The more IMPACT teaches, trains, and assists organizations with their content marketing efforts, the more I realize that nothing great ever seems to occur unless there is a super star behind the wheel within the organization. And in most cases, this person is referred to as a Content Marketing Manager (CMM) or possibly a Chief Content Officer, but ultimately, the name isn’t what matters.
Instead, what matters is that they(the organization) have one in the first place.
And once they do have one, they need to be good.
But what defines “good” in this case? What skill-sets should you be looking for, especially if you’re at the point where you’re seeking to fill this position within your company? Here are what I have found to be the 10 essential qualities of every successful content marketing manager, a list we use every time my team is tasked with hiring a CMM for an organization.
10 Essential Qualities of Great Content Marketing Managers
1. They love to write: This one goes without saying, but it’s a BIG deal. And remember, “writing” online isn’t just about fancy words. It’s about clean communication—done in a way so that just about any reader can understand what’s being said. As I always say, great writers and communicators don’t try to sound smart, which is never the goal of content marketing. Rather, they seek “communion,” and it’s this quality that makes them great.
2. They are skilled at editing: When companies leverage their existing employees to produce textual and video content (insourcing), the initial product can at times be “rough” :-) But great content managers can take what is a “5” in terms of quality and make it a “9” or “10”—doing their best to make the original source as clear and concise as possible for the reader.
3. They have excellent interview skills: This is HUGE. Because insourcing is such a big deal these days, subject matter experts are spread out all over companies, big and small. A great content marketing manager understands how to sit down with these people (and vendors as well) and ask the right questions to stimulate content that teaches, helps, and informs readers.
4. They embrace social media and “get it:” It goes without saying that social media is here to stay. Furthermore, it goes without saying those people that “don’t like” social media tend not to do incredible things when trying to build traffic, leads and sales through said media :-)
5. They have solid video editing skills: Video just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger. Heck, for a bunch of our clients at IMPACT, video is way more important than text when it comes to producing a heavy amount of content while attempting to utilize employees—especially those persons in the sales department.
6. They are extremely likeable: You may have heard me talk about the massive success of Krista Kotrla before, Chief Content Officer of Block Imaging. Well, amongst the many reasons Krista is wildly successful has to do with her likeability factor. Her company’s employees love her. She brightens up their day, she has their respect, and because of this they are quick to help with content marketing.
When it comes down to it, unlikeable people make AWFUL content marketing managers.
7. They understand what makes people tick: Again, when it comes to using employees as sources of content, knowing how to get said employees motivated and inspired is critical. This is exactly why the best CCOs know how to push the right buttons and get their employees the needed “boost” to contribute to the company’s marketing and sales goals.
8. They are organized and goal oriented: Content marketing, especially when done in businesses of any size, needs to have order. This starts with a main editorial calendar and continues with newsletters, trainings, interviews, etc.
9. They love analytics, numbers, and measurement: As I've worked so closely to so many business owners and marketers on the content marketing over the last few years, I keep seeing a simple trend:
Those persons that pay attention to the numbers get WAYYYYY more results.
This is also why a content marketing manager eventually needs to be skilled with not just Google Analytics, but also other tools, like a HubSpot, Infusionsoft, etc.
10. They are constantly thinking outside the box: Look around at the greatest content marketing examples and I’ll show you creativity and unique thinking every time. Fact is, the best ones in this industry aren’t looking for a set of “rules” or a “road map” that tells them exactly what they need to do next.
Instead, they just get stuff done, however they possibly can, and often with some serious creativity acting as the catalyst to success.
As you look at these 10 qualities, it's pretty obvious why the journalism industry has taken content marketing by storm. In fact, at IMPACT, almost all of our hires for content marketing managers for our clients come directly from this industry, the majority of which are recent journalism graduates, ready for work, and perfectly suited to meet this position's demands at a very reasonable price. With so much of this talent available (due to the dying newspaper industry), there is really no excuse for companies not to fill this position and start receiving the benefits to their business, brand, and bottom line immediately.
Your Turn
So those are 10 qualities we've found that make a great content marketing manager but now I'd love to hear your thoughts. What else would you add to the list? And have you been part of a successful content marketing manager hire before? Tell us about the experience.
