What’s a Content Marketing Specialist?

When it comes to creating a digital marketing strategy, it’s important that you have the right team in place. One of the most valuable members of any digital marketing team is the person in charge of the content creation process – in most cases, this person is referred to as a content marketing specialist.

However, the truth is that this title is pretty broad, and can encompass various different responsibilities. So, what can you expect from a content marketing specialist? We’re going to look at the skills and responsibilities of a content marketer, as well as how you can become one yourself.

What’s a Content Marketing Specialist?

A Content Marketing Specialist is a professional responsible for strategizing, developing, and implementing content-based marketing campaigns.

These individuals use content to educate, inform, entertain, or persuade a target audience with the ultimate goal of driving traffic, engagement, leads, and conversions.

Here are some of their key responsibilities:

• Content Strategy Development: Content Marketing Specialists are responsible for developing a company’s content strategy. This involves understanding the target audience, the company’s goals, and the type of content that will best communicate the company’s message.
• Content Creation: After developing a content strategy, these specialists are often tasked with creating this content. This could include writing blog posts, creating social media posts, developing video scripts, designing infographics, and more.
• Content Distribution: Once the content is created, a Content Marketing Specialist must figure out the best ways to distribute this content to reach the target audience. This could involve social media promotion, email marketing, SEO, content syndication, and more.
• Performance Analysis: After the content is distributed, these specialists will analyze the performance of the content. This could involve tracking metrics like traffic, engagement, leads, conversions, and more to understand the effectiveness of the content and make improvements where necessary.
• SEO: Understanding search engine optimization is a key part of a content marketing specialist’s role. They should know how to optimize content for search engines to drive organic traffic.
• Collaboration: They often work closely with other departments within an organization, like sales, customer service, and product development, to ensure the content aligns with other initiatives and supports overall company goals.

In summary, a Content Marketing Specialist uses content to build a relationship with a target audience, with the goal of ultimately driving some sort of business result. The specifics of the role can vary widely depending on the organization and its needs.

It’s important that your content remains consistent over time if you want to be successful. And, to create a strong content marketing strategy, your expert needs to have the required skills.

What Skills Should a Content Marketing Specialist Have?

A Content Marketing Specialist should possess a range of skills to be successful in their role. These skills include:

• Writing and Editing: These specialists often create various forms of content, including blog posts, articles, social media posts, and more. Therefore, they need strong writing and editing skills to create clear, engaging, and error-free content.
• SEO Knowledge: Understanding how to optimize content for search engines is crucial. This involves keyword research skills, on-page optimization (like using keywords in the title, meta description, headers, and throughout the content), and understanding SEO trends and changes.
• Research Skills: A Content Marketing Specialist should be able to research effectively to understand their audience, identify trending topics, and find reliable data to support their content.
• Analytical Skills: They should be able to analyze data to measure the success of their content marketing efforts. This might involve using tools like Google Analytics to track website traffic, engagement, and conversions.
• Project Management: These professionals often juggle multiple projects at once, so they need to be organized and good at managing their time.
• Social Media Savviness: They should understand how to use social media platforms to distribute content and engage with the audience.
• Creativity: To stand out in a crowded content landscape, these specialists need to be creative, coming up with new and innovative ideas for content.
• Understanding of Content Marketing Tools: They should be familiar with a variety of content marketing tools, such as content management systems (like WordPress), SEO tools (like SEMRush or Ahrefs), and social media scheduling tools (like Hootsuite or Buffer).
• Collaboration: Content Marketing Specialists often work with other team members, such as designers, video producers, and sales professionals, so they need to work well with others.
• Knowledge of the Target Audience: They should have a deep understanding of the company’s target audience, including their needs, preferences, and behaviors.
• Strategic Thinking: They need to think strategically about how their content can support the company’s goals and align with its other marketing initiatives.
• Basic Design Understanding: While not always necessary, having a basic understanding of design principles can be helpful for creating visually appealing content.

By developing these skills, a Content Marketing Specialist can effectively strategize, create, distribute, and analyze content to support a company’s marketing goals. Most content marketing specialists will develop these skills over an extended period of time, but they’re still something that should be learned.

What Does a Content Marketing Specialist Do on a Daily Basis?

A Content Marketing Specialist’s role can be quite varied, with tasks changing day-to-day depending on the projects and campaigns they are working on. However, a typical day might include activities like:

1. Content Planning and Strategy: Part of their day might involve planning and strategizing for upcoming content. This could include brainstorming topic ideas, conducting keyword research, mapping out the editorial calendar, and coordinating with other team members.
2. Content Creation: A significant part of their day will likely be spent creating content. This could include writing and editing blog posts, creating social media content, or working with designers or videographers to create visual or video content.
3. Content Distribution: They may also spend part of their day distributing the content they’ve created. This could involve scheduling social media posts, sending out email newsletters, or optimizing and uploading blog posts to the company’s website.
4. Collaboration: They will likely have meetings or calls with other team members to discuss ongoing projects, provide updates, or collaborate on content.
5. Performance Analysis: They might also analyze the performance of their content, looking at metrics like traffic, engagement, and conversions to understand how well their content is performing and where improvements can be made.
6. Learning and Development: Given the fast-paced nature of digital marketing, they might spend part of their day reading up on the latest industry trends, attending webinars, or learning new tools and software.
7. SEO Optimization: They might spend part of their day optimizing existing content for SEO, making updates based on keyword research, or analyzing SEO data to improve rankings.
8. Project Management: They will likely spend some time managing their projects, making sure everything is on track, and addressing any issues that arise.
9. Client or Stakeholder Communication: If they work in an agency or have other internal stakeholders, they might spend part of their day communicating with clients or other departments, providing updates on content projects, and gathering feedback.

Remember, the specifics of the day-to-day tasks will vary depending on the company and its needs. Some Content Marketing Specialists might focus more heavily on certain tasks, like content creation, while others might spend more time on strategy and planning.

What is the Average Salary of a Content Marketing Specialist?

The salary of a Content Marketing Specialist can vary significantly depending on factors like location, years of experience, level of expertise, the size of the company, and the industry.

In the United States, according to data from Glassdoor and Indeed, the average annual salary for a Content Marketing Specialist was around $50,000 to $65,000.

However, in larger cities with a high cost of living, like New York or San Francisco, the average salary could be significantly higher. On the other hand, entry-level professionals might start out with a lower salary, while experienced specialists in senior roles can earn well over the average.

In other countries, the average salary can differ significantly based on the country’s standard pay rates, cost of living, and the demand for content marketing professionals. A content marketing manager role may have different responsibilities, but generally the tasks remain the same – creating high quality content.

How to Become a Content Marketing Specialist

Becoming a Content Marketing Specialist typically involves a combination of education, experience, and skill-building. Here are some steps you could take:

1. Earn a Bachelor’s Degree: Many Content Marketing Specialists have a degree in marketing, business, communications, journalism, or a related field. These programs can provide a foundational understanding of marketing principles and communication strategies.

2. Gain Relevant Experience: Entry-level roles in marketing, public relations, writing, or social media can help you gain practical experience and build a portfolio of work. Internships can also be a great way to gain experience and make professional connections.

3. Develop Essential Skills: As mentioned earlier, a Content Marketing Specialist needs a range of skills, including writing and editing, SEO, social media, analytics, and more. You can develop these skills through on-the-job experience, online courses, certifications, and self-study.

4. Stay Updated with Industry Trends: The digital marketing landscape is always changing, so it’s essential to stay updated with the latest trends and developments. You can do this by following industry blogs, attending webinars and conferences, and joining professional organizations.

5. Obtain Certifications: While not always necessary, certifications can help demonstrate your skills and expertise. There are many online platforms that offer certifications in content marketing, digital marketing, SEO, and more.

6. Build a Portfolio: A portfolio of your work can showcase your writing skills, creativity, and understanding of content marketing. This could include blog posts, social media campaigns, content strategies, and more that you’ve worked on.

7. Networking: Making connections with other professionals in the field can open up job opportunities and provide valuable insights.

8. Apply for Jobs: Once you have the necessary education, skills, and experience, you can start applying for Content Marketing Specialist positions. Tailor your resume and cover letter to highlight your relevant skills and experiences.

Remember that everyone’s career path can look a little different, and these are just suggested steps. Some people might land a content marketing role without a degree in a related field, while others might transition into content marketing from a different career.

Where can I find Content Marketing Specialist roles?

There are several places where you can find Content Marketing Specialist roles:

1. Online Job Boards: Websites like LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor, and Monster post a wide range of job listings, including content marketing roles.

2. Company Websites: If there’s a specific company you’re interested in working for, check their career page for job listings.

3. Industry-Specific Job Boards: Websites like MarketingJobs, AdAge, and MarketingHire specialize in marketing-related job postings.

4. Networking Events: Industry conferences, meetups, or local business events can be good places to learn about job openings.

5. Professional Organizations: Joining professional organizations, such as the American Marketing Association (AMA), can give you access to exclusive job listings and networking opportunities.

6. Recruitment Agencies: Recruitment agencies, especially those specializing in marketing or digital roles, can help connect you with companies looking for content marketing specialists.

7. Social Media: Platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter can be good places to find job listings. On LinkedIn, you can even set job alerts for specific roles.

8. Freelance Platforms: If you’re interested in freelance or contract work, websites like Upwork, Freelancer, and Fiverr often have listings for content marketing projects.

Remember to tailor your resume and cover letter to each job you apply for, highlighting your most relevant skills and experiences.

And keep in mind that the best job for you might not always be the one with the highest salary or the most prestigious company; consider factors like the company culture, opportunities for growth, and the work-life balance as well.

Conclusion

All in all, content marketers are an extremely valuable part of any marketing team. They can help create content for your digital marketing campaigns, and if you’re looking to get great results, it pays to make sure you get the right content marketing specialist that’s suited to your position.

Fortunately, this is usually easily done by using online job boards and freelancer platforms. At Content Plans, we specialize in driving more organic traffic to websites, which can be crucial to the success of a brand.