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Content manager vs content strategist

The differences between content managers and content strategists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a content manager, becoming a content strategist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a content strategist has an average salary of $93,672, which is higher than the $75,124 average annual salary of a content manager.

The top three skills for a content manager include digital marketing, content strategy and content creation. The most important skills for a content strategist are content strategy, digital marketing, and digital content.

Content manager vs content strategist overview

Content ManagerContent Strategist
Yearly salary$75,124$93,672
Hourly rate$36.12$45.03
Growth rate10%13%
Number of jobs108,05814,660
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age3937
Years of experience104

What does a content manager do?

A Content Manager is focused on creating, improving, and maintaining content to achieve the business goals. They lead a team of copywriters and content executives.

What does a content strategist do?

A content strategist specializes in creating engaging and captivating content to increase brand awareness and shape company image. One of their responsibilities is to conduct marketing research and analysis to understand the current trends among consumers and determine what kind of strategy would work best with the public. Moreover, a content strategist mainly coordinates with writers and content managers, collaborating with them in developing marketing materials. A content strategist may also perform administrative tasks such as managing schedules, producing progress reports, creating presentations, and maintaining the projects' documentation.

Content manager vs content strategist salary

Content managers and content strategists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Content ManagerContent Strategist
Average salary$75,124$93,672
Salary rangeBetween $50,000 And $111,000Between $67,000 And $129,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonCalifornia
Best paying companyMetaMeta
Best paying industryTechnologyTechnology

Differences between content manager and content strategist education

There are a few differences between a content manager and a content strategist in terms of educational background:

Content ManagerContent Strategist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common majorEnglishEnglish
Most common collegeUniversity of GeorgiaNorthwestern University

Content manager vs content strategist demographics

Here are the differences between content managers' and content strategists' demographics:

Content ManagerContent Strategist
Average age3937
Gender ratioMale, 49.1% Female, 50.9%Male, 44.3% Female, 55.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 7.2% Unknown, 6.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 10.6% White, 61.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage10%9%

Differences between content manager and content strategist duties and responsibilities

Content manager example responsibilities.

  • Manage social media, blogging, SEO strategy, and outreach.
  • Assign stories to freelancers and manage that editorial process, including optimizing original content for SEO.
  • Manage, coordinate, and confirm all content updates in the content management system including UI messaging and user assistance.
  • Manage social media marketing, including Instagram
  • Manage implementation of marketing automation software and lead integration with CRM to improve tracking and visibility into campaign performance.
  • Web management responsibilities include WordPress and basic HTML.
  • Show more

Content strategist example responsibilities.

  • Manage paid, earn and own content distribution channels including PPC, SEO and SEM.
  • Manage assets of the major film studios using proprietary CMS technology to monitor copyright material on YouTube.
  • Manage content-strategy and copywriting engagements for a global interactive ad agency.
  • Manage implementation of marketing automation software and lead integration with CRM to improve tracking and visibility into campaign performance.
  • Leverage analytics to increase marketing ROI and provide leadership with marketing effectiveness reports.
  • Implement new strategies for PPC & SEO campaigns.
  • Show more

Content manager vs content strategist skills

Common content manager skills
  • Digital Marketing, 9%
  • Content Strategy, 7%
  • Content Creation, 6%
  • Project Management, 6%
  • Web Content, 6%
  • Content Development, 4%
Common content strategist skills
  • Content Strategy, 14%
  • Digital Marketing, 10%
  • Digital Content, 6%
  • User Experience, 5%
  • Content Marketing, 4%
  • Content Creation, 3%

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