Whether you’re a founder, social media manager, content creator, or just building your personal brand, you've likely faced the (rather familiar!) dilemma of, “what do I post today?”
That’s where content pillars come in. They act as the foundation of your strategy, giving you structure and clarity. Instead of stressing for ideas last-minute, content pillars ground your planning and ideation around focused themes that ensure your content is always consistent, relevant, and impactful.
What are content pillars?
Think of your content pillars as the support structure of your marketing house. They're the core themes or topics that form the foundation of your content strategy. We're talking broad categories that organize all of your content into various buckets.
For example, if you’re a SaaS startup founder, your content pillars might include:
Problem-solving tips around problems your platform solves for.
Personal story & thought leadership around your particular vision.
Behind the scenes of building your startup, including hiring, building products, & strategy.
These pillars ensure your content is focused, consistent, and relevant to your target audience. They're the “backbone” of your marketing efforts where every piece of content you create should tie back to one of these themes.
Why are content pillars important?
Consistency and clarity: They help you stay aligned, ensuring your audience knows what to expect from your brand.
Streamlined content creation: Defining your pillars simplifies the brainstorming and planning for your content, giving you a clear focus and reducing creative blocks.
Better audience engagement: Content pillars allows you to cater to your ICP’s needs, addressing their pain points and interests.
How to create content pillars
The main question…how do you get started on creating your content pillars?
1. Identify your target audience
Start by understanding your audience and what they care about. Consider key factors like demographics (age, gender, location, income), their pain points and goals.
For example, if your audience is small business owners, they may be interested in content about marketing, productivity tools, and scaling their business.
2. Define your core themes
Based on your research and understanding, create 3-5 content pillars. Each pillar should represent a broad category under which you can create multiple content types.
For example, if your focus on Personal Branding, your content pillars could include:
Expertise & Thought Leadership – Share insights, industry trends, unique perspectives, and practical advice that showcase your knowledge and credibility. (e.g., “Here’s what most people get wrong about X…” or “The future of Y is changing—here’s how.”)
Personal Story & Values – Highlight your journey, experiences, challenges, and values that define your brand. People connect with stories, not just credentials. (e.g., “10 years ago, I took a risk that changed everything…” or “This one lesson shaped how I lead today.”)
Behind-the-Scenes & Process – Show how you think, work, and create value. This builds trust and relatability. (e.g., “Here’s my framework for tackling big projects…” or “A look at how I prep for major speaking engagements.”)
Community & Engagement – Foster discussions, highlight others in your space, and create two-way conversations. This makes your brand feel approachable. (e.g., “What’s your take on this trend?” or “Shoutout to these brilliant minds I’m learning from.”)
Results & Impact – Demonstrate credibility through case studies, testimonials, and measurable outcomes. Social proof is key. (e.g., “Here’s how we helped X company achieve Y in 6 months.” or “The 3 biggest wins from my last project.”)
Try to follow the MECE framework with your content pillars; that is, Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive. Or in other words, ask yourself, "are the pillars I'm choosing distinct from one another, and do they represent the totality of the topic I'm covering?"
3. Plan subtopics under each pillar
Break each pillar into smaller, actionable subtopics.
Continuing with the main key pillar as personal branding and the topic(s) Personal storytelling, some example sub-topics could include:
How did you break into (your niche)
Your top 5 lessons from working in (your niche)
Breaking down a recent campaign in (your niche)
Sub-topics allow you to explore your content pillars at greater depth. They give way to endless variety, which informs your ideation and helps you ask the right questions to create more problem-solving and community-building content.
Don't get too rigid with your structure
Now that we’ve understood the 101 of content pillars, it's time to start building out your own. Consider this: it's easier to lay the foundation for your content strategy at the start of your journey, rather than having to go back to the drawing board and shuffle everything around later on.
And one last thing - here’s an important reminder to always leave space for timely, in-the moment content, like a trending meme, content idea or even a special date (like Valentine’s Day). Striking a healthy balance of 80-90% pillar content (and the rest for holiday/timely posts) helps you stay evergreen yet relevant.
So... Start ideating your content pillars today, and let your efforts scale your content ecosystem.
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