{"id":5589,"date":"2023-12-19T07:44:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T11:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ronellsmith.com\/?p=5589"},"modified":"2023-12-19T14:59:01","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:59:01","slug":"strategy-isnt-all-that-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ronellsmith.com\/blog\/strategy-isnt-all-that-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"How to quantify the benefits of content strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most conversations involving content strategy begin with an explanation of what it is. I believe this is incomplete. The benefits of content strategy are best understood in relation to what it does\u2014 impacts brands’ bottom lines. Content strategy is the glue that holds together the entirety of your marketing efforts, online and offline.<\/em><\/p>\n

“Content strategy is about far more than strategy,” I say often to clients<\/a>. We tend to get caught up in deliverables: Content audits, competitive analyses, tone of voice guidelines, workflows, great website content\u2026the list goes on and on. At their best, these deliverables work together as part of a cohesive strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Problem is, all these deliverables only matter, if they’re put into practice. That is, they require action, which is what gives purpose to your content strategy<\/mark><\/p>\n

Being a content strategist means clearly defining the benefits of content strategy<\/h2>\n

A content strategist’s goal is is to create and environment where that strategy can come to life. The hardest thing I’ve learned over the last 13 years is the excruciating and exhilarating process of winning people within an organization over to a strategy. After all, it’s my clients<\/a> who will be on the hook once I’ve moved on to the next project. If they don’t believe in what I create, they won’t succeed in implementing it.<\/p>\n

I have tried to win them over by going over each detail. But that’s when their eyes gloss over. The thing is, many of my clients don’t care about the deliverables\u2026unless they know the bigger picture. That’s when the value of each deliverable comes to life. It’s my job to paint that picture for them.<\/p>\n

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Content strategists must speak the language of their clients.<\/h2>\n

Where most content strategists<\/a> go astray is in thinking their audits, insights, governance documents, work flows, and sundry other deliverables are the goal. They are really table stakes, for what every business owner has as his or her goal is, as CoLab Software’s Mary Keough wrote in a recent LinkedIn post, more revenue.<\/p>\n

“The only metric most leaders care about…is dollars in, dollars out.”<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, instead of talking to clients about UX, design, streamlining process, and governance, assign numbers to each area of the strategy and its deliverables to showcase their bottom line benefits.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/strong><\/p>\n