Marketing Essential #2: Distribution Strategy Beats Content Creation

Part TWO of a THREE part series

Here's the hard truth: creating great content means nothing if nobody sees it.

I've watched countless businesses pour resources into beautiful blog posts, polished videos, and clever social media content, only to see it disappear into the void because they had zero strategy for distribution.

The Content Creation Trap:

• Most businesses operate under a dangerous assumption: "If we build it, they will come." They focus 90% of their energy on creating content and maybe 10% on getting it in front of people. The successful businesses I've worked with? They flip that ratio.

• Content creation is important, but content distribution is what actually drives growth.

What a Real Distribution Strategy Looks Like:

• A content distribution strategy means having clear answers to these questions:

  • Where is your audience actually spending time? Not where you wish they were or where it's easiest for you to post. Where are they genuinely active? For some businesses, that's LinkedIn and email. For others, it's Instagram and TikTok. For B2B service providers, it might be industry-specific forums or podcasts. You need to know with certainty.

  • How often are you showing up there? Posting once a month won't cut it. Growth comes from consistent visibility. That means a defined schedule—whether it's daily, three times a week, or weekly—and actually sticking to it. Your audience needs to see you repeatedly before they remember you exist.

  • Do you have a multi-channel approach? Your ideal customer isn't just on one platform. They might see your LinkedIn post in the morning, your email newsletter at lunch, and your Instagram reel in the evening. Strategic distribution means showing up across 2-4 key channels where your audience lives, not trying to be everywhere at once.

  • Are you repurposing strategically? One piece of core content should fuel multiple distribution channels. A blog post becomes a LinkedIn article, an email newsletter, Instagram carousel graphics, and talking points for short-form video. Work smarter, not harder.

Why Most Businesses Get This Wrong:

1. Distribution feels less creative than content creation. It's not as fun as brainstorming clever captions or designing graphics. But here's what I've learned from scaling brands to 70+ locations: the businesses that grow aren't necessarily the ones with the best content. They're the ones that get decent content in front of the right people consistently.

The Reality Check:

• Ask yourself honestly: when you publish a blog post, what happens next? Do you have a systematic plan to get it seen, or do you just hope people stumble across it?

• When you post on social media, are you showing up where your actual customers are, or where you personally prefer to hang out?

• If your content isn't getting traction, the problem usually isn't the quality of your content, it's that the right people aren't seeing it.

Action Step:

• Audit where you're currently distributing content versus where your customers actually spend time. Pick 2-3 channels where your ideal customers are most active and commit to showing up there consistently for the next 90 days. Then track what happens.

• Distribution isn't glamorous, but it's what separates businesses that grow from businesses that stay stuck.