by Christopher Moore, Chief Marketing Officer at Quiet Light
So, you decided to take the plunge. You found a promising seller, did your due diligence, and finalized your purchase. You’re now the proud new owner of a content site.
Now what?
Buying a business can be both exciting and exhausting. It’s easy to get so caught up in the process that one doesn’t consider what comes after. Buying the business, after all, is only the first step.
The real work is in running it. In understanding both the technical and content side of things. In ensuring that, under your ownership, your acquisition grows and thrives.
In that regard, here are five crucial things to know about managing your newly acquired content site.
1. You Need to Have the Right People in Place.
It’s a common misconception that you need to be an expert to maintain a blog on a particular topic.
You don’t. But you do need to hire said experts, whether as freelancers or full-time contractors. There are many job boards and sites you can explore in this regard, including Problogger, Upwork, and niche-specific communities.
If you’re lucky, you might even be able to keep a site’s original owner on retainer.
Many content sites, after all, grew to success not solely because of the information they provide but through the owner’s personality. This means once word gets out that the owner has departed, your new acquisition might lose a great deal of traffic. Bringing the owner back to publish the occasional thought leadership piece can go a long way towards mitigating this.
In addition to content writers, you’re also going to need a web developer and webmaster to handle the backend. That includes troubleshooting, software updates, and cybersecurity. If you’re lucky, either your content site will be with a host that manages many of these things for you, or you’ll have acquired the necessary personnel with the site.
Otherwise, it’s time to start searching.
Finally, there’s the matter of marketing. You’ll want to bring in someone to both manage any existing campaigns that were running at the time of acquisition and help you brainstorm new ones. I’d also advise finding professionals with content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) expertise.
2. A Content Schedule is Crucial.
Provided you found an accommodating seller, your new content site likely already has a schedule and content in place for content. This should be enough to keep you covered during the transition period. After that, though?
You’re on your own. First thing’s first, you’ll want to put together a content calendar. In addition to providing a big-picture overview of current and upcoming content — making it easier to align everything to your content strategy — it can also act as something of a project management tool. A well-realized calendar allows you to collaborate with writing staff for topic ideation and research.
Ideally, you’ll want enough content planned (and created) to keep you covered for several months if need be, though you can also approach it month-to-month if need be. Aim for a blend of evergreen (long-lasting) content and content that engages with current trends and developments within your niche. For each piece of content, you should also plan out how you’ll promote it on social media.
3. Be Willing to Expand Your Horizons.
If you’re like most buyers, you didn’t purchase this content site to run it exactly like the original owner in perpetuity. You’re here for expansion and growth, either for its own sake or so that you can eventually flip the site to a new owner. Never stop exploring potential new revenue streams, untapped niches, and prospective partnerships.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t thoroughly research each opportunity, of course — just that you should remain open to them.
4. You’ll Want to Understand SEO.
Even if you’ve brought an SEO expert into your employ, it’s still beneficial to maintain at least a basic understanding of the discipline yourself. For one, this knowledge will help you figure out whether or not an SEO professional is above-board. Most black hats and scammers in the SEO space rely entirely on ignorance.
Knowing the value of certain metrics also makes it easier to communicate with your marketing team while also helping you see a clearer picture of what’s working (and what isn’t). Moz’s Beginner’s Guide to SEO is an excellent place to start learning.
5. Always Keep Your Original Goal in Mind.
This isn’t an acquisition you made blindly. You did so with a clear purpose. That purpose needs to inform everything you do with your new business, from keyword research to ideation to marketing.
Are you planning to eventually incorporate the site into a more extensive content network? Put together a strategic content schedule that will allow you to achieve this gradually. Consider also testing the waters by cross-posting or publishing guest editorials on other sites you own.
Do you want to increase the site’s value and eventually flip it? You’ll need a growth-focused strategy that includes outreach and lead generation. Untapped audiences or niches for the site may prove particularly valuable in this regard.
Will you leverage the content site to promote your brand or its products? Make sure you understand affiliate marketing and be careful not to go too hard on the sales pitch. Aggressive sales tactics can kill an online business just as easily as a poorly optimized website.
Optimize. Cultivate. Thrive.
A content site can be an incredibly lucrative acquisition, but only if you understand how to manage it.
Do the necessary research to understand your niche and the business itself. Put the right personnel in place to help ensure it thrives. Create strategic, deliberate content that supports your original purchase goal, whatever that may be.
From there, the rest is up to you.
Christopher Moore is the Chief Marketing Officer at Quiet Light, which specializes in helping clients sell their internet-based businesses. Additionally, he founded Gadabout Media LLC to inspire, educate, and unite others by creating visually stunning content for clients.
