5 traits of successful They Ask, You Answer companies

They Ask, You Answer is a widely applicable business philosophy used by hundreds of companies in dozens of industries around the world. This is the case because the principles behind the philosophy can serve as a guide for all types of businesses.

Yet some companies are struggling to implement They Ask, You Answer, while others are having great success with it. By looking closely at the factors that drive these results, you can better position your own company for your own They Ask, You Answer journey.

Because while the concept of They Ask, You Answer is simple, successful implementation requires a host of small tasks, skills, attunements, thinking habits and cultural conventions.

As the saying goes, "the devil's in the details.

What makes some companies succeed and others struggle? We have found that it is a combination of factors, which we describe below.

This is what successful 'They Ask, You Answer' companies have in common.

The most crucial factor for successful implementation of They Ask, You Answer is hiring a content manager to oversee your content marketing efforts. Filling this role, however, goes far beyond checking a box.

Hiring the right person is crucial, of course, but it's not just about people. They must also be enabled to do the work for which they were hired.

To that end, it doesn't matter how talented a content manager is. If she doesn't get the support she needs to succeed, she probably won't succeed. If she does succeed, she will be doing twice as much work as she should be doing and will eventually suffer burnout.

So what does that support look like?

For starters, you need to invest in tools that will help your content manager do her job effectively. HubSpot should be a given, but additional tools such as Ahrefs or Hotjar may also be necessary.

But the most important investment is in people. The content manager needs to be inducted into the company, of course, but perhaps even more important is to induct the company into the content manager. Your content manager must be empowered to steer the ship and really own the content strategy.

This means there must be "buy-in" and content experts (SME's, subject matter experts) must be readily available for interviews so the content manager can produce content quickly. If the rest of the company isn't ready for this, a newly hired employee can't really get it done either.

Hiring a content manager represents a cultural shift for most companies. It is a clear indication that you are ready to put content production at the center of your marketing strategy. However, the entire company must be prepared for such a change. If everyone has to help with content production, make sure that's clear (and that people have time for it in their schedules).

Otherwise, the best content manager in the world will struggle to single-handedly implement They Ask, You Answer in your company.

First and foremost, They Ask, You Answer should be about producing content that helps sales teams close deals. To ensure your content manager is connected to your sales teams, we recommend regular content brainstorming sessions that ensure customer questions are answered in content.

But this is only half of the feedback loop. If the content manager does not contact the sales team again after the content is produced, that loop is never closed.

Here's the thing: salespeople and content experts don't always speak the same language. Your content manager might get the answer from the content expert, but it might not be worded the way sales would like it.

If sales don't find the content useful, they won't use it either. Pretty soon, you might find that the entire buy-in of the team for implementing They Ask, You Answer begins to crumble.

Therefore, we recommend doing a brief check-in with sales before a piece of content goes live. This doesn't have to take more than 15 minutes. All the content manager has to do is contact the salesperson who requested the piece and say 'Hey, this is what I produced. Is this in line with what you expected?'"

Remember that the alignment between sales and marketing that is essential for They Ask, You Answer must be practiced throughout the content creation process. Otherwise, friction is likely to occur or the collaboration will break down.

Have and use the right tools for ROI reporting At They Ask, You Answer buy-in is essential. If you have sales, management and marketing on board, you can move mountains. But when that alignment and commitment begin to falter, you lose momentum and things get tough.

They Ask, You Answer is based on the belief that the content your company produces makes money. To keep your team engaged, you need to show that it works.

If you are unable to tie business to closed deals, improved sales and more, you probably won't continue They Ask, You Answer because you can't show that it works.

This means you have to use HubSpot (or other tools) to prove that what you're doing works.

At Buzzlytics, we recommend merging your sales and marketing teams into one revenue team. Too often, sales is seen as the team that makes money, while marketing is seen as a team that costs money.

If you are unable to demonstrate the ROI of producing They Ask, You Answer content, then it is easier than ever to dismiss the effort as yet another marketing initiative that costs money and generates no revenue.

It's a situation that scares many a content marketer. Someone finds your content, is helped by it, but they don't make a strong connection between your content and your brand and ultimately don't make a purchase from you.

It seems like you did everything right. You produced useful content that was found by someone looking for an answer related to your product or service. But then, poof. The magic didn't happen

Why? What made your content useful but not memorable?

It is not enough for an article to be informative and thorough. It must also have personality.

Personality does not necessarily mean humor (that would be inappropriate in some industries). Personality is making it clear to the reader that there is a human being on the other side of the content.

Humor is a great way to do this in many cases, but we all know how annoying it is when a joke doesn't come across. Rather, the focus should be on recognition. Can your readers recognize themselves in you? Is it clear that you understand their problems on a personal level?

To bring more personality to your content, start with a corporate identity manual. This can help multiple team members make sure they strike the same tone, even as they express themselves as individuals.

An added benefit of adding personality to your company's writing? People will have less resistance to content production.

This seems simple, but it deserves repetition. We recommend that you publish three articles per week. To meet this number, your content manager must be an excellent planner with excellent time management skills. Companies that are successful with They Ask, You Answer commit to regular content production for the long term.

Because each individual piece of content takes more than a week to produce, they always have to juggle multiple pieces at different stages of the process.

We recommend building up a hefty inventory of content ideas from which writers can draw as their time permits. Otherwise, production may falter. Once that happens, you find yourself on a slippery slope. Three a week becomes two a week, and then it becomes one a week.

Search engines reward regular content publication, and the more content you produce, the more likely you are to generate traffic and bring in leads.

They Ask, You Answer is applied by large and small companies, all over the world, B2B and B2C, and in different industries. At the same time, there are companies that have tried to put it into practice and have struggled to achieve their goals.

They Ask, You Answer is a principles-based approach, and to really apply those principles, you need to set up the right structures.

This means creating a culture that embraces the vision and building the logistical scaffolding to make it a reality. Your sales team and marketing team cannot be aligned without regular meetings. Content creation will not run smoothly if your employees are not encouraged to make time for it. If you don't celebrate content victories, you will struggle to create momentum.

But if you enter the process and are aware of the fundamental elements needed for true success with They Ask, You Answer, you will be ready to achieve your goals.