That is the question. with all the noise in online publishing and business blog and social media, it's worth wondering whether curating or aggregating content is better than creating new content There are tons of people and businesses already publishing great content. Is it better to share their content, instead of working to create my own and possibly adding to the noise?
I think that it is not an either/or choice. Businesses can do both curation and creation, or one or the other. But, businesses shouldn't choose curation because it's easier or it's less time-consuming. Curation, if done right, involves the editing and selection of the best content, the content that's most relevant to your target audience. This takes time and careful consideration, as you need to read most, if not all, the possible articles in order to put together the best curation presentation. If not, then you won't be delivering to your readers the best possible content experience.
Aggregation and curation are very similar, and must be done with caution. If you are going to share the work of another, or repackage it somehow, make sure to give credit where credit is due and not to rip it off entirely. It is okay to showcase a link to the original, plus the opening paragraph or writing an opening summary of your own. It's even okay to showcase the original in its entirely, as long as you say where you got if from or who did the original. But, it is not okay to pass off that content AS your own, or to rewrite it in a way that makes it look like you did the original reporting when you really didn't.
If you decide to create content, however, you don't have to worry about those details so much. It's recommended that you give credit where credit is due, especially when you site statistics or quote someone. Creating content is just as time consuming as curation, as you now need to come up with the content ideas, take the time to write and to edit them, and then publish them when ready. It's a different skill set from curation, but it isn't any easier.
I would recommend that businesses do both, but more content creation than curation. Content creation can position your business as a thought leader and an education. Curation can't do that as much, although it can help toward the goal of thought leadership by sharing the good work and ideas of others. Content creation also gives you more credit in the long run, since you are then an originator of thoughts and ideas, instead of simply sharing the ideas of others. If you end up creating something great, you'd want everyone to know that it was your business who did it.