As professionals in the world of digital media, content strategy plays a significant role in our work. Content creation, social media marketing, website design, advertising, and all other branches of digital media can only function optimally with the use of content strategy. 

A Balancing Act

Content strategy is the balance between users’ needs and business needs. It ensures that all efforts are based on users’ needs, which come from data analytics, while also functioning for a higher purpose of the business needs (Toole, 2017). 

Many tend to confuse content strategy with content tactics, which involve the specific tasks and planning points necessary to complete a goal. Content tactics are very important in order to organize the steps needed to create, edit, and publish your content. On the other hand, content strategy is more broad and complex. It ties all of these efforts together into one cohesive idea (Toole, 2017). 

Content strategy is all about forming a connection in the middle – a balancing act. It is the bridge between users’ needs and business needs, but it is also the connecting factor between content and people. The content components include substance and structure, and the people components include workflow and governance (Casey, 2015). 

Budgeting, Buy-In, and Success

I’m sure I’m not alone in the sentiment that as a content creator, budgeting is the most challenging, least fun – and unfortunately – most essential aspect of content strategy. 

There are various models available when it comes to budgeting: 

• A fixed-bid project involves an agency “providing a flat dollar estimate for the work to be done.” (Casey, 2015)
• A time and materials project involves an agency estimating the overall cost based on the time and materials expected to be used, and then billing for the exact cost later on. This process, being more flexible, involves a great amount of communication regarding timeline and budget boundaries. 
• An internal non-monetary project uses a system of tracking staff hours in order to estimate the cost of a project. 

Attaining buy-in from those who have a stake in your project is the next essential aspect. Creating lists with each person and their role can be very useful when planning for this. Then, you can tailor each interview to who it is you’re communicating with, ensuring that the message you want to get across is clear. After this, consistent communication is key to capturing and holding long-term interest. (Casey, 2015)

Preparing for success can look different depending on preferences regarding workflow, but it should involve organizing each element into a cohesive, detailed plan in writing that can easily be shared with a team. This type of preparation should not be overlooked, as it can go a long way when you get further into the project. (Casey, 2015)

by Samantha Hart

References:

Casey, M. (2015). The Content Strategy Toolkit: Methods, Guidelines, and Templates for Getting Content Right. New Riders. 

Content Strategy vs. Content Tactics (Catherine Toole). (2017). YouTube. Retrieved September 3, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjVRJcbKKJI.