Developing a solid and engaging digital presence lies at the core of sustainable growth for various industries. CMOs play an instrumental role in implementing content-based strategies that support this presence.
Businesses are increasingly relying on the digital connections they form with their audience. However, these connections are only as strong as the content creation process behind them. CMOs’ expertise makes them uniquely positioned to create a successful content based marketing strategy.
From embracing the latest trends to leveraging data-driven insights, we uncover the key elements that set the most successful CMOs apart.
Aligning Content With Business Objectives
Content strategy is a process that guides the creation, publication, and governance of content. Two things should inform it:
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User needs
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Business goals
Successful CMOs know that focusing on internal capabilities, updating their content-based strategy, and revisiting market and competitive insights are proven growth factors.
They implement these factors through a content strategy that answers questions like:
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What purpose does this piece of content have?
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How does it fit into the overall campaign?
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Which company-wide goal does the campaign support?
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How can the campaign support this goal better?
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How can we scale content creation efforts to continue supporting this goal?
Leveraging Data-Driven Insights
From heat maps to user flow reports, the latest analytics tools and platforms reveal incredibly detailed insights into how users behave. The top CMOs use these tools to study how their audience interacts with content and identify users’ steps after consuming content.
With marketers citing measuring content marketing ROI and attribution as one of the main challenges CMOs face, data-driven insights can help with visibility in a few areas, including:
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Showing the best publication platforms for conversions.
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Identifying the top-performing topics.
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Understanding how content leads to the next step in the user’s journey.
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Connecting abandoned sessions to gaps in the content strategy.
Fostering Collaboration Across Teams
The best CMOs break out of silos and embrace cross-functional collaboration. Marketing, sales, customer service, and other teams come together to work on the content strategy.
There are several benefits:
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Collaboration helps understand intent and pain points at several stages of the customer value cycle.
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The buying journey is increasingly self-directed. With the sales team coming in later in this journey, some early sales techniques can translate well to content marketing and boost conversions.
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Leveraging expertise from different teams results in uniquely valuable content.
CMOs can create internal think tanks to develop new content strategy ideas, guidelines, and tools to support employee-generated content.
Crafting Engaging and Relevant Content
In theory, mapping the user journey and creating content for each stage results in users consuming the right content at the right time.
Successful CMOs know that content discovery only happens by chance. They take a strategic approach:
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They use data to create buyer personas.
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Working with each persona, they can make a detailed journey map.
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Instead of developing content for a broad stage, they address specific questions and buying tasks.
They also focus on two elements:
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Storytelling. Using an authentic voice and showing what goes on behind the scenes can create a meaningful connection.
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Personalization. Content series for specific buying tasks, location-specific content, and AI-driven automation are helping CMOs deliver a high level of personalization.
Embracing Emerging Content Formats and Channels
The content marketing industry could be worth $877 billion by 2028. New content formats and channels are partly responsible for this growth.
Leadership and innovation are two key elements that set successful CMOs apart. These professionals actively seek new content creation and publication opportunities to keep up with audience expectations and stay ahead of the competition.
Successful CMOs turn assessing new opportunities into a process with repeatable steps by answering these questions:
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Which unique features and benefits does the new channel or tech have? Have there any limitations?
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Does it meet the organization’s requirements?
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Is it an effective way to reach out to the target audience?
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Which goals can this new opportunity support?
Next, they’ll run a test campaign. This initial test will reveal valuable insight for developing content creation guidelines for the new channel or technology.
Measuring and Demonstrating ROI
Nearly half of marketers cite ROI as the most critical metric executives care about. Delivering reliable ROI data is crucial for securing a content marketing budget, but measuring ROI and attribution can be challenging.
Successful CMOs use a mix of KPIs that directly reflect the business’s goals. While sales and conversions are significant, they aim to paint a more comprehensive picture with different KPI categories:
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Conversions. Data points like sale volume, number of leads, cost per lead, and click-through rates are relevant for content created to sell and generate leads.
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Reputation. CMOs use metrics like share of voice, mentions, and search rankings to assess content created for thought leadership and generating traffic.
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Engagement. Session metrics, comments, shares, and similar KPIs can help measure performance for social media channels and other strategies that prioritize connecting with users.
Integrating Content Based Marketing into Overall Marketing Strategy
Customers want an omnichannel experience that feels consistent and frictionless. They expect a seamless experience from one marketing channel to another and from one process to another.
Successful CMOs know content-based marketing is unique from other marketing efforts. Here’s how they create a cohesive process:
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Working with a multi-disciplinary team ensures everyone knows the content marketing strategy and other marketing efforts.
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CMOs can develop overall marketing guidelines to establish a consistent voice and storyline.
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CRM data can bridge the gap between marketing, sales, and customer service.
Cultivating Continuous Learning and Adaptation
A mindset that values growth and adaptability can set a CMO apart. Looking for new learning opportunities and being curious about the latest tech and trends can go a long way in creating a forward-looking marketing strategy.
As digital spaces change, AI, new channels, and the Metaverse will soon transform content marketing. CMOs can embrace these exciting opportunities by fostering a culture of change and innovation:
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Engaging in learning and providing training opportunities ensures that everyone knows enough about the latest tech and trends to use them.
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Hiring a diverse team creates unparalleled value for a business. Everyone has something unique to bring to the table.
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Seeking outside ideas from partners and consultants can bring a fresh outlook to a project.
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Having fun using the latest tech can produce the best ‘lightning in a bottle’ moments.
Transforming Your Content-Based Marketing Strategy
These actionable steps will help you change your content-based marketing strategy. If you need to prioritize, focus on these critical strategies successful CMOs use:
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Turn content creation into a straightforward process with repeatable steps. Build a framework ensuring content creation and publication align with business goals.
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Make better decisions by leveraging data-driven insights and working with a multi-disciplinary team.
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Look forward and actively embrace new content creation opportunities by exploring recent trends, channels, and technologies.
Do you need help implementing these game-changing strategies? Tempesta Media is a managed service provider for all your digital marketing needs. With our unique Bullseye Effect managed service solution, we can help organizations like yours meet core growth objectives regarding ROI, lead generation, and revenue.
