The Skills and Tools Needed for Successful Content Marketing

So, you want to be a content marketer?  Well it doesn't have to look like this…

Stick around to learn some of the most important skills to keep you organized, on track, and free from the feeling of aimlessly stumbling from one task to another.

In addition, we’ll look at some of the tools that can help automate and streamline the process of content creation.

But first…

What is Content Marketing?

Marketing is not just one thing, but rather a collection of many different approaches and strategies.  One of those approaches is content marketing.

So what separates content marketing from other methods or forms of marketing?  The biggest differentiator is that it is less focused on the explicit promotion of a product or service, and more about creating content which provides value to a target audience.  The types of content produced can take many forms, including blog posts, articles, videos, social media posts, infographics, podcasts, webinars, and more.  The major upside of this approach is that it helps businesses establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry and earn the trust of their customers.

What are the Most Important Content Marketing Skills?

If you can't run fast, swing hard, and throw far, then you probably aren’t going to be a very good baseball player.  Likewise, there are certain skills that good content marketers possess.  Let’s look at a few.

Writing Chops 

Yes, ChatGPT exists, but it can't replace great writers (yet).  The ability to write copy that is clear, concise, engaging and informative is perhaps the most basic and foundational mark of a good content marketer.  And for goodness sake it‘s ok to be funny too; no one wants to read a boring 7 minute blog.  

Bottom line:  You must be a wordsmith ninja.

Creativity

There are tons of content marketers out there and, as a result, a massive amount of blogs, podcasts, white papers, and webinars floating around.  Unique and innovative ways of capturing the attention of prospective customers is essential.  

Bottom line:  Either stand out or get out. 

Strategic Thinking

While content needs to stand out and be unique, it can’t be random; every piece of content must have a reason and a purpose.  Good content marketing involves identifying the target audience, doing keyword research, and planning content that aligns with their goals.

Bottom line:  Blindly making content will get you nowhere.  

Analytics Wizard    

Is it time to pivot or should you keep forging ahead with your current content strategy?  Effective content marketing involves the use of analytics tools to help make data-driven decisions.  

If you don’t know engagement and conversion rates, which keywords and phrases are driving traffic to your website, and which social media posts are getting the most likes, shares, and comments, then it’s borderline impossible to make optimized content for your target audience.

Bottom line:  Ignorance is not bliss.  

Project Management

There are few guarantees in life, but here’s one:  as a content marketer, you will never work on only one thing at a time.  The ability to simultaneously create content, set goals, develop timelines, allocate resources, collaborate with different team members, and track expenses is crucial.

Bottom line:  No, you can’t just type up a blog in 20 minutes and be done for the day.

Adaptability

No one had a computer in their home 40 years ago.  No one had a smartphone 20 years ago.  No one was using ChatGPT 6 months ago.  The behaviors and wants of an audience can change rapidly, and content marketers need to be able to adapt quickly.  New technologies and platforms will continue to come out, and understanding not only how to use them, but how to leverage them for maximum efficiency is key.

It’s also important to recognize when certain forms of content are performing better than others.  Maybe podcasts have historically been your company’s bread and butter, but over the last few months it’s been blogs instead.  The value of effectively adapting to change can’t be overstated. 

Bottom line:  Complacency has no place in content marketing.  

What are the Top Content Marketing Tools?

The above skills highlight some of what it takes to not only create good content, but to make sure that it’s distributed in the right places, to the right people, at the right time.  But without the right tools, that can often be a daunting, if not impossible, task.  Here are some of the top content marketing tools to take your content train into overdrive.

Keyword Research Tools

You could generate the world’s most interesting content, but if it’s not keyword-optimized, then it will be difficult for prospective customers to find.  Keyword research tools help in three main areas:

Finding Relevant Keywords

Keyword research tools help you find relevant keywords that your target audience is likely searching for. This helps you create content which provides solutions to their problems.

Identifying Search Volume

Keyword research tools also provide insights into the search volume of each keyword.  This is important for keyword prioritization.

Analyzing Competition

Not all keywords possess the same degree of difficulty when it comes to ranking for it (e.g. “RevOps” is much more difficult to rank for than “RevOps implementation”).  Using keyword research tools help you analyze the competition for each keyword.

Here are two of the best:  Ahrefs and SEMrush

Analytics Tools

The actual creation of content is only about half the battle.  Gaining a solid understanding of how your audience interacts with it is essential in helping to dictate which content to prioritize and in which areas it needs improvement.  Here are three areas where analytics tools really shine:

Tracking Content and Website Performance

Analytics tools help track which content is resonating with your audience in terms of traffic, engagement, and conversions.  For websites specifically, it notes how much traffic a website is receiving, where it is coming from, and which pages are most popular.  On a more granular level, these tools provide insights into user behavior including how long they spend on each page, which pages they visit, and which links they click.

Benchmarking Performance

You don’t really know how well your content is performing until you compare it to some of your competitors, and on a larger scale, to industry standards.  Analytics tools help in identifying areas where you might be falling behind and also in developing strategies to improve performance.

Identifying Conversion Opportunities

Analytics tools help content marketers identify opportunities for conversions, such as which pages users are most likely to convert on and which call-to-actions are most effective.  

Here are two of the best:  Google Analytics and BuzzSumo

Content Management System (CMS) 

Three words:  Centralized.  Consistent.  Collaborative.  If your content is not all of these, then it’s not optimal.  Period.  Cue content management system uses:

Simplify and Centralize Content Creation

CMS platforms provide a user-friendly interface for creating and publishing content and provide a centralized location for managing it all including content scheduling, publishing, and editing.  The best part?  No technical skills or knowledge required!

Content Consistency/Organization

If you want it to be easy to find and manage your content across multiple channels and make sure it’s consistent in terms of branding, messaging, and tone of voice, then a CMS is a dream come true.

Content Collaboration

If you want the option of allowing multiple team members to work on content simultaneously and track changes, then you want a CMS.

Recommendation:   HubSpot

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