What Is A Content Manager and Why Do You Need One?

A really common mistake loads of companies make is not structuring their online content. And it’s easy to see why. Coming up with original and optimised content that your audience is really looking for takes time and experience. Two things many people just don’t have.

If you’ve got orders coming in, of course getting them dealt with first is a priority. But, in the long term, investing in original and optimised content that matches your customers’ searches will bring you even more site visits and orders.

But what’s the first step?

A great start is to work with a content manager. They’ll be able to get a good overview of your existing content and create new content that ranks highly in Google. They’ll research what is appealing to your audience and how to fill the gaps in the market so that customers return to you for your products or industry knowledge.

All this gives you more time to focus on other areas of your business (or life)!

What Is A Content Manager?

Content managers have many different roles and their exact job depends on the industry they’re in and what the client needs. You could say they have many hats to wear.

The main job of a content manager is to structure your online content so that it’s relatable, current and found by those who want to read it. They’re responsible for overseeing the content that is created, its development and how it’s distributed. They need to know about SEO and their way around a blog post too.

Basically, a good content manager will take on the responsibility of the content for your business. They’ll research, produce and monitor what’s posted online so that you can rise above your competitors.

What’s It Like Working With a Content Manager?

I can’t speak for all content managers out there, but I can tell you what it’s like working with me. Fabulous.

No really, it’s important you know what to expect so you can decide if hiring a freelance content manager is the right decision for you and your company.

Here’s a brief outline of what you can expect but, of course, it varies with every company and their exact goals and timeline.

#1 Get To Know You and Your Company

Understanding your business, its history, how it runs and the goals you have for it is one of the most important parts of the process. It allows me to develop or extend your brand voice, understand your market and plan for the future.

It’s also an opportunity for us to discuss your expectations and what you want your business to achieve from partnering with a content manager. We can discuss your budget so that we’re on the same page from the very beginning.

#2 Carry Out A Content Audit

If you’re not a brand-new business, the likelihood is that you already have some content on your website. A great place to start is analysing this content. By using tools such as Ahrefs, I’ll be able to get a good understanding of how your current content is performing and which blog posts/pages are more popular than others.

It will give me a clearer view of who your audience is and what they’re searching for. Carrying out a content audit is also a great way to see what’s missing and how existing content could be further optimised.

#3 Competitor Analysis

In our initial chat, I’ll ask you for any competitors in your market that are doing something similar to you (as well as doing my own research). By looking at what your competitors are doing, you can get a good sense of what’s working and find any gaps in the market that they’re missing.

Once I’ve identified a keyword that’s working well for them, I’ll create targeted content that’s similar. Notice that I said similar.

All of the content I create is plagiarism-free. I’ll use what your competitors are doing as a basis to see what works – but then expand it to make it unique to your company.

#4 Keyword Research

Keyword research is one of the most important parts of writing quality content online that your target audience will find. An SEO content manager will research the best keywords for your business (based on competitor analysis and existing content) and plan engaging blogs and pages around them.

#5 Write Informative Content

It’s often the case that your SEO content manager will also be the one writing your content. After all, they have to wear lots of hats.

They’re also the ones who have planned and researched the content, so they’re often in the best position to write it too. They’ll know or will have developed, your brand voice that represents your company well and subtly incorporate keywords to make sure your content ranks highly.

#6 Post According to The Plan

Posting great content regularly is a really important part of increasing your online presence. Throughout the process, we’ll come up with a realistic plan and discuss how often your business should be posting to see real results. I’ll then post according to that so that you know exactly what you can expect and when.

#7 Continuous Monitoring and Editing

The work doesn’t stop once you press ‘post’. That’s not enough for your business, your audience or for Google. Content needs to be kept updated and relative and needs to be optimised with the latest information as and when needed. This signals to Google that you care about the quality of the content on your site and that it’s still relevant to your customers. Which, of course, Google likes.

Once blogs are indexing and gaining traffic, it’s also important to monitor them to see which are doing particularly well and which could do with a boost. This ensures you’re in control of your online performance and are continuously improving it.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, an SEO content manager is a pretty important part of any business. They help to ensure that all your hard work is really being found online and that it’s relevant to what people are searching for.

Working with a content manager means that someone has control and a complete overview of your website’s presence online and is producing high-quality and optimised content that your audience will love. Doing this means you have more time to concentrate on other areas of your business and make sure they’re succeeding too!

Sound like something you might be interested in? Or maybe you have some questions? Get in touch with me and I’ll be happy to help!

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