As a marketer, once you’ve hooked up with an agency, freelancer, or even hired a full-time in-house editor, it’s time to jump into content creation.

One of the most popular forms of content is the written word and it’s typically a great place to start. There are a variety of questions a company should be prepared to answer for each piece of content that is created, or at the very least for the running campaign.

One challenge content marketers face is lack of information.  Nobody knows a product or service better than the company selling it. However, there’s so much disconnect between the writers, project managers, product managers, and other client representatives in the internal workings of the company that oftentimes pieces end up nothing like what the client envisioned. Another challenge: clients/marketers don’t know what they want or how to achieve it.

Let me share the keys to creating a supreme piece of content: preparation, knowledge, and fantastic writing skills (surprisingly enough we’ve even seen good pieces with sub-par writing).

As a content creator, having a client come prepared and full of information makes the process seamless, removes doubt, opens communication, and creates a clear path for development.

So, what information should you have on hand for your in-depth content call? This comprehensive list should have you covered:

• Intent: what is the purpose of this piece of content? Are we providing thought leadership, raising brand awareness, creating top-of-funnel content that broadens reach, or are we more specifically trying to create a conversion? Maybe your goal is to get people to a specific landing page or to share the content socially. Whatever it is, come prepared with this goal. This helps the content creation team stay on task while developing and lets writers know how to massage the piece to get a user to perform your desired action.
• Target Audience: who are we writing for? Be specific.
• Are there company-specific writer’s guidelines to follow?
• Are there examples of content that you’d like us to mimic as we create?
• Are there any specific products or services we need to weave into the message?
• If yes, come prepared with background materials or a product manager that can discuss the specifics and answer the questions not found in supplemental materials.
• What is the tone of the piece? Funny, technical, serious, light, etc.
• Any quotes we should incorporate?
• Any product or company images that we should include? Try to have the files beforehand or soon after the discussion.
• Links? Supplied? If not, what hyperlinks can/should be included?
• Should we focus on SEO optimization?

Going Deeper

• What are the major pain points your business encounters?
• What are the most frequently asked questions from customers or prospects?
• What separates your company from the competition?
• What are the most popular application areas?
• How can your product or service improve?
• Forward facing statements about the industry
• Are there any customers willing to speak with us and share their experience for an article
• Any new developments coming?
• Any how-it-works information
• Call-to-action? What do we want people to do?
• Where will the piece be published?
• How will you promote your content?
• How will you measure effectiveness?

If you’re working with an outside team, coming prepared also means asking the right questions. Hopefully, this information has been laid out for you prior to project commencement, but if not, make sure you’re aware of the following:

• Project timeline
• Who is producing the content?
• How many revisions are included?
• Additional fees?
• How can we further promote the content?
• Can this content be re-purposed in other formats?

If you have the answers to these questions as you embark on your content marketing journey, you’re on the right track. Now you can build on them. Keep this list with you as you go forward and evolve your strategy. It will save time and effort on the parts of all parties involved.