Have you heard of the 70/20/10 rule in content marketing? It might sound like a tricky math formula, but it's actually a simple way to plan your content strategy.
As an SEO expert, you know that creating great content is key to attracting and engaging an audience.
That’s huge!
So, what is this 70/20/10 rule, and how can it help you create winning content? Let's break it down in plain language.
What is the 70/20/10 Rule in Content Marketing?
The 70/20/10 rule is a guideline for how to split up the types of content you produce.
This rule is very popular and used in almost every industry, from Finance to Marketing.
It was originally inspired by Google’s innovation management approach (where employees spent 70% of their time on core work, 20% on new projects, 10% on wild ideas), and marketers adapted it for content creation.
In content marketing, the rule means you should produce:
70/20/10 rule in content marketing pie chart
70% “Proven” Content:
About 70% of your content should cover topics you know your audience cares about. This is your safe and reliable content that builds your brand and attracts visitors.
Think of this as your bread-and-butter blog posts, videos, or articles that answer common questions and showcase your expertise.
These pieces are usually low-risk and high-value – you’re confident they will perform well because they address the basic needs and interests of your readers.
For example, if you run an SEO blog, this 70% might be how-to posts on keyword research or case studies with proven tips.
By focusing most of your efforts here, you build trust and a solid reputation as a go-to source of information.
20% “Premier” or New Content:
About 20% of your content should be more advanced or innovative content. This is where you invest extra effort to create something special that can attract a new or larger audience.
It might be a deep-dive eBook, SEO basics, SEO statistics, or a cool infographic, anything that goes beyond the basics and really grabs attention. This content is related to your core topics but takes them further, offering fresh insights or a unique angle.
It’s a bit more costly or risky to produce, but if it pays off, it can bring in big results (imagine a viral infographic that gets shared everywhere!).
The goal of this 20% is to keep your audience engaged with richer content and to pull prospects further down the funnel with in-depth value.
10% “Experimental” Content:
The final 10% of your content is for creative experiments. This is your chance to try out new ideas that you haven’t tested before – the fun, crazy stuff!
For example, you might try a bold opinion piece, a video in a brand-new style, an interactive quiz, or hopping on a trendy new social platform.
This content could be a bit controversial or completely different from your usual material. It carries the highest risk because not every experiment will succeed – but some will, and they could become your next big hit.
By dedicating 10% to exploration, you allow yourself to discover new opportunities and keep your strategy fresh and innovative.
Think of a brand like Coca-Cola doing an offbeat social media challenge – it might be unusual, but it can reveal what resonates in unexpected ways. In fact, Coca-Cola’s marketing team has highlighted the 70/20/10 rule as part of their content strategy.
In a nutshell, the 70/20/10 rule means most of your content is reliable and audience-focused (the 70%), a good chunk is high-quality new material to elevate your brand (the 20%), and a small slice is experimental (the 10%).
This mix helps you stay consistent and safe most of the time, while still pushing boundaries a little and learning from new ideas. It's like a balanced diet for your content: lots of healthy staples, some special meals, and a tiny dessert treat for creativity!
Why Use the 70/20/10 Rule in Content Marketing?
Following the 70/20/10 rule can make your content marketing more effective and sustainable. Here are a few big reasons why this rule is so helpful:
Keeps Your Audience Happy:
By devoting about 70% of content to proven topics, you consistently give your readers what they want and expect. This builds trust.
Your audience knows they can count on you for solid information, and trust matters that almost half of consumers will purchase after reading a few trustworthy blog recommendations.
The rule ensures you never stray too far from the core value you provide.
Encourages Growth and Innovation:
Setting aside 20% for premier content and 10% for experiments means you’re not just repeating the same old stuff. You’re actively trying new formats or ideas regularly.
This is important because the digital world changes fast. New content types or trends can appear overnight. By having a portion of your effort dedicated to innovation, you can discover the next big thing before your competitors do.
Some of your experiments might flop (and that’s okay!), but others could become hugely popular.
All it takes is one breakout hit – for example, a creative video or a viral post – to significantly boost your brand’s visibility.
Balanced Risk Management:
The 70/20/10 mix is basically a safety net for your strategy. About 70% of your output is practically guaranteed to perform well (since it's based on topics with proven interest), so that portion holds up your results even if an experiment fails.
Meanwhile, the 20% and 10% portions are your calculated risks. You’re allocating a small budget of time/effort to try high-risk, high-reward ideas without betting the farm on them.
This balance means you won’t alienate your audience with too much weird content, but you also won’t become stale or boring by only doing the same things.
Sustains Your SEO and Traffic:
For SEO experts, the 70% chunk is especially crucial because it usually involves producing a steady stream of quality content. Search engines love fresh, relevant content.
Companies that publish frequently see big benefits – one study found that businesses posting 16 or more pieces of content a month got about 3.5 times more traffic than those posting only a few pieces.
That’s a massive traffic boost simply by being consistent! The 70/20/10 rule helps you plan for that consistency.
Your 70% proven content can cover popular keywords and questions (bringing in search traffic), while your 20% big content can attract backlinks and social shares, and even the 10% experiments might tap into new SEO keywords or trends.
Plus, more content means more pages for Google to index; the more quality pages you have, the more opportunities you have to rank in search results. No wonder content creation is often cited as the most effective SEO tactic.
Matches Buyer Behavior:
This content mix also aligns with how your audience consumes information. People often like to read a lot before they make a decision – especially in B2B or high-stakes purchases. In fact, the average B2B customer engages with about 13 pieces of content before deciding to buy or even contacting a sales rep.
Think about that, 13 pieces! This includes blog posts, videos, infographics, case studies, etc., from you and from others. With the 70/20/10 approach, you’ll have plenty of the right content available to guide them.
The 70% content answers their basic questions and builds trust, the 20% content offers deeper dives and valuable insights that can influence their decision, and the 10% might surprise or delight them, making your brand more memorable.
By the time they’ve consumed those pieces, they feel informed and positive about you.
(Notice the star? It’s like getting a gold star for doing your homework – the 70/20/10 rule helps ensure you’ve covered all the content “homework” your audience might look for.)
How to Apply the 70/20/10 Rule to Your Content Strategy?
Knowing the rule is one thing, but how do you use it in practice? Here are some simple steps and tips to implement the 70/20/10 rule in your content marketing:
Step #1-Plan Your Content Calendar with Percentages in Mind
Start by listing out content ideas and categorizing them into the 70, 20, or 10 buckets. For example, if you plan to publish 10 pieces of content this month, aim for about 7 proven-topic pieces, 2 big new pieces, and 1 experimental piece.
Physically label them in your editorial calendar. This visual helps you stay on track.
Many content marketers actually use editorial calendar tools to map this out and ensure they stick to the ratio.
Content Calendar Sample with labelling
Image Source: narrato.io
Step #2-Identify Your “Proven” Topics
Look at your analytics to see which past content performed well or which topics your audience always responds to. These are your proven winners.
For an SEO expert, this might include evergreen topics like "Keyword Research Guide", "link building strategies", or commonly asked questions you see in forums.
Make sure 70% of your content calendar covers these areas in a fresh way. Remember, proven doesn’t mean copy-paste old content – it means stick to the themes you know work, but keep providing useful, high-quality info each time. Consistency is key here.
Step #3-Brainstorm Premier Content
Next, think about a few content pieces that would really stand out (your 20%). What would impress your audience or educate them on a deeper level? Maybe it’s an ultimate guide (like a long, detailed article or an eBook) with original research or insights.
Maybe it's a case study with unique data, or a polished video tutorial series. These should tie into your main topics, but offer something extra – more depth, better design, or a fresh perspective.
Plan to allocate a bit more time or budget to creating these, since they require extra polish. The payoff can be big: a single well-produced piece of content can attract traffic and leads for months or even years if it strikes a chord.
Step #4-Choose Your Experiments
For the 10% experiments, list some fun ideas you'd love to try but haven’t yet. Is there a new social media platform your audience is moving to, like TikTok or a new community forum?
Perhaps you want to try an interactive content piece (like a quiz or calculator), or write about a cutting-edge topic in your industry with your own bold opinion.
Since this is only 10%, you have permission to be creative and even a little playful. Involve your team in brainstorming – sometimes the wildest ideas come from casual conversations.
Importantly, also decide how you’ll measure success for these experiments. Even though they are risky, you should know afterward if they helped (did the quirky Instagram challenge drive some engagement? Did that controversial blog post spark productive discussion?).
If an experiment flops, no big loss – you only spent 10% on it. If it succeeds, you can consider folding that into your proven content roster in the future.
Step #5-Monitor and Adjust
Content marketing isn’t set-and-forget. As you roll out content in the 70/20/10 proportions, keep an eye on your metrics.
Maybe one of your 20% “premier” pieces becomes a smash hit – you might decide to do more like it (some 10% experiments could graduate into 20% regular strategy if they work well).
Or perhaps you find out your audience is getting bored with a certain topic in your 70% category – then it's time to refresh those topics. The 70/20/10 rule is a flexible guideline, not a strict law.
You can tweak the ratios to 65/25/10 or 70/15/15 occasionally if needed, for example. The goal is simply to ensure you're not putting all your eggs in one content basket.
Regular reviews of performance will tell you if your mix is working or not. Over time, you’ll get even better at knowing what content goes into each bucket.
By following these steps, you'll create a balanced content strategy that feels both reliable and exciting. Your audience will get the consistent information they crave, plus some delightful surprises and major value pieces along the way.
And you'll stay organized and focused, avoiding the trap of either playing it too safe or, conversely, trying to chase every new trend without a plan.
Advantages of 70/20/10
- Consistency: The 70% core content keeps your output steady and reliable, so your audience gets what they expect – building trust in your brand.
- Innovation: Using 20% for fresh ideas and 10% for experiments means you’re always exploring creative angles and keeping things exciting.
- Lower Risk: Since most of your content is proven, you can try new ideas without much fear; only a small slice is high-risk, so a flop content won’t hurt, but a win could be huge.
Disadvantages of 70/20/10
- Too Safe? Leaning too hard on the 70% can make your content feel repetitive, and you might miss out on big creative opportunities.
- Undervalues Creativity: If you only give 10% to experiments, your next big idea might not get the room it needs to grow.
- Not One-Size-Fits-All: Strictly following 70/20/10 may not work for every brand. Being too rigid could make it hard to adapt to new trends or audience needs.
Now ask yourself: Is 70/20/10 the right mix for your content, or would a different balance work better for you?
A Quick Recap
Imagine your content plan is like a school science project with a volcano (everyone loves a volcano project, right?). To get an A+ grade, you need to do the basics really well, add some special touches, and maybe have one surprise element that wows the class:
- 70% is doing the basics really well – building a sturdy paper-mâché volcano that reliably erupts. In content terms, this is your steady, high-quality content on topics you know will educate and help your readers.
- 20% is the special touch – maybe painting the volcano with an awesome design and adding cool lava colors. In content, this translates to premium pieces that go deeper or look more impressive (an in-depth guide, a great video, etc.) to pull your audience in further.
- 10% is the surprise element – like adding sparklers to your volcano eruption for a big finale. This is your experimental content that’s novel and catches attention. It might be unconventional, but it could make your project (or brand) unforgettable.
By mixing these parts, you ensure the project is educational and exciting. The same goes for your content marketing: the 70/20/10 rule helps you educate, engage, and surprise your audience in just the right proportions.
And the best part? This approach has been tried and tested by major companies and savvy marketers, so you know it's built on solid ground.
The 70/20/10 rule in content marketing is a smart way to allocate your effort. It keeps you focused on what works 70% of the time, pushes you to create standout content 20% of the time, and gives you freedom to experiment 10% of the time.
This balance can lead to more consistent traffic, higher engagement, and better SEO performance – all while keeping your strategy fresh and fun.
As one marketing expert put it, by focusing a large percentage on proven success, you earn the ability to risk a little on new ideas that might become hugely profitable down the road.
Now that you know the secret, you can start applying it to your own content strategy. Are you ready to try the 70/20/10 rule and take your content to the next level?
Remember: even though I explained it as if to a child for clarity, this rule is a powerful tool used by top marketers, and it could be your next competitive advantage.
Happy content creating, and I can’t wait to see what you do with that 10% of wild creativity! 😃
