If you’re looking to land your dream job as a content strategist, there are many paths to take. While some resources will tell you that the best way to break into this industry is by gaining experience in other fields first like journalism or public relations I disagree.
I believe it’s possible for anyone with an interest in writing and communications to gain experience and eventually land a job as a content strategist without starting their career path with something else first.
In this article, I’ll share my journey into content strategy and explain why I think you can do the same thing!
| Takeaways |
|---|
| Develop strong communication and writing skills. |
| Gain experience in content creation and management. |
| Understand the principles of content marketing. |
| Learn to analyze data and user insights effectively. |
| Consider pursuing relevant certifications or workshops. |
| Explore opportunities in various industries for content strategists. |
Get A Degree In Business Or Marketing
When it comes to landing a content strategist role, having a degree is important. It’s not necessary, but it will help attract employers who are looking for candidates with more experience and skills than those without formal education.
If you’re planning on pursuing an undergraduate degree in business or marketing, your program of study must align with your career goals.
A degree focused on communications will provide you with opportunities to develop content strategies for various industries and organizations but if your goal is to work at a tech company like Google or Facebook.
The program needs to focus more on technology integration into existing business plans than developing those plans from scratch.
The same goes for working in healthcare: A degree in health administration won’t provide the technical knowledge needed for content strategy jobs within this industry (unless there’s also a heavy focus on project management).
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Prepare Yourself
What Is Content Strategy?
Content strategy is the practice of planning, managing, and implementing digital content so that it delivers the maximum business impact. It’s a strategic discipline aimed at aligning your organization’s content with its business goals.
Content strategists help organizations make their web content more usable, accessible, and valuable to their customers through research, analysis, and planning. They also have the skills needed to measure success to continually improve the customer experience over time.
What Does A Content Strategist Do?
They analyze how information is used within an organization or across multiple organizations (such as an eCommerce website).
They determine what types of information will be most helpful for users based on their roles or responsibilities; then they create those resources so that people can easily find them when they need them.
Some examples would be: Ranking existing web pages based on user research creating new landing pages based on specific keywords/keywords clustersWriting quality blog posts
Keep An Open Mind About Your Career Choice
You may be wondering what the catch is here. If you don’t need a degree, experience, or track record to land your dream job as a content strategist, then why would anyone bother with them?
The answer is simple: because it’s easier to get hired when you have all three. But even if you don’t have them, it’s still possible and often preferable to pursue your passion without them.
As I’ve said before, my path into content strategy was unorthodox in its own right. It wasn’t until after I’d landed my first job as a community manager that I decided to pursue certification and training through HubSpot Academy.
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Stand Out From Other Candidates
Be A Good Fit For The Company And The Job
As you apply to jobs, think about what makes you unique. You might be thinking, “Well, every candidate is unique,” but that’s not true most applicants don’t show their true selves in their resumes and cover letters.
If your resume doesn’t show who you are and what makes you different from other candidates.
Then you’re wasting time on a generic resume that doesn’t showcase why the hiring manager should choose to interview you over all of those other qualified candidates out there vying for the same position.
Establish A Relationship With A Specific Hiring Manager
Before beginning the job search, you’ll want to think about what kind of company and team you want to work for.
Who do you want to work for? Who do you want to work with? How do you want to work (or not)? What are your priorities, values, and goals in a job? What do you want to learn? What do you want to achieve in the role and with this company?
Your answers will help guide your search process and give hiring managers something they can relate their answers to when they’re reviewing resumes.
Don’t Neglect Your Network
Networking is the key to finding your dream job, and even if you’ve been avoiding networking out of fear of rejection or other reasons, now is the time to get over it. Here are some strategies for how to network effectively:
Don’t be afraid of networking with people you don’t know. If you’re shy, this can be hard but if they’re doing their job right, hiring managers are going to ask questions about your skills and personality anyway. So don’t let nerves prevent you from meeting new candidates!
When asking someone who already knows your work why he or she thinks you’d be a good fit for their position (and vice versa), make sure that person has read what he or she has written about it.
It’s one thing for someone whose opinion matters to say “Oh yes, I liked [piece].” It’s another altogether when asked why and his answer is “Because it was good.”
If someone says something mean about your work online (or in person), try not to take it personally there really could just be something missing from his understanding that makes him miss its value as well as its potential flaws.
Use Social Media To Build Your Brand
If you’re trying to make a name for yourself in the content strategy world, social media is a great place to start. It’s also a good way to build your brand. And it can help you build your professional brand as well.
You can use social media to post links that lead back to your blog or articles on other sites (and include a bio). You could also post pictures of yourself doing cool things like hanging out with friends or snuggling up with cats (or both!).
Your selfies will get attention from potential employers and clients alike! You might even consider making some memes about things people love (like cats) or posting videos of cute animals doing stupid things the world loves this stuff!
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Create And Implement An Effective Content Strategy
Once you’ve identified your short-term, mid-term and long-term goals, it’s important to define what success looks like. To do this, you must think about the problems that exist in your current situation before implementing an effective solution.
This can be challenging because by definition content strategists are creative thinkers; they love solving problems and creating new solutions!
However, if you’re going to create an effective strategy for yourself (and others), it’s essential that you first answer some hard questions: What are the main challenges facing your organization today?
- What can I do about them?
- How will my role help solve these problems?
Pick A Well-Timed Presentation And Practice It
Practice your presentation out loud. It’s amazing how much you can learn from the act of speaking and hearing yourself speak.
For example, I once practiced a presentation in front of my mirror and was surprised to see that my head was at an angle that made me appear angry even though I wasn’t feeling angry at all!
When I corrected it, my tone sounded more friendly, which helped me feel more confident about what I had to say.
Practicing in front of someone else can also help you identify any weaknesses in your delivery or content that need to be addressed before the actual interview stage.
If possible, get someone who knows something about the field you’re applying for (or even just one with good taste) to give their honest opinion on how well-rehearsed and polished your pitch is coming across.
They might have insights into how certain aspects could be improved or clarified before you’re sitting down across from a hiring manager who has plenty at stake on making sure their company makes the best choice possible when filling this position!
Get Certified–You’ll Skip The Line
Certification is a great way to show your knowledge and skills, commitment, passion, and experience.
Certification will show that you’re not just interested in getting paid for the job–you want to be the best at what you do. It’s an investment in yourself (and your career) that will pay off over time.
Certification also helps individuals who are still working full-time jobs get hired more easily by demonstrating their commitment to learning new skills outside of work hours and providing them with additional credentials they can mention during interviews as proof of their dedication.
Show Them What You’re Made Of
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to land a job is that they don’t show their potential employers what they’re made of. If you want to get noticed by a hiring manager, it’s not enough to simply send in your resume and cover letter.
You have to put yourself out there and show them how awesome you are at every opportunity available. Here are some ways you can do this:
- Show enthusiasm for the role in your interview; talk about how much you love doing this kind of work!
- Discuss all of your relevant experience (both on paper and in real life) during the interview process and come up with concrete examples that illustrate those skillsets.
- Be flexible; if asked whether or not they’d be willing to relocate or work overtime during busy times, respond positively and enthusiastically!
This demonstrates both integrity as well as a passion for what’s being discussed at hand here… which leads us right to our next point…
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Don’t Be Afraid To Shout It From The Rooftops
You’re probably at least a little nervous about getting your dream job. And that’s normal! But don’t be afraid to let that excitement shine through.
At the same time, it’s important to present yourself professionally, dress like you would for any other interview or meeting, and make sure your resume is up-to-date and error-free.
Don’t forget: You should be proud of what you do as a content strategist and if you want this particular job.
Tell them why! Make sure they know how much experience has prepared you for the role they’re hiring for and why their company is special enough for you to want to work there.
Be confident in yourself; confidence goes a long way in getting people excited about hiring (and keeping) new talent
Be A Team Player
Here’s the deal: to land a good job, you need to be a good team player. You need to be able to communicate with your team members and listen to them in turn.
You’ll also have to be flexible enough to share responsibilities and compromise with your co-workers, but also strong enough to stand up for what you believe in.
Finally, as part of a team effort, you want everyone working together towards the same goal, and if one person isn’t on board with that goal? Then it can mean failure for everyone involved!
Network, Network, Network
Network. A lot of the time, you’ll get your dream job through someone who knows someone else who needs someone like you. This means that your network is crucial to landing that dream job and it’s not as hard as you might think!
You should network with people who can help you and/or are interested in the same things as you.
Join groups on LinkedIn or Facebook that share similar interests, attend conferences related to your industry, start networking events for professionals in your field (and don’t forget about alumni groups!), and consider joining an organization like Women Who Code or Hackbright Academy if there’s one where lives).
If possible, meet up with people in person at these events so they get a better sense of who they’re talking to (and so can see how perfect for their company or project you are!). Don’t forget about professional organizations in general: They could be full of unexpected opportunities.
Keep Learning, Keep Growing
Keep learning, keep growing. There is no such thing as an expert in content strategy there is only constant self-improvement and a willingness to learn new things.
The internet is full of resources for you to study, and your job is to stay on top of trends by reading articles and watching videos from experts in the field.
You should also look for opportunities at work or outside of work that will help you grow your skillset (e.g., if your company has an internal training program or partners with other companies that provide training).
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. If there’s something you don’t understand about a project, ask! It’s better to ask than sit back silently wondering how things work.
If someone asks us a question we don’t know how to answer, we always try our best anyway so that they feel comfortable asking again if they need clarification later on down the line it helps build trust between coworkers.
As well as within teams during client meetings/presentations when everyone feels comfortable enough asking questions without fear of looking silly or incompetent because everyone else does too!
Know Your Worth And How To Get It
You may be thinking, “What a silly question.” But it’s not.
If the job market is hot and salaries are high, there’s no need to negotiate your salary or benefits but this isn’t always the case. It depends on whether or not your skills are in demand and how much competition you face for the role.
If you’re applying for an entry-level position with little experience, it’s important to know what other people with similar qualifications were paid in that job before entering into negotiations yourself.
You can easily do this by using Glassdoor’s recruiting tools they make finding out what other people are earning simple!
If you have been offered a salary below market value or want more freedom from work responsibilities than others who hold similar positions typically enjoy, it might be time to negotiate with your potential employer (or start looking elsewhere!).
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Show Your Value With Statistics And Other Data
When you’re applying for a job, it’s important to demonstrate your value with statistics and other data.
These can include how much traffic your blog has received, how many people have signed up for the company’s email list or newsletter, and how many leads have been generated by content marketing efforts.
For example, say you’ve worked at a company where content strategy contributed $100,000 worth of new revenue in just three months. That would be something you should include when writing the résumé.
If possible, show that these numbers have grown over time as well but don’t get too carried away with this part!
Learn About SEO
When you’re searching for a job, your dream job will be found in the search results. So it’s important to know how it works.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of affecting the visibility of a website or web page in a web search engine’s unpaid results often referred to as “natural,” “organic,” or “earned” results.
SEO includes both the technical (on-page and off-page) and content/link-building aspects of search engine optimization.
Conclusion
In this post, I’ve covered the basics of what you need to know about content strategy and why it’s important for your career.
I’ve also shared some tips and strategies that you can use to land your dream job as a content strategist. If you have any questions about what comes next, feel free to reach out!
Further Reading
How to Become a Content Strategist (Indeed): Discover the essential steps and skills required to embark on a career as a content strategist.
How to Become a Content Strategist (CareerFoundry): Learn about the key responsibilities and qualifications needed to pursue a successful career as a content strategist.
How to Become a Content Strategist (Technical Writer HQ): Dive into the world of content strategy and explore the practical steps to become a content strategist.
Now, here’s the “FAQs” section with five questions and answers:
FAQs
What is a content strategist?
A content strategist is a professional responsible for planning, creating, and managing strategic content that aligns with an organization’s goals and target audience.
What skills are required to become a content strategist?
To become a content strategist, you should possess strong communication and writing skills, have a deep understanding of content marketing principles, be proficient in content management systems, and be able to analyze data and user insights effectively.
How can I gain experience as a content strategist?
You can gain experience as a content strategist by working on content projects, volunteering for organizations, freelancing, or interning with companies that focus on content creation and strategy.
What educational background is beneficial for a content strategist?
While there is no specific degree required, a background in communications, marketing, journalism, or a related field can be advantageous for a content strategist. Additionally, pursuing certifications or attending workshops in content strategy can also enhance your skills.
What career opportunities are available for content strategists?
Content strategists can find opportunities in various industries, including marketing agencies, media companies, tech firms, e-commerce, and more. Roles may include content strategist, content manager, digital marketer, or UX writer, among others.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.
