When robust seniors were asked to share their top ten tips for productive aging I immediately saw a correlation between their advice and how good content supports the health of a business.

Is your company aging well? Use this shared wisdom from seniors to revitalize your business content.

1. Simplify. Identify priorities and trim the superfluous.

Companies often have only seconds to capture the attention of potential customers. Content that articulates in a simple form offers clarity. The most important content is positioned first and the least, last.

2. Pay attention to yourself.

True differentiation in the market place comes from knowing who you are as a company. Staying true to the vision and its expression creates authentic content, attracting the kind of customers you want.

3. Continue to teach and learn.

Lessons learned is a great topic for content. It shows that a company has humility and continues to learn. Sharing a lesson makes a company generous and likable in the eyes of its audience.

4. Be flexible: learn to navigate change.

This is a key message in Eric Ries’ book The Lean Startup (which shares insights for any size business at any age). Knowing when to pivot and redirect is vital to keeping a company strong and its content fresh.

5. Be charitable: make it a practice to give.

By giving valuable content companies receive more than an email address, an online reaction, or purchase.  They become trustworthy and authoritative.

6. Be financially astute.

If you are spending more money with little return, it is a sign your company is not aging well. Added features should command higher prices, but only when they are positioned as problem solvers for your customer.

7. Participate in activities that interest you.

Any action is a source for content. Show your industry involvement, your achievements, your subject matter expertise through blogs and forums of interest.

8. Commit to good nutrition and exercise.

Publish new ideas that feed the growth of your business in an internal newsletter and routinely experiment with executing some of them on a scale that makes sense.

9. Think about your past and future, deal with your mortality.

Business longevity, experience, and familiarity make it comfortable for customers to work with you. Surprise keeps them interested.

10. Be involved, be positive, link with others.

The social web invites you to connect in ways never before possible. Positive content is shared more often than negative. Spread your news and that of your customers with goodwill.

Which tip is your favorite?

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