Photo courtesy of Freepik

Managing a team of writers and designers is a delicate process. While you’re running the business side of a blog or agency, you also have to tap into the human and creative side of content marketing.

Oftentimes these two sides can pull against each other, leaving writers and editors alike to cope with each other’s egos and insecurities.

This is when arguments flare up, deadlines are missed, and both parties are left feeling frustrated or taken advantage of.

Here are two common examples of writer problems that content managers face, and a few steps to solve them in a way that is fair and keeps the peace.

Dealing With Missed Deadlines

Dear Spokal:

I manage a team of 10 freelance writers to help with client work. Most of the time my writers submit great work, but sometimes they miss their deadlines. This puts me in a bind because I have my own deadlines our clients and don’t want the agency to look bad. Even worse, I can’t seem to get my writers to understand the importance of meeting deadlines. What can I do? Help!

Late in Longueuil

Photo courtesy of threecvet.gmail.com / Depositphotos.com

Eighty-eight percent of companies have a content marketing strategy. Do you?

Are you ignoring the power of content because you don’t think it will generate ROI for your business or improve the customer experience?

Do you worry that you don’t have the budget for content marketing and can’t waste an investment?

If you’re holding back when it comes to content creation, you could be limiting your top marketing tactics and your business as a whole. We hear plenty of reasons for why companies don’t think content marketing is right for them. While their reasons are often built on logical businesses sense, they overlook key benefits and factors.

Here are seven excuses we hear when it comes to content marketing, and why you should throw them out the window.

Photo courtesy of Dooder / Freepik

2017 means a fresh start and new budget. While many businesses are excited at the prospect of new resources, they might not know where to employ them to their maximum effect. However, it’s easy to stretch your budget when you work with freelance creatives, especially when the alternative is working with an agency or hiring additional staff.

Freelance creatives remain a mystery to many marketers. They want to tap into this talent pool of mystical elves that magically get work done with minimal supervision, but they’re not sure how to hire them.

Photo courtesy of Michel Curi(CC Attribution)

Some can’t find the talent they need for their specific industry, while others have found freelance gremlins that produce subpar work and then demand higher pay.

As the gig economy continues to grow, more freelance creatives are offering their services, further clouding the market and confusing companies who are looking to hire them.

To make it easier for brands who need a few extra hands to hit their marketing goals, check out this guide on attracting top freelance talent, extending a job offer, and making sure they’re onboarded to produce amazing work for years to come.

Marketers tend to apply the same level of commitment to their blogs as their diets and gym memberships. Getting back into the habit of publishing might be a New Year’s Resolution (or a Q3 resolution) but after a surge of posts, the content sputters and the blog goes dark.

While the content manager certainly intends to maintain a strict publishing schedule, life gets in the way. Projects crop up that require their undivided time and attention, a crisis hits and it’s all hands on deck, or internal turnover increases the workload of everyone on the staff.

Either way, the blog gets pushed to the bottom of the priority list until the next time someone sets quarterly goals.

This stops today.

Photo courtesy of Freepik

Most companies are happy with an average conversion rate of 3-4%. The marketing department will spend hours debating about the color of buttons and studying heat maps like tea leaves to understand how they can increase their conversions.

When the conversion rate increases from 4% to 5%, there’s a party. — and so there should be! An increase of an additional percentage point can result in thousands of dollars in revenue for company.

But did you ever stop to think that a 5% conversion rate is a 95% failure rate?

Nine times out of ten you’re disappointing your audience. You’re not giving them the right information or providing enough perceived value to convince them to buy.

The key to long term conversion rate growth isn’t special orange buttons, it’s building value through knowledge and trust. Here are a few reasons your customers are nervous about pulling the trigger, and how you can convince them otherwise with the right content.

Photo courtesy of Drawnhy97/Freepik

There’s a lot riding on your content.

For each blog article, infographic, white paper, and ebook that you share, the company is counting on you to generate a certain amount of brand engagement and ROI. The more you invest in the creation process, from hiring designers to contracting a copy editor, the more pressure you will face to make sure it succeeds.

What happens when it doesn’t?

At best, content fails keep your blog in relative anonymity and wastes the time over everyone involved.

At worst, it costs the company hundreds of dollars and makes the department head question the use of your budget.

There’s good news for the content marketing managers who can’t afford to fail. With the right planning, you can reduce the risk of missed KPIs and have backup plans in place to make sure everything you post at helps the business a little, even if it’s not a home run.