Batching: What is it and how can it help you excel at creating great content consistently

I often speak to clients who either have plenty of content ideas but struggle to find the time or motivation to dedicate to putting them into action or have months where they write prolifically followed by months of nothing.

One trick that I often recommend is Batching

So, doing a chunk of the same type of work in one sitting. Along with time blocking, it’s one of my little secrets to productive, consistent content creation.

Will batching really help you be more productive?

If you’re asking ‘what makes blitzing one area of work better than the scattergun approach?’, then be honest with yourself. How productive are you really when you try to focus a small amount of your time on lots of different tasks?

Focusing on one thing means all of your energy is channelled into making it the best – you get into a flow and momentum builds… and you are in the right space to create some content genius.

Of course, you need to pick the right time – when you are in the right frame of mind, to get the most out of your time. Having your best self means you are working and creating with love which will help you give the value your audience craves. It will give you a sense of achievement, and mean you’re not putting out mediocre content just because your plan says you have to post on social media that day.

Let’s get batching!

If you have some great content ideas (if you don’t then read this post on content inspiration) and I’ve convinced you of the value of batching, then here are some tips on how to do it well.

Be Prepared

Consider what you need before getting to work. For example, if you are creating a series of videos, perhaps you want to upload 1 video a month to YouTube, then book a videographer and create 10-12 videos in 2 days.  Use this opportunity to get your hair, make-up/nails done and put on your best clothes. You will look and feel fabulous, confident that you will be creating a wealth of content, valuable to your audience and professionally delivered, and which can be repurposed over the coming months.

Have a Design in mind

Visual content will benefit from design. If you are creating similar types of content, such as statistics, quotes, and testimonials, then you can create them all in one go. You will be able to ensure you have a consistent style, design, images, and feel. Also, it’s quicker, and afterwards, you will have a whole library worth of content.

My record is 20 storytelling quotes, 15 statistics, and 20 top PR tips all in one go. That is 55 graphics, each with supporting content, which equals social media posts for 55 days!

My go-to design tool of choice is Canva which is very user-friendly.

My photo library of choice is  Styled Stock Society.  I have a membership that saves me so much time, makes finding images a joy, and means I don’t have to worry about license fees! If I am looking for a stock photo or customizable template, I just browse their library of over 5,000+ stock photos (plus new photos added every week), 1,000+ customizable Canva templates exclusive to Styled Stock Society members, monthly caption guides with caption prompt, caption templates and sample captions for every single day of the month and many bonus resources like stock video clips, done-for-you Instagram graphics, content planning worksheets, 365 Instagram caption prompts, and more!

If you are interested, please use this link to join* Styled Stock Society

Batch up your Content

If you are writing a blog, then write the social media posts at the same time, and while you are at it, add in copy for your newsletter too.

Get Down into the Research

Research really is something worthwhile doing in one go. It’s so important to find a time where you can really focus and follow the leads… whilst being mindful of not getting drawn down rabbit holes, of course! Often when I write a blog, the topics get bigger and bigger the more I research, and I end up with enough for 3-4 blogs, as happened when writing this blog!

Keep Lots of Notes

I recently read Diary of a Bookseller, by Shaun Bythell, a bookseller who every day kept a note of the idiosyncrasies of running a second-hand bookshop in Wigtown, Scotland, such as the funny comments from staff and unusual requests from customers.

 If you make notes as you go about your day, you would be surprised by what you notice.

Then when you have some time, you can sit down and create social media posts or other content around your experiences, reflections, and thoughts, all in one go.

Where to Next?

If you need support with your strategic communications, PR, or thought leadership, book a free discovery call with me to see how I can help you develop your strategy.

And don’t forget to take a look at all the useful content and resources to spark your creativity.

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