside perspective which is key to keeping content fresh. Agencies have the capability to look at things from a different angle and[nbsp_tc]with[nbsp_tc]an[nbsp_tc]unbiased[nbsp_tc]perspective which can lead to insights that might otherwise be missed.

The best results tend to come from a combination of in-house and outsourced content – this way you get the best of both worlds. The key is just finding the right balance.[nbsp_tc]Whilst there is no one-size-fits-all solution, my general rule of thumb is that self-generated content is the most authentic and engaging, and you should only outsource strategic content.

I try to live this rule as much as possible although there are a few[nbsp_tc]clients that we produce the entirety of content for,[nbsp_tc]as they just aren’t[nbsp_tc]yet[nbsp_tc]comfortable with it themselves.[nbsp_tc]However, we always[nbsp_tc]try to educate our clients about creating content in the hopes that, with guidance and familiarity, it will begin to come as naturally[nbsp_tc]to them[nbsp_tc]as it does to us!

The way we see[nbsp_tc]it, if[nbsp_tc]everyone can generate basic content themselves, it pushes agencies and people like us out of the box and we have to come up with bigger, better, and more brilliant ideas. If they[nbsp_tc]can’t, or struggle to, then[nbsp_tc]we work with them to help inspire, educate, and[nbsp_tc]upskill[nbsp_tc]the team - after all, it’s simply storytelling, and we’ve being do that for centuries.

As always I'm forever learning.

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