Accelerate Your Marketing

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• Do you require retainers? If so, how long are they?

  While we may begin with an introductory project, we typically work in 6-12 month retainers – but the contract timeframe usually becomes irrelevant because most of our clients stay for 3+ years.

• Can you really write content about complicated technology?

  Absolutely. Our technical writing is one of the things we’re known for doing best.

  Our on-staff writers are either engineers themselves or have worked with engineers their entire careers. They come with a deep and wide understanding of complex technologies and are quick to get up to speed with new developments. 

• Our SMEs can be difficult to work with – what's your process?

  See above. Because our on-staff writers are technical by both trade and passion, they typically gain the trust of our client SMEs quickly. 

  Practically, this looks like applying domain knowledge we hold about a variety of topics, working with SMEs how they work best (conversations, written questions, reviewing existing materials), and conducting outside research to outline, draft, revise, and finalize content.

  By the end of the writing process, SMEs are happy to put their byline on the content we created.

• Do we need to have specific MarTech tools in place?

  We value modern, editable websites and CRM and marketing automation tools. We like for you to either have these tools in place or be willing to invest in them. We’ve worked with many tools and if you’re in the evaluation stage, are happy to help you come to a decision that’s a right-fit for your organization.

• Do you work with startups?

  While we love the thrill of a new startup opportunity, to market how we do best, we typically work on 6-12 month retainers and need a commitment for that runway. So, yes -- just not on an hourly basis (or pro bono!).

• We already have a marketing team, what does additional support look like?

  Our teams work alongside large-scale marketing departments at mid-market to enterprise-level companies to develop and execute a campaign-specific strategy. We often help internal teams get “unstuck” by bypassing the inevitable hurdles or necessary distractions that internal teams face. 

  We often work with a defined team of marketing stakeholders and SMEs on your end to make a plan, develop content, and help you publish and promote it before you can wrangle the 20 people who are typically on a kickoff call. 

• We currently have no dedicated marketing team, how do we build a sustainable marketing program?

  It's critical that you have a Marketing Champion -- someone who is certain marketing is a necessity, can see the power of high-quality content, and is willing to see it through. When your existing marketing framework is limited, we work with one-person marketing teams (or teams where there’s no dedicated marketing lead!) to build an entire marketing program. 

  If you have no one dedicated to marketing, our goal over time would be to build up your structure and then for you to hire a marketing coordinator – we’ll help advise this person and continue with strategy and execution, but they'll be your internal coordinator and marketing champion along the way. 

• How long will it take to see ROI?

  Any piece of content or digital campaign has immediate metrics (views, visits, click-throughs) but you're probably looking for lasting, brand-building results.

  If you're new to investing in content marketing, the first year will be about getting your foundation in place with branding, content planning, and website strategy. You'll begin to create a steady stream of targeted content by the end of this year. Some of the most significant results you'll see here are getting projects that have been looming over you for years completed so you can move forward with day-to-day marketing.

  Your second year will involve lead scoring and handoffs to sales as well as strengthening your content development with a wide variety of content types and content promotion. Here, ROI looks like monthly results analysis, quarterly plan adjustment, and annually reviewing business goals to create new content plans.

  From there, it's keeping momentum moving and evolving plans and execution to meet business needs.

  Overall, companies who invest in content marketing and marketing automation see an increase in monthly leads, lead quality =, lead-to-customer conversion, and revenue within the first year.

• How much time do my team and I need to dedicate to marketing?

  This depends on the engagement.

  Marketing strategy projects will likely take a team of 3-5 people up to four hours a week for 4-8 weeks, the time largely used for collaborative strategy and planning meetings.

  Content retainers take similar weekly timing for the first few weeks, then the time is dispersed amongst your Marketing Champion and identified SMEs.

  Typically, Account Managers will meet with the Marketing Champion for 30 minutes biweekly to discuss current projects and share updates. And then for 2 hours quarterly to review metrics results and analysis and discuss new activities and/or opportunities to consider adding to the quarterly plan. Simultaneously, writers are meeting with your SMEs for content development. A typical white paper, for example requires one hour of sourcing with the SME, and a collective 2-3 hours of review by an SME throughout the content development process.