How to Solve the Problem of Measuring Content [Podcast]
When it comes to measuring content, where do we begin? Content isn’t always uniform and is created for different purposes, stages of the buyer journey, and audiences. But the way you measure content should account for the goals of each piece.
Because of all of these factors, it should be the content creator’s job to do the measuring. After all, they’re the most familiar with the intent of the content, and they’re also the most invested in fighting for it. On top of that, by measuring content they’ve already created, they can gain more insight into how they should approach their next piece of content.
Chris Sietsema, Digital Marketing Consultant at Teach to Fish Digital, and Chris Book, Managing Partner at Metrics Agency, join the Content Experience Show to discuss solutions to measuring content and why creators should hold the responsibility.
In This Episode:
Content Should Be Analyzed Based on the Stage of the Funnel for Which It’s Intended
Book discusses the challenge of getting organizations to shift their way of thinking to look at how customers move from point A to point Z, rather than creating a specific piece of content to suit a need they’ve identified themselves. He says we must ask customers what questions, hurdles, and purposes they have, rather than assuming.
“The best way to ask about the customer journey is to actually talk to people who are going through that journey.” — @ChrisBook
Approaching Content From a Leadership Position
When it comes to looking at journey flows and the purpose of content, this mindset should come from the top down. As a leader, it’s your job to set the tone and demonstrate how to approach content in a strategic way.
“If you’re at the top of an organization, you have to make sure that you’re tapping into the minds of the people that are ultimately creating the content. They’re the smart people. You need to find a way to let them do their jobs.” — @ChrisBook
What to Consider When Measuring Content
Typically, people on the front lines (in this case, a content marketer or author) are the ones responsible for measuring content. While everyone should own their own metrics, this also creates the problem of silos. To mitigate this, Sietsema recommends having someone at the manager or director level pull all the content metrics together to tell a cohesive story.
“You produced this content, you published this content, you promoted it, now you have to measure it too.” — @sietsema