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Managing Content Marketing

Managing Content Marketing

The Real-World Guide for Creating Passionate Subscribers to Your Brand
by Robert Rose 2011 180 pages
3.77
100+ ratings
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Key Takeaways

1. Content marketing is about creating valuable, engaging stories

Good content marketing is alive. It is your story. It is conscious. It is about emotion.

Shift in marketing approach. Content marketing represents a fundamental change in how businesses communicate with their audience. Instead of interrupting customers with promotional messages, content marketing aims to attract and retain customers by consistently creating and curating valuable, relevant content. This approach helps businesses build trust, establish thought leadership, and ultimately drive profitable customer action.

Focus on storytelling. At its core, content marketing is about telling your brand's unique story in a way that resonates with your target audience. This involves:

  • Identifying what makes your business unique
  • Understanding your customers' needs and pain points
  • Crafting compelling narratives that showcase your expertise
  • Providing genuine value through informative, entertaining, or inspiring content

Long-term strategy. Content marketing is not a quick-fix solution but a long-term investment in building relationships with your audience. By consistently delivering high-quality content, businesses can create a loyal following of "brand subscribers" who are more likely to choose their products or services when the time comes to make a purchase decision.

2. Develop buyer personas to target your content effectively

Demographics don't work anymore.

Understanding your audience. Buyer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customers based on real data and market research. They go beyond basic demographics to include:

  • Behavioral traits
  • Goals and motivations
  • Pain points and challenges
  • Preferred communication channels
  • Decision-making processes

Creating detailed personas. To develop effective buyer personas:

  1. Conduct customer interviews and surveys
  2. Analyze your existing customer data
  3. Gather insights from your sales and customer service teams
  4. Research industry trends and competitor audiences
  5. Use social media listening tools to understand your audience's online behavior

Tailoring content to personas. Once you have developed your buyer personas, use them to guide your content creation process. This ensures that your content resonates with your target audience and addresses their specific needs, interests, and pain points at each stage of the buying journey.

3. Map your content to the customer's buying journey

Our buyer doesn't care one bit about our sales process.

Understanding the buying process. The customer's buying journey is typically non-linear and consists of several stages:

  1. Awareness: Recognizing a problem or need
  2. Consideration: Researching potential solutions
  3. Decision: Evaluating options and making a choice
  4. Post-purchase: Using the product and potentially becoming a brand advocate

Creating an engagement cycle. To effectively map your content to the buying journey:

  1. Identify key touchpoints and decision-making moments
  2. Develop content that addresses specific questions and concerns at each stage
  3. Use a variety of content formats to cater to different learning preferences
  4. Align your internal sales process with the customer's buying journey

Content segmentation grid. Create a matrix that maps your content to both your buyer personas and the stages of the buying journey. This helps ensure you have appropriate content for each persona at every stage of their decision-making process.

4. Create a compelling brand story using the hero's journey framework

Your content is now a conversation. It's a story that needs an audience to respond to.

Adapting the hero's journey. Apply the classic storytelling structure to your brand narrative:

  1. The Ordinary World: Describe your industry's current state
  2. The Call to Adventure: Present your brand's unique value proposition
  3. Refusal of the Call: Address potential objections or skepticism
  4. Meeting the Mentor: Introduce your brand as a guide or solution provider
  5. Crossing the Threshold: Show how your brand helps customers overcome challenges
  6. Tests, Allies, and Enemies: Highlight case studies and testimonials
  7. The Ordeal: Demonstrate how your brand solves critical problems
  8. The Reward: Showcase the benefits of choosing your brand
  9. The Road Back: Address potential post-purchase concerns
  10. The Resurrection: Illustrate long-term success with your brand
  11. Return with the Elixir: Show how customers become brand advocates

Crafting your brand story. Use this framework to develop a compelling narrative that:

  • Differentiates your brand from competitors
  • Resonates emotionally with your target audience
  • Clearly communicates your unique value proposition
  • Inspires action and engagement from potential customers

5. Establish a multi-channel content distribution strategy

The content strategy defines the channel strategy — not the other way around.

Developing a channel plan. Create a comprehensive strategy for distributing your content across multiple platforms:

  1. Conduct a situational analysis of your current channels
  2. Define specific objectives for each channel
  3. Create a content/conversation plan aligned with your overall story
  4. Establish metrics for measuring success
  5. Identify which personas will be addressed on each channel
  6. Develop a content management process for each channel
  7. Create an editorial calendar to guide content creation and distribution

Choosing the right channels. Consider factors such as:

  • Where your target audience spends their time online
  • The types of content that perform best on each platform
  • Your resources and capacity for managing multiple channels
  • The potential for cross-promotion and content repurposing

Optimizing for context. Tailor your content to the specific characteristics and user behavior of each channel. For example, create shorter, more visual content for social media platforms and longer, more in-depth content for your blog or website.

6. Build a content creation and management workflow

If you don't create change, change will create you.

Assembling your team. Identify key roles and responsibilities:

  • Chief Content Officer (CCO): Oversees the entire content strategy
  • Managing Editor(s): Manages day-to-day content execution
  • Content Creators: Produce original content
  • Content Producers: Format and package content for distribution
  • Chief Listening Officer (CLO): Monitors social media and manages conversations

Establishing processes. Develop clear workflows for:

  • Content ideation and planning
  • Content creation and editing
  • Approval and compliance checks
  • Publication and distribution
  • Performance tracking and optimization

Creating guidelines. Develop resources to ensure consistency and quality:

  • Editorial style guide: Defines voice, tone, and writing standards
  • Social conversation guide: Outlines rules for engaging on social media
  • Content templates: Standardize formats for different types of content

Leveraging technology. Implement tools to streamline your content marketing efforts:

  • Content management systems (CMS)
  • Editorial calendar software
  • Social media management platforms
  • Analytics and reporting tools

7. Implement a robust content measurement and optimization process

Measuring everything you need, but reporting only what is important is key in creating an environment that allows for innovative experiments and the ability to "fail fast."

Building an analytics pyramid. Organize your metrics into three levels:

  1. Primary Indicators (KPIs): 3-5 high-level metrics that demonstrate overall success
  2. Secondary Indicators: Metrics that help improve specific processes
  3. User Indicators: Detailed metrics for day-to-day optimization

Focusing on actionable insights. For each metric, ask:

  • What action can we take based on this information?
  • How does this metric contribute to our overall goals?
  • Is this information truly necessary for decision-making?

Continuous improvement. Use your measurement process to:

  • Identify top-performing content and channels
  • Understand audience preferences and behavior
  • Optimize content creation and distribution strategies
  • Justify budget allocation and resource investments

Balancing quantitative and qualitative data. Combine hard metrics with qualitative feedback to gain a comprehensive understanding of your content's performance and impact on your audience.

Last updated:

FAQ

1. What is "Managing Content Marketing" by Robert Rose and Joe Pulizzi about?

  • Real-World Content Marketing Guide: The book is a comprehensive, practical guide to building and managing a content marketing strategy that creates passionate subscribers to your brand.
  • Focus on Process and Strategy: It emphasizes not just creating content, but developing a repeatable, strategic process for content marketing within organizations.
  • Covers End-to-End Journey: The book walks readers through building a business case, understanding audiences, crafting stories, choosing channels, and measuring success.
  • Real-Life Case Studies: It includes real-world examples and case studies to illustrate how companies have successfully implemented content marketing strategies.
  • For Marketers and Leaders: Aimed at marketers, business owners, and leaders who want to transform their marketing approach in the digital age.

2. Why should I read "Managing Content Marketing" by Robert Rose and Joe Pulizzi?

  • Actionable Frameworks: The book provides step-by-step frameworks and tools for developing and managing a content marketing strategy, not just theory.
  • Addresses Modern Marketing Challenges: It tackles the shift from traditional advertising to content-driven engagement, helping readers adapt to the new marketing landscape.
  • Focus on Measurable Results: The authors show how to align content marketing with business objectives and measure its impact effectively.
  • Learn from Experts: Robert Rose and Joe Pulizzi are recognized leaders in content marketing, sharing insights from their extensive experience.
  • Suitable for All Levels: Whether you’re new to content marketing or looking to refine your approach, the book offers value for both beginners and seasoned professionals.

3. What are the key takeaways from "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Content Marketing is a Process: Success comes from a repeatable, strategic process, not just sporadic content creation.
  • Know Yourself and Your Audience: Understanding both your brand’s story and your audience’s needs is foundational.
  • Storytelling is Central: Effective content marketing is about crafting and sharing compelling, differentiated stories that resonate.
  • Channel and Context Matter: Choosing the right channels and adapting content for context is crucial for engagement.
  • Measurement and Adaptation: Ongoing measurement, learning, and adaptation are essential for long-term content marketing success.

4. How do Robert Rose and Joe Pulizzi define content marketing in "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Content as Valuable Experience: Content marketing is defined as creating valuable experiences that engage audiences and position the business as a leader.
  • Beyond Advertising: It’s not about pushing products, but about being helpful, sharing knowledge, and building trust.
  • Creating Subscribers, Not Just Customers: The goal is to create passionate subscribers who are loyal and engaged, not just one-time buyers.
  • Strategic, Not Tactical: Content marketing is a strategic, repeatable process, not a one-off campaign or isolated tactic.
  • Human and Helpful: At its core, content marketing is about humans helping humans, sharing content that enriches communities.

5. What is the step-by-step process for building a content marketing strategy according to "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Build the Business Case: Start by articulating the need, opportunity, business model, differentiating value, and risks for content marketing in your organization.
  • Develop Personas and Engagement Cycles: Identify your target personas and map their buying and engagement journeys.
  • Craft Your Story: Use storytelling frameworks (like the hero’s journey) to develop your brand’s pillars of content.
  • Channel Planning: Choose and plan the right channels for distributing your content, considering context and audience preferences.
  • Measurement and Iteration: Set up processes for measuring success, learning from results, and continuously improving your strategy.

6. How do Rose and Pulizzi recommend building a business case for content marketing?

  • Focus on Innovation: Position content marketing as an innovative process, and secure permission to experiment and potentially fail.
  • Answer Five Key Questions: Clearly define the need, size of the opportunity, business model, differentiating value, and risks.
  • ROI is a Goal, Not the Case: Treat ROI as an objective to be measured after implementation, not as the initial justification.
  • Use Real Examples: The book provides case studies (e.g., Camp Champions) to illustrate how to quantify opportunity and value.
  • Budget for Failure: Allocate resources for experimentation and set expectations that not every initiative will succeed.

7. What is the role of storytelling and the "hero’s journey" in content marketing, as described in "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Story as Differentiator: Storytelling is the key to differentiating your brand and creating emotional connections with your audience.
  • Hero’s Journey Framework: The book adapts Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey into a 10-step brand journey for content marketing.
  • Structure for Content Creation: This framework helps brands map their story, identify challenges, mentors, and transformation, and plan content accordingly.
  • Pillars of Content: Stories become the pillars around which all content is created, ensuring consistency and depth.
  • Real-World Application: Case studies (e.g., PTC’s product launch) show how the hero’s journey can guide content strategy and editorial planning.

8. How should organizations identify and understand their target audience in "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Move Beyond Demographics: The book urges marketers to focus on personas—detailed, behavior-based profiles—rather than just demographic data.
  • Develop Personas: Create specific, named personas for each distinct audience segment, understanding their needs, motivations, and pain points.
  • Map Engagement Cycles: Align content to both the internal sales process and the customer’s nonlinear buying journey.
  • Use Content Segmentation Grids: Map existing and planned content to personas and stages in the engagement cycle to identify gaps and opportunities.
  • Continuous Monitoring: Regularly update personas and engagement maps as audiences and markets evolve.

9. What is the recommended process for managing content creation and workflow in "Managing Content Marketing"?

  • Assemble the Right Team: Define roles such as Chief Content Officer, Managing Editor, Content Creators, Content Producers, and Chief Listening Officer.
  • Editorial Calendar: Use a detailed editorial calendar to map content topics, responsible parties, channels, and publishing dates.
  • Style and Conversation Guides: Develop editorial and social conversation style guides to maintain consistency and govern engagement.
  • Balance Structure and Flexibility: Set clear processes and rules, but allow for creativity and practical wisdom in execution.
  • Internal Collaboration: Foster a culture of collaboration, education, and encouragement to get the best contributions from across the organization.

10. How do Rose and Pulizzi advise organizations to select and use content marketing tools and technology?

  • Tools Support Process: Technology should facilitate your human-driven process, not dictate it.
  • Types of Tools: Key tools include content management systems, data capture and conversion tools, content optimization tools, social listening platforms, and analytics solutions.
  • Best-of-Breed Approach: Choose flexible, interoperable tools that can grow with your needs, rather than monolithic suites.
  • Four-Step Selection Process: Decide and buy, implement and integrate, manage and maintain, and upgrade and enhance.
  • Prioritize Support and Maintenance: Don’t overlook the importance of ongoing support, training, and adaptability in your toolset.

11. How does "Managing Content Marketing" approach measurement and analytics for content marketing success?

  • Analytics Pyramid: Build a hierarchy of metrics—user indicators (activity), secondary indicators (team/process KPIs), and primary indicators (executive KPIs).
  • Align with Business Goals: Measurement should focus on outcomes like sales, cost savings, and customer retention, not just vanity metrics.
  • Actionable Insights: Every metric tracked should inform a potential action or improvement in the process.
  • Budget for Experimentation: Allow room for failure and learning, treating content marketing as a long-term investment.
  • Continuous Improvement: Use measurement to iterate, adapt, and optimize your content marketing strategy over time.

12. What are the most memorable quotes from "Managing Content Marketing" and what do they mean?

  • “The chief advertising officer is dead. Long live the chief content officer.” – Emphasizes the shift from traditional advertising to content-driven marketing leadership.
  • “Good content marketing is alive. It is your story. It is conscious. It is about emotion.” – Underlines the importance of authentic, emotionally resonant storytelling.
  • “If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” (W. Edwards Deming) – Stresses the need for a defined, repeatable process in content marketing.
  • “You will frequently change everything you know – but you won’t change what you do.” – Suggests that while tactics and tools evolve, the core principles of content marketing remain constant.
  • “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well, the product or service fits him and sells itself.” (Peter Drucker) – Highlights the centrality of deep customer understanding in effective marketing.

Review Summary

3.77 out of 5
Average of 100+ ratings from Goodreads and Amazon.

Managing Content Marketing receives mostly positive reviews, with an average rating of 3.78 out of 5. Readers appreciate its practical approach to content marketing strategy, particularly for medium to large businesses. The book covers topics like aligning content with business goals, economic justification, content planning, and performance metrics. Some find it less useful for small businesses or experienced practitioners. Overall, it's considered a comprehensive guide for content marketing management, offering valuable insights and actionable advice for marketers and business leaders.

Your rating:
4.3
20 ratings

About the Author

Robert Rose is an 81-year-old retired teacher and prolific author with 26 books to his name. He has created 130 YouTube videos and hosts a BlogTalkRadio show where he interviews "change agents." Rose takes pride in his educational innovations and self-help books, particularly "CREATING YOUR GIANT SELF: Best Self Help Book - Ever," which received praise from Dr. Robert Anton Wilson. With 50 years of teaching experience, Rose has developed numerous educational innovations. He values his 50-year marriage to Marie and their blended family of seven children. Rose welcomes feedback on his books and radio show.

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