Individuals with a wide variety of interests can become a content marketing director. This is a role that largely deals with digital marketing and finding ways to get ideas in front of people who want or need to hear them. Here are the qualifications someone interested in this position needs to obtain.
Get A Marketing Degree
The first thing a content marketing director will need is a formal education in the subject. A bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications or a related field is considered the base requirement to work in marketing. Some companies and positions may require a master’s degree. Courses in subjects such as business, art, journalism and computer science will also be useful. Work to develop good writing and media creation skills while in college, as well as presentation and improved interpersonal communication ability. All of these traits are essential to succeed as a content marketing director.
Get Tech Credentials
Content marketing directors also have to be intimately familiar with various tech subjects, including social media sites and their algorithms, the creation of digital media, how customers interact with content, how to target and reach desired customers in a digital environment, and more. For this reason, it doesn’t hurt to get any tech credentials that might be available. These are usually offered by software manufacturers, such as Adobe’s and Microsoft’s certifications, but useful ones might be offered by third parties as well. Aspiring content marketing directors should also learn a considerable amount of technical topics outside of any kind of formal credential. These can include a wide variety of useful resources such as mailing list providers, graphic design software, all social media sites, blogging best practices and more.
Gain Experience
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, marketing managers don’t just need a college degree. They also need to have several years of experience in sales or marketing before moving into a management position. Prospective content marketing directors should therefore plan on working in the field of marketing for a few years before they attempt to land a management, director or executive position. Many get their start as public relations specialists, marketing specialists, sales representatives or even writers or graphic artists. Almost all employers will be looking for professionals with relevant experience when hiring for a position at this level.
Demonstrate Success
A final important qualification to become a content marketing director is a proven track record of success. This can include key tasks such as managing a marketing team, managing a team of writers and artists, improving sales, increasing traffic to a company’s site or social media feeds by creating quality content, and any other metric that will be impressive to employers. Past successes will show any employer that an individual is qualified for this role and will likely be able to generate results. As content marketing directors will almost always work in other roles first, as outlined above, that will be an excellent time to build up successes and a reputation for being able to generate great content that draws in the right viewers.
There are some fairly standard qualifications for landing this position—there aren’t a lot of alternative paths to advancing to this role. Many additional skills and a track record of success also help someone to become a content marketing director.
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