How our agency manages content operations (using the STAND OUT Content Framework)

“Oh, you work in Marketing – you must be so creative!”

We’ve heard it over and over again. Still, after ten years of running a marketing agency, we’ve come to the conclusion that success doesn’t hinge solely on creativity but also on systems and processes. 

Marketing is about doing what works over and over again and making small tweaks to improve over time.

You need creativity initially to develop a fantastic idea, but then you need consistency and processes to improve it.

Look at Steven Bartlett’s podcast, Diary of a CEO, for example. It was a brilliant idea, but it hasn’t changed format in three years. That’s because it works, and once the brilliant idea works, processes and consistency take over.

That’s why having content operations is so important…

We manage multiple clients and their blogs, social media channels, podcast channels, and videos. We’ve developed a system that works, and we’ve used it repeatedly to grow organic channels.

Here’s the system we follow for every client, called the STANDOUT content marketing system…

Read more: Content Marketing Workflow: the secret to efficient content production

How we manage your content operations…

Part of the reason people work with us is that we take over the so-called “boring” part of marketing and implement a tried-and-tested process that will grow your leads and revenue. While we need your input, we take control of the process, rinse it, and repeat it to get you results with minimal effort. 

But what does this process actually look like, and what do we need to know?

Whether it’s us taking care of your content, or you want to try it out yourself, following this process will help you create STANDOUT content. 

We call it that because of what it spells:

1. Strategy
2. Target Audience
3. Action plan
4. Noteworthy Content
5. Design
6. Optimise
7. Upgrade
8. Traction

1. Strategy

Creating amazing, high-performing content is reliant on building a solid strategy. So, the first thing you need to do, before creating any content, is understand what your primary business goals are. 

Most people think of content as a tool to drive ranking and website traffic, and it does, but it can also help do so much more than that.

What do you want to achieve in your business? 

We know that nine times out of ten this is going to be – increase sales – but there is still more to dig into here so that you can figure out exactly how to increase sales. 

Do you want to enter a new market?

Do you want to grow your email list? 

Launch a new product? 

Convert more people from your email list?

Become known

By understanding this, and what you are trying to achieve, it can help you to plan and create specific content around your goals and help you reach them.

Find out more about some of the business goals you might have here. 

2. Target audience

You know what you’re trying to achieve, but who are you trying to speak to through your content?

Who are your target audience?

What pain points do they have?

What journey do they go on to eventually find your products and services, and what questions or objections will they have along the way? 

At this point in the process, we use this information to map out your buyer’s journey. 

The buyer’s journey is all the stages your potential buyer goes through before making a purchase – all the way from unaware to customer.

But here’s the thing…your potential client isn’t simply transitioning from one phase to another without help. 

They won’t spontaneously discover your product or service one day and be completely convinced that you’re the solution to all their problems! It might happen once in a blue moon, but you can’t bank on it. It’s your job to create content designed to answer your potential customer’s questions at each stage and move them to the next point in the buyer’s journey.

This is also the point at which we start to look at competitor and keyword research so that we know how people are asking questions and the words that they are using to do so.

This gives us a core understanding of what your target audience is searching for, and struggling and use it to build the foundations of your content. 

3. Action plan

Now that you know why you are creating content and who it’s for, it’s time to put together the action plan and figure out when you’ll create and publish it. 

A content calendar will help you create content that meets your business goals and appeals to your target audience. At this point, you’ll gather topic ideas and organise them into a plan.

Part of developing your action plan is creating a content workflow that makes every stage of the process clear, including the who, what, when and how of it, including:

• What content are you going to create?
• When is the content due to be published?
• Who is responsible for each stage (and what individual tasks are needed to get you there)?

This isn’t a once-off job. We repeat this every quarter for our clients (and ourselves) so that we are always reviewing the plan and ensuring it stays relevant. 

We also recommend using a project management system, such as ClickUp, to organise the content operations and ensure that everyone involved is clear on what is happening and where each piece of content is at any given stage. 

Read more: SOS! 3 Forgotten Things that Can Make or Break Your B2B Content Marketing

4. Noteworthy content

Now, we’re finally getting to the part that most people think of when they think of content… actually creating it. 

However, run-of-the-mill, ordinary content isn’t going to cut it. You want to make sure that the content you create truly stands out. 

When we create content for ourselves or clients, we always ask one question: “Is this the best possible answer to this on the internet?” Not the longest, but the best! 

Does it deliver the most value? 

Does it give examples, use stories, and have a strong tone of voice? 

Does it explain something complex really simply? 

This is less about the operations of content and more about creativity, but it is equally important! 

This is why getting to know our clients, their opinions, stories, experiences, etc., and capturing thought leadership content to transform it into content is super important to us. It’s essential to ensure that your content stands out in an increasingly crowded landscape.

However, creating noteworthy content is also a process; it’s not just a case of winging it and hoping for the best. Each piece of content will go through multiple experts before we hit publish on it, including:

• Content Strategists x2
• Content Manager 
• Writer 
• Graphic Designer 
• Technical Operator

Again, we manage each content creation stage on a project management tool to ensure that everyone in the team knows where each piece of content is.

Read more: 3 simple steps to scaling thought leadership content

5. Design

You might not think design matters – surely, as long as you create value, people will stick around no matter what it looks like!

Contrary to what we’ve all been told, looks do matter, especially when it comes to content. 

It doesn’t matter if you’re producing a blog, video or podcast; good design is needed! In fact, 90% of the best-performing videos have a custom thumbnail. They help grab attention, hook the viewer, and let them know what they are getting themselves into. 

So, it’s not just important to make it look good; it can also help increase clicks, conversions, and, most importantly, performance. 

6. Optimise

While creating amazing, noteworthy content is half the battle, we also have to make sure that people are able to find it – otherwise there is no point in creating it. That’s where search engine optimisation comes in, and it’s why in-depth keyword research is an essential part of the target audience section. 

Did you know that the top 3 organic search results receive more than two-thirds (68.7%) of all clicks on the Google Search page, and the snippet has the highest overall click-through rate at 42.9%?

And even though people hark on about the death of Google and SEO, it’s still so important to optimsie everything you create for the search engines. 

For blog posts and podcasts, this means thinking about on-page SEO, and for videos making sure your descriptions and hashtags are correct. 

7. Upgrade

Every single piece of content should have a clear call to action (CTA) and the next step. No this isn’t just a case of adding: “click here to buy”, and hoping that people do just that. Remember, it’s all about creating a call to action that makes sense and is useful for anyone reading or listening. 

Sometimes this will simply involve a really clear call to action near the end that will direct readers towards a product or service page. An example of this is here, where we’ve used a clear CTA linking readers to more information on our short-form video service. It works as it’s related to the article, and helps add more value to the question that people are already searching for. 

You could also create what we call a “content upgrade”, which is a form of lead magnet related to the original article. This is particularly useful as it collects contact information (usually an email), in exchange for a really valuable piece of information, allowing you to build trust and authority with a potential customer. 

One way that we do this is through a quiz, as we’ve done here, as a gamified way of delivering valuable, actionable information to out potential customers. 

We also have an SEO score quiz that is always in the sidebar – and it’s a great way to help people get information that will bring value to their business.

The great thing about gathering information in exchange for something like a quiz or download is that you can contact them if they don’t immediately buy and nurture that ongoing relationship. 

8. Traction 

Yes, it’s published, you’re done now, right?

Nope, you’re just getting started…

Once your content is created and optimised you need to promote it. Yes, if you’ve done step six right (optimising) then people will find it, but it’s still worth repurposing the content across multiple platforms to get as many eyes on it as possible. 

How exactly?

Imagine you’ve created a blog post on: “How much building an extension costs”, you might also then:

• Make a short-form video (which can be shared on multiple platforms)
• Email your list
• Create multiple social media posts (ie. LI, Instagram grid post, story and carousel). 

Remember you’ve not just got different platforms, but different formats on those platforms ie. Instagram could be a reel, grid post, carousel post, story etc.)

This is why when we create short-form videos, we include multiple intros so that you can share it across more than one social platform. 

From just one post, you could have numerous different styles and formats of content to share, making sure you reach people where they already are. 

Need help with getting your content to stand out?

So, there you have it—while creating content might seem from the outside like a purely creative pursuit, there is actually a whole process that goes into creating consistently high-quality content. 

Not only do we use this STANDOUT framework and process to help create content for our clients, but we also have a course that teaches you how to do it yourself. 

If you’re currently aimless with content and struggling to get results from it, then using our proven framework might help you create a seamless workflow, and help you be seen as the authority in your industry. 

Find out more about how to get your content off the sidelines and into the spotlight here.