In the past month we’ve taken a deep dive into content marketing.  We’ve covered using your smart phone to shoot video like a pro, given you the low-down on creating a winning content strategy,  and delivered some vital information on protecting all that valuable content you’ve created. 

We also combed cyberspace for 20 of the very best free content marketing tools available for your small business. These easy-to-use tools will help you become a graphic guru, a story-telling sorcerer, a social media superhero and a project management professional.

Yes, all at the same time.

After all, you’re an entrepreneur. You can do anything.

To make it easier, we’ve divided these tools into four key types of content that will turn your brand into a content marketing powerhouse.

1. Design killer graphics

You can’t judge a book by it’s cover.  Unless that book is a part of your content marketing campaign, and then yes – you can and should. The fact is, good design matters.  Developing solid design skills and identifying the tools that can help you  create visually appealing and consistently branded graphic content. Good design often makes the difference between content that gets noticed and content that disappears into the vast reaches of cyberspace without near the attention it deserves.

“Companies that innovate their approach to design will be rewarded with new growth opportunities.”
~Chuck Longanecker,  founder of Digital-Telepathy.

2. Present like a superstar

These days, presentation means more than creating another boring PowerPoint presentation for your team. Your ideas and expertise can be delivered to your audience in a number of dynamic and engaging ways. Unleash the power of video, have fun with animation or turn that typical e-book into a beautiful editorial style magazine. Whatever medium you decide to tackle,  these tools will have you thinking outside the presentation box.

3. Create through curation

It’s no secret that cyberspace is full of great content. It’s easy to think of that plethora of content as competition for your own message.  Instead, you can re-frame that content in terms of cooperation.  These curation tools will help you to dig in and find the best and most relevant content out there – and then wrap it up in an attractive bow and deliver it to your audience. It’s one of those win-win situations that makes everyone happy.

4. Work smarter, not harder

So much work, so little time. It’s easy to succumb to entrepreneurial overwhelm. But never fear – these tools will help you make the most of your available time and focus on the things that you do best. Project management, social media automation, and outsourcing will all move you closer to a semblance of equilibrium and give you more time to work on your business, instead of in your business.

To see a more detailed writeup on each of the tools, along with inspiring examples – check out this post, where we share key features and report on our test drives of each tool.

Download the Infusionsoft Content Marketing E-book

This post The Top 20 Free Content Marketing Tools For Your Small Business (Infographic) was first published on the Big Ideas Blog.