Finding the right keywords for UGC videos still feels manual, even with tools. I can use search bars, trend trackers, or AI suggestions, but it always takes sitting down, checking what's trending, what fits my style, and what my audience actually cares about. No tool really nails that personal mix yet. At the end of the day, I have to scroll, listen, and pick up on little shifts myself. Trends move too fast for anything automated to fully catch them. It's not fancy, but paying attention beats relying only on software every time.
One part of my content strategy that still feels manual and clunky is keyword research! Despite the many tools available online, I still find the process to be rather painstaking and I still need to get my hands dirty for this part. This is because in my keyword research, I will check a lot of things: consider monthly search volumes, analyze search trends, evaluate keyword difficulty, scrutinize page one competition on Google, and ensure the keyword intent matches the content I plan to create. Because keyword research is the very first and most foundational step in my content strategy, I place heavy emphasis on getting it right. Yet the need to cross-reference so many data points means I still haven't found a way to fully automate or streamline this important stage - I definitely hope I get to make this keyword check a whole lot easier someday!
Even with AI and automation at our fingertips, competitive differentiation still demands a manual touch when it comes to positioning strategy. Crafting a truly unique voice that cuts through noise isn't something you can outsource to a template or a tool. We still sit down as a team and manually map out content territory—what conversations we can own versus echo. It's slow, it's messy, but it's also where the magic happens.
One part of my content strategy that still feels manual and clunky—no matter what tools I use—is handling images. From selecting the right one, naming the file properly, uploading it to the CMS, and placing it in the correct spot (especially in content with multiple images), it's a time-consuming, tedious process. Even with tools like AI-generated images and Canva, and using HubSpot as our CMS, the workflow still lacks smooth automation. It's strange, because I don't feel that way about writing content, creating eBooks, or building presentations. It's specifically the image handling that remains frustrating—if someone has a better solution, I'd love to hear it!