Effective Work Sample Exercises for Hiring a Content Strategy Manager

In today's digital landscape, content is the cornerstone of effective marketing and brand communication. A Content Strategy Manager plays a pivotal role in ensuring that an organization's content efforts are strategic, cohesive, and aligned with business objectives. This role requires a unique blend of analytical thinking, creativity, audience understanding, and leadership skills.

Traditional interviews often fail to reveal a candidate's true capabilities in content strategy. While a resume might showcase impressive experience and a candidate might articulate their approach well in conversation, these methods don't necessarily demonstrate how they would tackle real-world content challenges. This is where practical work samples become invaluable.

Work samples provide a window into how candidates think, plan, execute, and adapt their strategies based on data and feedback. For a Content Strategy Manager, these exercises should evaluate their ability to analyze existing content, understand audience needs, develop strategic plans, and measure content performance—all critical aspects of the role.

By incorporating the following work samples into your hiring process, you'll gain deeper insights into each candidate's capabilities, beyond what resumes and traditional interviews can reveal. These exercises are designed to simulate the actual work a Content Strategy Manager would perform, giving you a clearer picture of who will excel in the role and drive your content marketing efforts forward.

Activity #1: Content Audit and Strategy Recommendations

This exercise evaluates a candidate's ability to analyze existing content, identify gaps and opportunities, and develop strategic recommendations. A strong Content Strategy Manager must be able to assess current content performance, align it with business objectives, and chart a path forward that addresses audience needs while supporting organizational goals.

Directions for the Company:

• Provide the candidate with access to 5-10 pieces of your existing content (blog posts, white papers, videos, etc.) that represent different content types and topics.
• Include basic performance metrics for each piece (views, engagement rate, conversion rate, etc.).
• Share a brief overview of your business objectives and target audience.
• Allow the candidate 2-3 days to complete this exercise before their interview.
• During the interview, allocate 20-30 minutes for the candidate to present their findings and recommendations, followed by 10-15 minutes for questions.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the provided content and performance metrics.
• Conduct a content audit that evaluates:
• Content quality and relevance to the target audience
• Content performance against provided metrics
• Content gaps and opportunities
• Alignment with business objectives
• Prepare a brief presentation (5-7 slides) that includes:
• Key findings from your audit
• 3-5 strategic recommendations to improve content effectiveness
• Suggestions for new content types or topics that would better serve the audience and business goals
• A high-level implementation plan for your recommendations

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the presentation, the interviewer should provide specific feedback on one aspect the candidate did well (e.g., "Your analysis of our audience gaps was particularly insightful") and one area for improvement (e.g., "I'd like to see more specific KPIs for measuring success").
• Give the candidate 5 minutes to respond to the improvement feedback and share how they would adjust their recommendations accordingly.
• Observe how receptive the candidate is to feedback and how quickly they can adapt their thinking.

Activity #2: Audience Persona Development

This exercise assesses a candidate's ability to research, understand, and articulate the needs of a target audience—a fundamental skill for any Content Strategy Manager. Effective content strategy begins with a deep understanding of who you're creating content for and what resonates with them.

Directions for the Company:

• Provide the candidate with basic information about one of your target audience segments, including:
• Basic demographic information
• Industry or market segment
• General challenges or pain points
• A sample of content this audience has engaged with
• Include access to your website, social media profiles, and 2-3 competitor websites for research purposes.
• Give the candidate 1-2 days to complete this exercise.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Using the provided information and your own research, develop a comprehensive audience persona that includes:
• Detailed demographic and psychographic information
• Key challenges, pain points, and goals
• Content preferences (topics, formats, channels)
• Customer journey touchpoints where content can influence decisions
• Content gaps that currently exist for this persona
• Create a 1-2 page document that clearly articulates this persona in a format that would be useful for content creators.
• Prepare to explain your research methodology and how you would validate this persona with real audience data.

Feedback Mechanism:

• The interviewer should provide feedback on the depth and practicality of the persona, highlighting one strength (e.g., "Your insights into the persona's content consumption habits were particularly valuable") and one area for improvement (e.g., "The persona could benefit from more specific information about their decision-making process").
• Ask the candidate to spend 5-10 minutes expanding on the area for improvement, either verbally or by quickly sketching additional details.
• Evaluate how the candidate incorporates feedback and whether they ask clarifying questions to ensure they understand what's being requested.

Activity #3: Content Calendar Planning Exercise

This exercise evaluates a candidate's ability to develop a strategic content plan that aligns with business objectives while maintaining a consistent publishing cadence. It tests their organizational skills, strategic thinking, and understanding of how different content types work together across channels.

Directions for the Company:

• Provide the candidate with:
• A specific business objective (e.g., "Increase lead generation for Product X by 20% in Q3")
• Information about the target audience
• A list of available content creation resources (e.g., writers, designers, video producers)
• Any seasonal events or product launches occurring during the planning period
• Specify a time period for the content calendar (e.g., one month or one quarter)
• Allow the candidate 1-2 days to complete this exercise.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Create a content calendar for the specified time period that:
• Aligns with the business objective
• Addresses the needs and interests of the target audience
• Includes a mix of content types (blog posts, social media, videos, emails, etc.)
• Specifies content themes, topics, and working titles
• Indicates publication channels and dates
• Notes required resources for each content piece
• Prepare a brief explanation (1 page or less) of your strategic approach and how this content plan supports the business objective.
• Be prepared to discuss how you would measure the success of this content plan and make adjustments based on performance.

Feedback Mechanism:

• The interviewer should provide feedback on the calendar's strategic alignment and practicality, highlighting one strength (e.g., "Your theme progression throughout the quarter creates a compelling narrative") and one area for improvement (e.g., "I'd like to see more integration between the blog content and social media strategy").
• Ask the candidate to spend 10 minutes revising a specific week or section of the calendar based on the feedback.
• Evaluate how well the candidate balances strategic thinking with tactical execution and how they incorporate feedback into their planning.

Activity #4: Content Performance Analysis

This exercise tests a candidate's analytical skills and ability to derive actionable insights from content performance data. A successful Content Strategy Manager must be able to interpret data, identify patterns, and make data-driven recommendations to continuously improve content effectiveness.

Directions for the Company:

• Prepare a dataset showing performance metrics for 10-15 content pieces across different channels (blog, social media, email, etc.).
• Include metrics such as views, engagement rate, conversion rate, time on page, social shares, etc.
• You can anonymize real data or create realistic sample data.
• Provide brief context about the content goals and target audience.
• Allow candidates 1-2 hours to complete this analysis before or during the interview.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Analyze the provided content performance data to:
• Identify top-performing and underperforming content
• Determine patterns or trends in what resonates with the audience
• Uncover insights about content types, topics, formats, or channels that drive the best results
• Prepare a brief report (1-2 pages) that includes:
• Key findings from your analysis
• 3-5 actionable recommendations to improve content performance
• Suggestions for content experiments to test your hypotheses
• Recommendations for additional metrics or data points that would enhance future analysis
• Be prepared to explain your analytical approach and how you would implement your recommendations.

Feedback Mechanism:

• The interviewer should provide feedback on the candidate's analytical approach and recommendations, highlighting one strength (e.g., "Your correlation between content length and conversion rate was an insight we hadn't considered") and one area for improvement (e.g., "I'd like to see more specific recommendations for our underperforming email content").
• Ask the candidate to spend 5-10 minutes expanding on the improvement area, providing more detailed recommendations or explaining how they would approach the problem differently.
• Evaluate the candidate's comfort with data, ability to translate analysis into action, and receptiveness to feedback on their analytical approach.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much time should we allocate for these work samples in our interview process?

Each work sample requires different time commitments. The Content Audit and Audience Persona exercises should be completed before the interview, with 30-45 minutes allocated during the interview for presentation and discussion. The Content Calendar exercise can also be done beforehand, with 20-30 minutes for discussion. The Content Performance Analysis could be done as a timed exercise during the interview (1-2 hours) or beforehand. Plan your interview schedule accordingly, and consider spreading these across different interview stages.

Should we use our actual content and data for these exercises?

Using real content and data provides the most authentic assessment, but you should anonymize sensitive information. If sharing real data isn't feasible, create realistic sample data that reflects typical patterns in your industry. The key is to make the exercise authentic enough to test the candidate's skills in a realistic scenario.

How do we evaluate candidates consistently across these exercises?

Create a scorecard for each exercise that evaluates specific skills (e.g., analytical thinking, strategic planning, audience understanding). Rate candidates on a consistent scale for each criterion. Have the same interviewers evaluate all candidates on a particular exercise to ensure consistency. Focus on both the quality of their work and their process, including how they respond to feedback.

What if a candidate doesn't have experience with our specific industry or content type?

These exercises test fundamental content strategy skills that should transfer across industries. A strong candidate might not know your industry specifics but should demonstrate sound strategic thinking, analytical skills, and audience-centered approaches. Consider providing additional context about your industry for candidates coming from different backgrounds.

Should we compensate candidates for completing these work samples?

For more extensive exercises like the Content Audit that require significant time investment, consider offering compensation, especially for senior roles. This demonstrates respect for the candidate's time and expertise. For shorter exercises, clearly communicate the estimated time commitment upfront so candidates can decide if they want to proceed with the application process.

How can we ensure these exercises don't disadvantage certain candidates?

Be flexible with deadlines and format requirements to accommodate candidates with different circumstances. Provide clear instructions and necessary resources to ensure all candidates have what they need to complete the exercises successfully. Consider offering alternatives for candidates who may have accessibility needs or other constraints.

In today's content-driven marketing landscape, finding the right Content Strategy Manager can significantly impact your organization's ability to connect with audiences and drive business results. These work samples provide a comprehensive assessment of the skills needed for success in this critical role.

By implementing these exercises in your hiring process, you'll gain deeper insights into each candidate's capabilities and approach, helping you identify those who can truly elevate your content strategy. Remember that the best candidates will not only demonstrate technical proficiency but also show adaptability, strategic thinking, and a genuine understanding of how content drives business outcomes.

For more resources to enhance your hiring process, check out Yardstick's AI Job Description Generator, AI Interview Question Generator, and AI Interview Guide Generator. You can also find the complete job description for a Content Strategy Manager here.

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