How to create a content mission statement
As a purpose-driven brand, you have a clear idea of what your business stands for – and what it doesn’t. You know your mission, your values, and your goals. You can communicate the WHY behind what you do and how you serve your clients.
But what about the content that you share?
A content mission statement defines the purpose of every piece of content you publish – and keeps you from chasing shiny objects and hopping on unrelated trends.
What’s the difference between a company mission statement and a content mission statement?
Simply put:
A company mission statement declares your business’s purpose, your company culture, and how you serve your customers.
A content mission statement is about your marketing content’s purpose, your voice, and your audience.
With so many ways to communicate with audiences – podcast, blog, video, Instagram, TikTok, email, etc. – a content mission statement is essential to stay focused, stay consistent, and create measurable results.
How to Create a Content Mission Statement
To create your business’s content mission statement, start by answering these three questions:
Who are you creating content for?
What kind of information can they expect?
Why should they care about it?
If you’re not able to answer those questions right away, that’s okay! This quick guide will help you create a content mission statement in less than 15 minutes.
Master marketer Andy Crestodina from Orbit Media has a super helpful content mission statement framework to get us started:
Our content is where [audience] gets [information] that offers [benefit].
Let’s break down each section.
Who’s your audience?
Every piece of content should be created with someone in mind. So, your first step is to define who you want engaging with your content.
Who do you want watching your videos?
Who do you want reading your blog posts?
What type of prospects would you love to join your email list?
Who do you ultimately want to work with?
Caution: Don’t get too lost in the details. Unlike creating an Ideal Client Profile (ICP), a broad category works fine for your content mission statement. Something like “life coaches” or “female athletes” or “food truck owners” are all examples of clear yet general audiences.
What information will you share?
Next, define the main topics that you’ll be covering. Like the audience section, keep these answers broad – this is not the place for content pillars.
Your content mission statement could include something like “advice to boost productivity and organization” or “practical training plans and nutrition advice” or “tips to navigate college admissions.”
What’s the benefit to your audience?
Now what’s the benefit of your audience paying attention to your content? This is where you stop to think about the impact of your content – on your audience. Yes, your goal is to increase sign-ups or subscriptions or leads but this section is not about Calls-to-Action (CTA).
Your audience’s reason for engaging with your content is purely selfish.
You need to decide:
What will your audience learn?
How does your content help them in their lives or their businesses?
What’s the general take-away from every piece of content?
For example, the benefit of engaging with your content is for audiences to become “stronger athlete”s or “better project managers” or “learn to lead a healthier, wealthier life.”
Content Mission Statement Examples
Before you pull all those puzzle pieces together, let’s look at some examples of other brands’ content mission statements:
From Trail Mix Marketing:
Where adventurous, purpose-driven brands find functional content marketing advice that helps them attract and engage ideal audiences.
From Orbit Media:
Where digital marketers find practical advice on content, analytics, and web design to get better results from their websites.
From Table Needs:
Where restaurateurs find useful, actionable information to help them run profitable restaurant businesses.
From Morning Brew:
Morning Brew informs, educates, and empowers the leaders and decision makers of today and tomorrow on the business world, money, and their career.
Tips for writing a content mission statement
You’re up! Using the framework above, write a content mission statement for your brand.
Feeling a bit stuck? Our best piece of advice is to start with a freewrite. Jot down your ideas, be vague, be silly, write a sh*tty first draft, whatever gets the juices flowing. The goal is to have something you can start to hone, to mold into your final content mission statement.
For more hands on help, get in touch with us! We *love* helping amazing, forward-thinking brands create content strategies that their audiences gobble up.