Building A Team For They Ask, You Answer Success

If you’re about to transform your organization into a They Ask, You Answer business, you’ve probably been ready for a change for some time.

Maybe you’ve grown frustrated by marketing that hasn't brought in a return on investment. Maybe you’ve bought HubSpot but haven’t seen it deliver much value. Or maybe you saw Marcus Sheridan speak and had a “lightbulb” moment. You knew that They Ask, You Answer was the future for your business.

You understand that developing a trove of trust-building content is vital to bringing in the right leads for your business.

And now you’re ready to get started — and eager to begin.

But before you get going, heed this piece of advice: Plan carefully and don’t rush through those critical early steps.

In most cases, They Ask, You Answer is not something you can do on your own. You’re going to need to grow your team, and the importance of getting the right people on board cannot be overstated.

At IMPACT, we’ve helped many of our clients put together some successful They Ask, You Answer teams that have generated big results.

And if there's one thing we cannot stress enough, it's this:

You don’t want to get these hires wrong.

So, who do you need on your team? To start, each They Ask, You Answer company needs a content manager. That’s a non-negotiable. If you’re really small, you might get away with deputizing someone internally to take this on, but only if you take other things off their plate.

All told, important They Ask, You Answer roles include (in order of importance):

1. Content manager
2. Videographer
3. HubSpot specialist
4. Website specialist (design/development expert)
5. SEO expert

Now, keep in mind that not every organization will need everyone on this list. Your situation is unique, and who you hire will be based on budget, company size, and other factors.

The roles I just listed are more or less in order of importance, with content manager falling in the “must-have” category and the website specialist and SEO expert falling into the “nice to have” or “maybe someday” categories. Again, it all depends on your individual needs.

Below, I’ll dive into what each of these roles is and how it helps you be successful with They Ask, You Answer.

Use the information included in this article to see if you need to fill a particular role. You’ll find:

• Job overviews for core They Ask, You Answer employees
• Hiring resources
• Salary expectations and other helpful information

If you’re ready to go all-in on They Ask, You Answer, read on!

Why you need to grow your team to implement They Ask, You Answer

To become the most trusted voice in your industry, you’ll need to produce a whole library of content, from blog articles to pillar pages to buyers’ guides. This will mean literally hundreds (if not thousands) of pieces of content.

To get this done, we advise our clients to produce three new articles each and every week. If you stick to this cadence, these add up quickly. (If you start that today, you could end the year with 150 articles, which puts you well on your way to building a library of content.)

But to do this, you’ll need a full-time writer who is dedicated to content creation.

If you ask someone already on your team to start writing content, they will not be able to produce at this rate unless you take everything else off their plate.

Too often, we’ve seen businesses say they’re going to commit to They Ask, You Answer, then ask their one full-time marketer to start writing content. This person might write a few articles, but they quickly either burn out or slow down, and the initiative never moves forward.

For They Ask, You Answer to work, content needs to be a top priority — and you need to devote the necessary resources to see that it gets done.

Who needs to be on your They Ask, You Answer team?

We’ve worked with hundreds of clients who use They Ask, You Answer to connect with customers and grow their business. Listed below are the roles we advise them to hire for, as well as the expected salary range.

Note: The biggest factors affecting salary range are experience and geographic location. Use our salary outlines as a ballpark guide and decide what makes the most sense for you and the job posting.

For salary information, we’ve taken numbers from Glassdoor, HubSpot, and Talent to come up with an accurate range.

1. Content manager

What it is: A content manager helps your entire They Ask, You Answer initiative run smoothly. They will plan and write articles, which includes brainstorming topics, doing research, conducting interviews, and tracking publishing. They may also write website and email copy, ebooks, and things like video scripts or social posts.

What to look for: A background in journalism, English, or communications is best. Marcus Sheridan, founder of They Ask, You Answer, often says a content manager should be a teacher at heart. Therefore, you should pay close attention to how your applicants explain things and interact with others.

What to pay: $50,000 - $75,000+, depending on experience.

Importance: Essential.

Hiring resources:

• How To Hire a Content Manager
• Content Manager Job Description and Template (all industries)
• How to Evaluate the Interviewing Skills of a Content Manager Candidate
• How Long Does It Take to Hire and Onboard a Content Manager?

2. Videographer

What it is: The videographer is the visual version of the content manager. In fact, the two will likely work very closely together. Your videographer will use the visual medium (and YouTube) to educate customers and build trust. They are a key storyteller at your organization.

What to look for: You want your videographer to be a generalist. It might be tempting to hire the candidate who did sound mixing on a big budget production, but that’s probably not the right person. Yes, you’ll want someone who can film and edit, but they will also need to coach people on camera, conduct interviews, and effectively tell the story of your brand. A wide skillset is best.

What to pay: $35,000 - $75,000, depending on experience.

Importance: Nearly essential.

Hiring resources:

• How to Hire an In-House Videographer: Selecting and Interviewing the Best Candidate
• Is Hiring a Videographer for My Company Really Worth the Cost?
• How To Successfully Onboard Your New Videographer

3. HubSpot specialist

What it is: A HubSpot specialist is your in-house HubSpot expert who can keep your portal clean, unite your sales and marketing teams, and flex the full muscle of the platform. In some cases, a HubSpot specialist is also the head of marketing or in charge of demand generation.

What to look for: For this role, hiring depends on your HubSpot needs. If you’re already well established with HubSpot, you’re going to be looking for someone with relevant and recent CRM experience. If you’re just getting started, a greener candidate could work.

What to pay: $60,000 - $100,000+, depending on experience.

Importance: Nearly essential

Hiring resources:

• Need a HubSpot Specialist? Here’s How To Find and Hire the Right Candidate
• Do I Need to Hire a HubSpot Specialist, Or Can Someone on My Team Handle It?

4. Website specialist

What it is: A website specialist is your go-to expert for any website needs ranging from minor bug fixes and troubleshooting to design and development of entire new pages. If you reach a point where you need enough regular website work that you’re putting an agency on retainer (or always hiring freelancers), a website specialist could be a good addition to your team.

What to look for: Your ideal website specialist candidate will have a broad range of skills and experiences — and a go-getter attitude to learning new things. Graphic design experience is important, as is a coding background (HTML, CSS, and JavaScript would be best) and familiarity with website analytics tools.

What to pay: $60,000 - $100,000+, depending on experience.

Importance: Nice-to-have, depending on your size and needs.

Hiring resources:

• What kind of in-house website specialist do we need? (+ free job description template)

5. SEO expert

What it is: A search engine optimization expert can help you improve how you get found on the web. This could include on-page advice around keywords, linking, and page structure, as well as technical SEO aspects, such as schema, site speed, and data security.

What to look for: A background that shows an understanding of both technical and content-focused SEO, as well as the ability to communicate necessary changes to the larger team.

What to pay: $55,000 - $85,000+, depending on experience.

Importance: Nice-to-have, depending on your size and needs.

Hiring resources:

• How To Hire An SEO Expert: 5 Questions To Ask Marketing Candidates To Ensure The Right Hire
• Google’s Advice on How To Hire an SEO Expert

Remember: Even a full team of experts can’t do it alone

They Ask, You Answer is not something that a single person (or even a small team) can do on their own. Yes, the content manager, videographer, and other specialists will be doing the heavy lifting, but they need the entire team behind them for it to work.

Every time someone rolls their eyes when a new article gets published, every time someone declines a brainstorm meeting, every time an employee refuses to appear on camera or lend their expertise to an article, your They Ask, You Answer movement loses momentum.

If a critical mass of employees at your company don’t buy in, your initiative will fail — even if you have the greatest team in the world. As a business leader, do what you can to build consensus.

Hesitating to hire means hesitating to grow

Bringing on a new employee is an exciting but stressful process. Beyond budgeting for an additional salary, there are concerns around hiring, onboarding, and managing someone new — especially when you’re talking about an entirely new role at your company.

But two things should help you feel better:

1. If you’re working with IMPACT, we’ll help you hire for these new roles.
2. The sooner you hire, the sooner you can start growing.

Marcus Sheridan says: “If you’re doing over $1 million in revenue, there’s no reason not to have a content manager on your team. It’s a small investment that will pay a hefty reward.”

If you’re doing over $5 million, he says, you should have a videographer on staff as well.

Your unique needs will determine exactly who you need on your team, but the explanations and resources above should help get you started. When you know what each role is and what to expect, your team can start to take shape in your mind.

They Ask, You Answer is a revolutionary business approach that can transform your organization. With the right team on board, you’re ready to get started.