“Content is king.” If we each had a quarter for every time we’ve heard that, we’d all be retired on a beach somewhere. Right? But it’s true – most marketers know the importance of content marketing. HubSpot says that 55% of marketers consider creating blogs to be their top priority for inbound marketing. 

But while marketers put a lot of time and effort into creating content and the details of campaigns, they don’t always give as much thought to the entire content marketing operation. What does a “content marketing operation” entail? It’s the entire gamut of efforts to run a smooth, impactful marketing strategy – including people, tech and processes.

So what does it take to maintain a successful content marketing strategy? Here are five basic elements to guide you to success:

• Make an overall content marketing plan. Content marketing is used by over 90% of B2B marketers, yet just over one-third (37%) have a written strategy for it. And many marketers follow a plan of some type – it’s just not written down formally. While this might work for small businesses with small teams, it isn’t a good plan for large organizations. For one thing, everyone involved with an organization’s marketing efforts needs to know the plan to ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals. A written plan can be shared with everyone who needs to be aware of the organization’s plan.
• Don’t forget style guides and guidelines for brand and contributors. Each person who develops content has a different style and voice. An organizational style guide is imperative for ensuring that all content adheres to the style, tone and voice your organization wants to present. The style guide should be based on brand guidelines to allow for consistency in all messaging.
• Document production workflow. By developing a timeline for the various steps involved in creating content, you can streamline your production process. Sequential steps such as assigning topics and keywords, deadlines for drafts, reviews by subject matter experts and content managers, design considerations (i.e., image development, sourcing), publication and distribution should be documented. In addition to documenting the creative process, you should also have a written process for your content inventory, including file structure and asset storage. This can help with repurposing content and other uses.
• Technology documentation. A basic content marketing technology stack generally includes a CMS, marketing automation platform, asset file storage, project management software, tools for authoring, keywords, social media and content marketing research. Your organization’s specific tech needs will depend on size and your needs, however. Secure storage for account information goes without saying, as does keeping up with renewal dates for each tech piece so that you don’t inadvertently end up without a key marketing tech tool.
• Assemble the best team. Putting together a marketing content team to fit your organizational needs can be a challenge. Which roles will be in house and which ones will be outsourced? Basic team roles include writers, contributors, marketing managers, content marketing specialists, videographers, developers, designers and subject matter experts. The type and amount of content output will determine how much is required from each role, which can inform decisions on which roles to keep in house and which can be outsourced.

Does your organization have a documented plan for your content operations?