Inbound Marketing Insights

Developing a qualified team of digital marketers is no easy task, but it is essential to the success of your inbound strategy and implementation. Marketing technology does not run itself. There are always people behind the process. You need a team to continually learn, grow, understand, and optimize your technology to seamlessly strategize and execute campaigns. There are many aspects to consider when creating a team of inbound marketers. The direction you choose will depend on your organization's size, if you are new to inbound marketing, or if you are taking your current inbound strategy to the next level. Let's explore how you can create the most successful digital marketing team for your organization.

Define Your Resource Needs:
Identify the key players needed to make your inbound strategy work flawlessly. This group of people will need to understand the methodology and the technology tools to integrate your marketing program and make it effective. The following functions to achieve this include technology, content generation, campaign management, and strategy.

• CMO, Marketing VP, or Marketing Director: Depending on the size of your organization, your needs in this leadership area will vary, but you need at least one of these team players to develop the strategy, oversee projects, and provide direction to the team. This individual should have a comprehensive understanding of inbound marketing and the associated tools and serve as the department leader. This could vary in title from Director to Chief Marketing Officer.
• Content Manager: It is beneficial to have a team member exclusively in charge of content; this individual should be an internal employee. I do not recommend outsourcing your content development because you know your subject matter, industry, and customers better than anyone else. An outsourced partner can help you define your strategy, but the content creation should remain in-house. Invest in a good content writer who can help tell your story in your brand's voice. This individual should be responsible for all content-related things, including your website, blogs, landing pages, collateral, video scripts, and more.
• Marketing Manager or Marketing Specialist: This individual is responsible for ensuring all the moving parts of your campaigns are integrated. They should be involved in campaign creation and understand how your marketing assets connect to make your campaign run smoothly. This team member would be considered the "go-to" individual on the team for questions on campaign status, how a campaign is performing at any given time, and taking care of any updates or changes as the campaign progresses.
• Marketing Technologist: Depending on your organization's size, this position could report to the Marketing Director. If you are a mid-to-large size company with many different technology tools, you should have a dedicated individual for this marketing technology function. This individual should be responsible for how your marketing automation tool works, how it syncs with other platforms, and the various integrated elements to consider as you bring on new platforms. This position could have a dotted reporting line to the IT department since they work closely together.

Depending on your business model, you may need other key players, including an Event Manager, Video Producer, Graphic Designer, Web Developer, and many more. It's important to look at your current and future goals to determine how you can build the most effective digital marketing team. Without the right team, it will be nearly impossible for you to reach (or exceed) your company's marketing and sales goals.

Are you looking for ways to optimize your inbound strategy? The "book "Mastering Inbound Marketing: Your Complete Guide to Building a Results-Driven Inbound Strategy," written by Elyse Flynn Meyer, Owner & Founder of Prism Global Marketing Solutions, covers every aspect of the inbound marketing methodology, including the revenue generation trifecta of marketing, sales, and the customer experience. Check out the book to see how to most efficiently and effectively develop, implement, and maintain your inbound strategy.