How to Hire a Content Marketing Consultant

Simplicity Consulting

June 23, 2023

In the ultra-competitive world of marketing, captivating content is the key to victory. Depending on the size, budget, and specific needs of your organization or department, hiring a designated full-time content marketing expert might not be in the cards.

That’s why bringing in an on-demand content marketing consultant is often a smart and cost-effective approach. A content marketing consultant can help your business in many ways. The consultant can analyze your current content landscape, identify gaps and opportunities, define content pillars, and establish a content creation roadmap. Acting as both a strategist and project manager, they can create a comprehensive content strategy aligned with your goals, and then coordinate the implementation of that plan.

Here are some more examples of the work these experts can handle:

Audience research: Content marketing consultants can conduct in-depth research to better understand your target audience's preferences, pain points, and content-consumption habits. This information is critical for creating targeted, engaging content that resonates with your unique audience. The result: greater brand awareness, more leads and website traffic, and a well-optimized longer-term content strategy.

Content creation: Content marketing consultants can assist in developing an array of content, from blogs, social media posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, white papers, webinars, and more. Additionally, they can provide guidance on content formats and topics as well as messaging and tone to ensure consistency and relevance.

Search engine optimization: Search engine optimization (SEO) is critical to boosting your content's visibility. Consultants specializing in content marketing can conduct keyword research, optimize content for relevant keywords, and advise on best practices to help your organization improve its search engine rankings and increase its organic traffic.

Content distribution and promotion: These experts can help you develop a game plan to best distribute and promote your content across multiple channels. This can include editorial and social medial calendars, email campaigns, and collaborations with other industry publications.

Performance tracking and analytics: Content marketing consultants can establish and track key performance indicators so that your organization can effectively measure the success of your content marketing efforts.

Hiring a content marketing consultant?

LOOK FOR CONTENT MARKETING CONSULTANTS WITH EXPERIENCE AND PROVEN SUCCESS

As you search for content marketing consultants, look for professionals who are truly experts in this field. They should have a strong background in both project management and content marketing, including many of the specialties mentioned above.

Consultants at this stage in their career should have a portfolio highlighting their experience, accomplishments, and specialties, as well as client testimonials or case studies. The portfolio should showcase their creativity as well as meaningful metrics that quantify the impact each project made. Pay very close attention to the quality of the consultant’s work and the results they achieved.

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS TO ASK CONTENT MARKETING CONSULTANTS

Once you have identified consulting candidates with the experience and industry knowledge you're seeking, it's time to schedule interviews so that you can get to know these experts and allow them to learn more about your organization.

Following are some interview questions to consider asking each candidate:

What is your experience developing and implementing content marketing strategies from the ground up?
How do you approach target audience research and use those insights to develop content marketing campaigns?
Tell us about some content marketing campaigns that you're proud of. What factors contributed to their success?
What content formats and platforms do you have the most experience working in? How do you decide which would be most effective for a campaign?
How do you measure the success of your content marketing efforts? What metrics do you think are most important, and how do you analyze them and then report that information?
What is your experience with SEO? How do you ensure content is optimized for search engines and drives organic traffic?
How do you stay updated on the latest trends and best practices in content marketing?
How comfortable are you collaborating with other teams to ensure cohesive, integrated content marketing campaigns?
Can you describe a situation where you had to handle a content marketing setback? How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?
How do you manage content creation and publication schedules to deliver timely content?

PARTNER WITH SIMPLICITY TO FIND TOP-NOTCH CONTENT MARKETING CONSULTANTS

Simplicity specializes in matching clients with experienced on-demand experts in marketing, communications, and project and program management. Our extensive pool of strategic consultants excels in tackling complex content marketing challenges and urgent projects.

Our team operates with great speed and efficiency. Here's how we work:

Needs assessment: We collaborate with you to understand your organization's requirements and define the project scope. Based on your needs and budget, we develop a curated list of content marketing consultants who are a good fit for your project.

Candidate selection: You choose the top candidates and participate in a working session to evaluate their strategic approach and working style.

Final selection: With your input, we help you select the ideal consultant for your organization.

Client support: We handle the management of our consultants, ensuring they meet your business needs. Our dedicated client success managers provide support from kickoff to project delivery.