After conquering the world of freelancing, it’s time to move to the next thing. And that’s starting your content agency.
Content is the most effective way to promote a business.
According to reports from Content Marketing Institute, content marketing generates more than three times as many leads as outbound marketing. Meanwhile, it’s significantly cheaper, costing about 62 percent less.
It’s no wonder that 91 percent of B2B marketers use content marketing to reach customers. Similarly, 86 percent of B2C marketers think content marketing is an essential strategy.
Unfortunately, marketers are continually struggling with this form of marketing.
Report from Marketing Profs and the CMI suggests that 63 percent of businesses don’t have a documented content strategy. Also, another research from Zazzle media revealed that 60 percent of individuals find it hard to produce content consistently.
So, what do businesses do when their content strategy isn’t working, give up? No!
Instead, they hire a content agency to do all the heavy lifting. This brings us to the million-dollar question:
What is a Content Agency?
A content marketing agency helps businesses leverage content to achieve their objectives. It involves the creation and distribution of videos, graphics, and written materials on behalf of organizations.
Some of the marketing programs that content companies handle include newsletters, email campaigns, social media posts, among others. More importantly, they write content that increases leads and sales.
Let’s delve a little deeper:
Why Businesses Hire Content Marketing Agencies
Businesses hire content companies to create materials that are targeted at various marketing activities. But that’s not all of it.
Other reasons businesses hire content marketing agencies include:
- Getting Google to notice a company via SEO
- Promoting business on social media
- Keeping customers engaged
- Analyzing the current content strategy and refining it
- Helping potential customers find your business on the internet
Along with improving site performance, organizations expect to generate leads and sales from their investment. And they often do.
According to CMI’s digital marketing stats, 72 percent of marketers say content marketing increases engagement. Likewise, 72 percent say it has increased the number of leads.
Now, to consider the subject matter.
How Do I Start a Content Agency?
Follow the steps outlined below to start your content marketing agency.
1. Develop an Identity and Value Proposition
The first thing to do is decide if you want to offer WordPress-based inbound marketing or a more comprehensive solution.
WordPress-based inbound marketing involves blogging, SEO, remarketing, whitepaper generation, among others. Meanwhile, a more comprehensive marketing solution includes newsletters, video marketing, pay-per-click, backlinking, social media marketing, etc.
Also, don’t forget to research your target market as well as the competition in that market. That way, you can find a unique selling proposition for your agency.
2. Calculate Cost and Setup Revenue Structure
The financial aspect could be the scariest part of launching a content agency. However, you must calculate how much it’ll cost to set up.
These include:
- Cost of business tools
- Employee salaries, benefits, and taxes
- Client invoicing
- Business taxes
- Other third-party services
On the other side, you also have to set up the right revenue structure to ensure that the agency generates revenue from the start.
It sounds a bit challenging, doesn’t it?
Luckily, you could hire an expert to handle all the financial aspects of the business. That way, you can focus on creating great content for your client. This brings us to the next point.
3. Invest in the Right Tools
To be successful in any modern business, you must find the right set of tools and automation.
Not only does this give you control of your work process, but business tools also ensure consistency. What’s more, it frees you from mundane tasks so that you can focus on what matters — creating great content.
Some tools that you may need include:
- SEO writing software – INK
- Content scheduling tool – Coschedule
- Live conferencing or screen-sharing tool – Skype
- Keyword research and analysis software – KWFinder
- Copy analyzer tool – Copyscape
The list extends beyond content creation tools to finance management and bookkeeping software as well as contract generation tools.
4. Invest in the Right People
While it’s essential to invest in the right tools, machines can’t do everything. So, you must hire capable individuals for the job.
First, you must determine which roles need to be filled, from a writer or social media admin to a graphic artist. Also, you may want to plan for other professional services that you’ll need within the first year.
These include web designers, web developers, content marketing strategists, SEO consultants, account leads, among others.
Before putting a reliable team in place, you may want to test several individuals within each role. That’s where freelancers come in. By hiring freelancers, you can experiment until you find a team that works well together.
Afterward, you can schedule regular meetings with team members to ensure they receive the necessary training and support.
5. Create a System Process
You already have the right tools and people in place, and it’s time to figure out what to do with them. Yes, we’re talking about a system or process that runs smoothly and seamlessly at all times.
Consider creating documentation that details the process for business management tasks, client management tasks, and employee management tasks. Also, you should have separate documentation for the content management process.
Remember to update the documentation as processes change — for example, when you add new services to your portfolio.
At first, it may seem like a lot of work. However, it’ll save you a lot of time and effort moving forward.
Final Word: Creating a Content Agency
As you can see, starting a content company is no simple task.
You must develop a detailed plan for your agency, calculate your cost, and set up the profitability part. While doing the financial aspect, don’t forget the legal part too.
These include registering for the kind of corporation that you want to set up. Also, you may need to develop legally-binding contract templates for employees, clients, and business.
It all sounds so overwhelming, and maybe it is. Not everyone is cut out to run a content marketing agency. However, if you believe this is the next step in your career, take your time to go through the process. It’ll pay off in the long run.
We wish you the best of luck!
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