What Does a Content Strategist Do?
Today there’s an enormous demand for content strategists, and that demand seems to be ever increasing. On LinkedIn, nearly 442,000 people carry the job title of Content Strategist. If you want to take on the role of a Content Strategist, it helps to have a university degree and 6-7 years experience in a content-related role.
Individuals looking to transition into this career path often have questions about how to make that move. What skills do you need to become a content strategist? What does the average day as a content strategist look like?
But perhaps the most basic question of all is: “What does a content strategist do?”
What is Content Strategy?
Content strategy is a relatively new and rapidly changing field. It differs significantly from content marketing. However, there’s an overlap in that content strategy is the plan that a content marketing campaign is based upon.
So, content strategy is the planning for the creation, delivery, and governance of online material such as social media posts, blogs, and videos that are intended to create interest in a company’s products or services.
Basically content strategy is a science and an art. To do it effectively, content strategists must engage with and deliver to:
- The business;
- The users; and
- Internal teams.
The Business
Great content plays a crucial role in any business’s success. For example, it can make or break an organization’s website. Here, the role of a content strategist is to create a roadmap for how content can achieve defined business goals.
The Users
An effective content strategy not only focuses on business needs but user needs, as well. Thus, a successful content strategy is an integrated set of goal-driven, user-centered choices that get the right content to the right target audience in the right place, and at the right time.
Internal Teams
Since a content strategist designs a unified content experience, he or she should be able to engage stakeholders. Thus, the person in this role must determine the needs of the company and its individual departments, working with other teams such as product design and marketing teams.
Responsibilities of a Content Strategist
The responsibilities of a content strategist can vary from one organization to another. You could be part of a content strategy team or the only content strategist in your enterprise. However, here are some key responsibilities and tasks you should expect to handle whether you’re part of a team or on your own:
- Define the primary brand message for content;
- Develop and communicate a content value proposition;
- Create content workflow, governance, and management;
- Create and distribute content standards documents, including tone of voice, style, and accessibility guidelines;
- Brief co-workers and delegate content tasks;
- Prioritize, plan, deliver, promote, and keep content for multiple platforms and audiences;
- Carry out stakeholder interviews;
- Content project management;
- Develop and work with different audience personas;
- Conduct user research and usability testing;
- Map content stages in the customer journey;
- Conduct content audits and maintain an up-to-date and detailed inventory;
- Perform competitor analysis;
- Identify weaknesses and opportunities in content creation;
- Find opportunities to repurpose existing content;
- Develop content models and give recommendations for metadata and taxonomy;
- Optimize content based on SEO best practices and conduct keyword research;
- Publish content to Content Management Systems; and
- Leverage analytics tools to track content traffic, leads, engagement, and conversions once content is published.
It’s imperative to note that this list isn’t exhaustive, but, as you can see, a content strategist has many responsibilities. It is an exciting role with a lot of variety.
Key Skills
A content strategist needs skills—both content related and people-oriented skills, to tackle the many challenges that come with the role. To work effectively as a content strategist, you must have excellent skills in:
- Task management and organization. Since you’ll be planning and strategizing content to publish over a long period of time, and managing content schedules and deadlines, it’s imperative to have exceptional organization and task management skills.
- Understanding and empathy. To succeed as a content strategist, you must be able to put yourself in the audience’s shoes and understand their struggles, goals, and journey—especially regarding accessibility and usability. You must also think from the perspective of the company and different stakeholders.
- Data-driven mindset. You must enjoy interpreting and analyzing data because this is a crucial part of content strategy. You’ll have to support your ideas and thoughts with clear data points.
- Storytelling. You must be able to connect the dots between seemingly disparate things. You must be able to present your thoughts and ideas confidently and tell data-based stories to your clients and team. Also, you must create content that engages with your target audience.
- Collaboration. This is the key to executing a unified content strategy. Thus, content strategists must communicate their ideas effectively and understand stakeholders.
- Leadership. The need for strong leadership often comes after creating a content strategy, particularly in change management. Often, a content strategist must rally teams and convince them to adopt new ways of working in line with objectives and goals.
- Multitasking. Although multitasking isn’t good for focus, a content strategist must be able to perform multiple, wide-ranging tasks, and wear different hats in their role.
Final Thoughts
Since content strategy is a science and an art, it’s imperative to note that every content strategist is different. So if you are considering a move to this position, think about your strengths. Start by exploring the world through a content strategist lens. To be successful in this role, you should be familiar with content marketing campaigns and be able to wear a number of different hats.