Looking for tools that can facilitate efficient production of high-quality content?
There are loads of resources for PR pros that can save time, polish your prose and make your visuals shine. These apps and tools can help PR teams create spectacular content:
Improve the quality of your writing.
Superb content starts with good writing. For a helpful editing tool, try Hemingway. The app spots complex words or phrases, run-on sentences, adverb overuse and passive voice. It’s a handy proofreader, too. Just paste in your text, and Hemingway analyzes your work.
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Focus Writer and Quoll are other good resources.
Increase your content output.
Are you constantly bumping up against deadlines? Write or Die is worth a whirl.
This somewhat maniacal writing app can push you to complete assignments, help beat writer’s block or develop serious discipline. Most people will shudder at its punitive features—such as threatening to delete your saved material if you don’t make a deadline—but it delivers an exhilarating “beat the clock” jolt that can smash procrastination.
Of course, quantity is nothing without quality. If Write or Die is too stressful, you can opt for a non-threatening timer to nudge up your daily writing output.
Come up with fresh content ideas.
One chief challenge that PR people face is coming up with a constant flow of original ideas for story pitches, blog posts and other content. Instead of staring at that blank screen, waiting for inspiration to materialize, bring in reinforcements such as IdeaFlip, a brainstorming tool.
Check out blog topic generators from HubSpot or Portent, or peruse Trendspottr to see what subjects are buzzing.
Google is another tremendous resource for fresh ideas. The company just rolled out a news feed “infused with machine learning” to reflect your interests, which can offer up content that’s relevant to you and prime for newsjacking. It’s like having access to endless Google Alerts without having to set them.
Illustrate your posts like a pro.
Strong visuals can make a piece pop, but what if you lack graphic design expertise? Try BeFunky, which turns your titles into works of art.
Meme Generator is another fun tool that enhances your work with original, personalized memes.
For unique images that don’t cost an arm and a leg, explore these:
- Pixabay
- Gratisography
- Unsplash
- Splitshire
- Psychography
- Magdeleine
- Morgue File
- JéShoots
- Kaboompics
- Death to the Stock Photo
- StockVault
- Pexels
- PicJumbo
- DesignerPics
- Haute Chocolate
Another easy way to elevate blog posts is by creating an infographic with Picktochart or Venngage. Infographics are content marketing gold.
Video is another content darling. If you’re a video novice, try Avidemux, the “Instagram of video editing software” for its speed and ease of use.
Manage and scale your social media sharing.
Most PR people know about Hootsuite and other sites that automate sharing, but have you tried Buffer? It enables you to share content across multiple social media networks with one click. Buffer also claims to help users drive more traffic and increase fan engagement. It offers a free trial if you’d like to go for a test drive.
The tools above can help boost content creation and improve your writing, but remember an important caveat as you scale your content creation. Even though, as Oscar Wilde wrote, “Talent borrows. Genius steals,” it’s important to avoid crossing the line between borrowing (with attribution) and taking someone else’s words or work. If you’re unsure, run it by QueText, a handy plagiarism detector.
A version of this post first appeared on the Crenshaw Communications blog.
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