There’s a lot of terms thrown about in today’s digital marketing landscape, and two that I hear a lot interchangeably are ‘content manager’ and ‘copywriter’. While both are undoubtedly important, why are there even two terms for something that seem largely like the same thing? Let’s take a look at what each of these disciplines mean, and how they fit into your digital marketing strategy.
A copywriter is not a new term – people have been employed as copywriters for years in the advertising industry to convey written messages through persuasive wording with the purpose of getting the reader to take some kind of action – whether it’s to buy something, make an enquiry or go somewhere to find out more information. Copywriters will write for advertising leaflets, magazines, billboards, brochures and websites (so that copywriters with SEO experience are now very much in demand). These individuals are often thought of as an extension of the sales team.
Content managers on the other hand are slightly different. Yes, there is a strong writing element here, but the aim or purpose of it is less to prompt an action, and more to be informative, and so the challenge is finding new ways to create educational content – so that it is relevant, informative, and ultimately less ‘salesy’. Creative and engaging content comes in many forms – how to guides, podcasts, videos, infographics, even memes and lists which can be easily shared. This content can be used to drive visitors to your website, where you can then ‘sell’ to them and help continue their journey towards conversion, whatever that might mean for your business.
When asked by a new client to write something, there are several steps to take before I can even write a word –
- I need to research the company and competitors
- I need to conduct keyword research to establish what needs to be included in the content for it to rank in organic search
- I research what kind of content in this industry is currently getting shared the most – I use a great tool called Buzzsumo for this
- I look into who the key influencers are within this field
- I might develop some customer personas to make it absolutely clear who this content should be targeted to, and what their interests and motivations for consuming this content are likely to be. Another tool I use is called Answer the Public which collates all the questions people are asking search engines in relation to a particular topic, so it’s a great indicator of what people want to find out more about.
- I develop a content plan based on my research and get the client to sign off on this
- Finally, I start to write
Need some assistance with your content? Feel free to get in touch with us anytime and we can have a cuppa and a chat about it.
