- Interpersonal Skills
- Market Knowledge
- Industry Knowledge
- Tech Savviness
- Creativity
Those who might want a career in marketing management need to know the characteristics of a successful content marketing director. As the job title suggests, these professionals direct the creation of content with the purpose of using it to market and promote a company’s goods or services. Given the effectiveness and importance of content marketing in any company’s marketing plan, content marketing directors must be qualified to do the job well.
Interpersonal Skills
Because much of their job involves interacting with others, content marketing directors need to possess impeccable interpersonal communication skills. They often oversee a team of content marketers and artistic professionals which they must work with to get quality content produced. They may need to directly interact with customers to learn how the company’s content is being received or to address a problem. They need to be able to work with the leadership and teams of other organizations on agreements or content creation. Finally, they need to work and communicate with the executives at their own company to coordinate overall business strategy and apply it to content marketing.
Market Knowledge
Content marketing directors need to bring substantial knowledge of the market to their position. This includes the market as it currently exists as well as how it is expected to grow and change in the future. Ideally, they should have knowledge and experience of the market for the particular industry for which they are producing content, but it is always advantageous to have knowledge of the broader market as well. They may work with market research analysts to gather data and determine target audiences for their content.
Industry Knowledge
Unlike other marketing professionals, the characteristics of a successful content marketing director include in-depth knowledge of the industry in which their company operates. This is because they need to be sure all content being produced is accurate, engaging and in-depth enough to be useful. For example, if they work for a pet supply company, they should have significant knowledge on how their products are used, the benefits those products have for customers and their companion animals, proper pet care information, understanding of animal behavior and other knowledge about the animal field.
Tech Savviness
Most content marketing is done online, so content marketing directors also need to have strong technical knowledge. This includes the devices customers use to access content as well as social media platforms, websites, search engines, software programs and more. To be effective at content marketing, a professional needs to understand how content is consumed and shared among users. Because tech changes so fast, content marketing directors must always remain up-to-date on what current options and popular choices are. They also need to be knowledgeable of the tech used to produce their content so they understand the capabilities and limits of what their departments, artists and outside firms can do.
Creativity
Content marketing directors need to have a degree of creativity to do their jobs well per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While much of their job involves directing artists, writers, videographers, photographers and other creative professionals to create the content they envision, they also need to come up with ideas for the content itself as well as how to create and present it. They may be required to write content itself if called for. For these reasons, a strong sense of creativity and creative ability, as well as creative thinking, is needed in this profession.
Conclusion
Content marketing is undeniably big right now and both its importance and influence are only expected to grow going into the future. As a result, qualified content marketing directors will be needed for businesses and organizations of all sizes. If this career appeals, work on gaining the characteristics of a successful content marketing director.
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