A CFO and CMO's guide to improving marketing ROI by reducing cost of Content

Content has become the lifeblood of enterprise marketing. However, as the demand for personalized, omni-channel experiences continues to skyrocket, CFOs and CMOs are facing unprecedented challenges in managing the costs and complexities of their content supply chains. At UpperRight, we specialize in the key cost drivers in the content lifecycle and provide actionable strategies for optimizing your content supply chain to maximize ROI and drive business growth.

The Content Conundrum: Balancing demand and resources

According to a recent Adobe study, 88% of marketing and customer experience leaders reported that content demand has at least doubled over the last two years, with nearly two-thirds expecting it to grow by 5x in the next two years. This explosive growth is putting immense pressure on organizations to produce more content, faster, and across an ever-expanding array of channels and touch points.

For CFOs and CMOs, this surge in content demand presents a significant challenge: How do you reduce cost of content and increase efficiency without sacrificing performance?

Understanding the Content Supply Chain cost drivers

To effectively optimize your content supply chain, it's crucial to first identify the key cost drivers across people, processes, and technologies:

1. Organizational Talent and Skill Costs:

• Internal creative and marketing teams

• Agency partnerships and outsourced content production

•  Remote workforce management and coordination

•  Training and skill development to keep pace with new technologies and channels

2. Operational Process Costs:

• Inefficient workflows and approval processes

• Siloed content creation across different teams and departments

• Lack of centralized planning and resource allocation

• Duplicate efforts and content redundancies

• Time lost due to poor communication and collaboration

3. Marketing Technology Stack Costs:

• Content creation software and tools

• Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems

• Content Management Systems (CMS) and Digital Experience Platforms (DXP)

• Marketing automation platforms

• Project management and workflow tools
  

• AI and machine learning technologies for content optimization and personalization

The hidden costs of an inefficient Content Supply Chain

While the direct costs associated with content creation are often visible, many organizations fail to account for the hidden costs of an inefficient content supply chain. The Adobe study reveals that half of the surveyed companies lose at least 5 hours per week per employee due to inefficiencies in their content processes. For large enterprises, this translates to significant productivity losses and missed opportunities.

Some of the hidden costs include:

• Opportunity costs from delayed content delivery and missed marketing windows

• Compliance risks due to inconsistent branding or outdated content

• Employee burnout and turnover resulting from inefficient processes

• Reduced ROI on marketing campaigns due to suboptimal content quality or targeting

Actionable strategies for optimizing the efficiency of your Content Supply Chain

1. Centralize content planning and resource allocation

Implement a centralized content strategy and planning process that aligns with your overall business objectives. This approach allows for better resource allocation, reduces duplication of efforts, and ensures that content investments are strategically aligned with revenue-generating activities. In fact, Adobe research found that 42% of marketers struggle with centralized planning and resourcing for projects. At UpperRight, we begin this by conducting a Content Audit - taking stock of your current content assets in (3) content classifications:

• Content types by funnel stage

• Alignment of content type to journey stage

• Content volume by channel

2. Streamline workflows and approval processes

Map out your current content workflow.  At UpperRight, once we conduct a Content Audit, we then document the end-to-end process of how your content is created, approved, distributed, and measured across your organization. Sometimes it’s by group – Digital, Social, Agency, Web, etc.  Other times, it’s by Channel.  This helps us identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement such as:

• Reduced approval times

• Improved production timelines and fewer bottlenecks

• Better resource allocation (internal vs. external)

Our partners at Bynder found that 73% of marketers feel that their content production processes are inefficient, and Adobe finds that 42% of marketing organization struggle with connected tools and software for collaborative working. By investing in workflow management tools that can automate and streamline your content creation and approval processes, you don't only reduce bottlenecks, but improve collaboration between teams and external partners. As an Adobe Partner, UpperRight often recommends implementing tools like Adobe Workfront®  to enhance visibility into projects, risks, and resource capacity. The impact is significant, with Adobe research suggesting businesses that utilize integrated approval workflows reduce content approval times by 40%, ensuring faster time-to-market and fewer bottlenecks​​​​.

3. Leverage Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems to avoid redundancy

What good is producing great content if it can't be shared, or even worse, it gets recreated a second or third time because it can't be found? A study by IDC found that 88% of marketers need an easy way to discover & share high ROI assets. And Upland found that 65% of marketing teams report recreating assets multiple times because they can't find them in their content systems. This is a colossal waste of money.

A robust DAM system, such as Adobe Experience Manager Assets®, Bynder® and others can significantly reduce costs by:

• Centralizing asset storage and management

• Improving asset discoverability and reuse

• Automating tagging and metadata management

• Ensuring brand consistency across channels

It's also critical that these tools are integrated into the content supply chain effectively, which directly impacts productivity. Gartner finds that organizations that implement integrated DAM and content management systems can improve their productivity by up to 40%. Just imagine if you had even one day back per week from your high cost FTEs

4. Implement a content pre-purpose and repurposing strategy

Many businesses spend time and budget creating "hero" assets, but far fewer have a strategy for repurposing and atomizing that content across channels. Some aren't even using those assets - research firm SiriusDecisions discovered that 60-70% of B2B content created goes unused. We advocate for developing a systematic approach to pre-purposing assets for multiple channels so you can use, reuse and repurpose them. By creating modular “hero” assets that are channel-agnostic, you can more easily adapt and distribute content across various touch points without starting from scratch each time. This approach not only reduces production costs and speed to market, but also ensures consistency in messaging and branding.

5. Embrace and pilot Gen AI and automation

New Gen AI insight and automation tools can dramatically improve the velocity and efficiency of your content supply chain. It pays to embrace them - Klarna saved $10M on marketing annually while upping output. We are big fans of starting with piloting use cases in categories such as:

• AI-powered content creation tools for rapid ideation and editing

• AI powered content automation and optimization engines

• AI-assisted content optimization tools that deliver near real-time content performance analysis

UpperRight has curated a library of the best brand-safe tools at the enterprise level, and we consistently experiment with new tools and technologies to test maturity and application.

6. Optimize your mix of agency vs. in-house content creation and production capabilities

While agencies can provide specialized expertise and scalability, over-reliance on external partners can lead to increased costs and potential loss of brand control. Carefully evaluate your mix of in-house and outsourced creative and content production. An Adobe study found 50% of organizations have at least two agencies onboard to produce their content, indicating potential coordination, consistency and cost redundancy issues. At UpperRight, we help clients find a more balanced approach that maximizes the strengths of both internal teams and agency partnerships – being mindful not to over-rely on agencies whose workflows are not agile.

7. Implement robust content performance analytics

Assess your analytics tools and processes that allow you to measure the performance and ROI of your content across all channels. Before implementing changes, establish baseline metrics for key content performance indicators such as:

• Content production costs by type and by channel

• Time-to-market from ideation to distribution to in-market optimization

• Content utilization and reuse rates

• Content performance across channels – from Brand to Engagement to Commercial and WOM/Social Advocacy

Use these insights to continuously refine and improve your content strategy, allocate resources more effectively, and focus on producing content that delivers the highest business value. Adobe's study showed that businesses that effectively measure and analyze their content performance see a 10-20% increase in content ROI​​​​.

Where to Begin: Identify Quick Win Use Cases

Look for immediate opportunities to improve efficiency, such as:

1. Streamlining workflow to identify and remove collaboration bottlenecks

2. Eliminating redundant approval steps

3. Centralizing asset storage

4. Implementing templates for common content types

Remember, optimizing your content supply chain and improving ROI is an iterative process. Start with these steps, measure your progress, and continually refine your approach based on the insights you gain. With persistence and a data-driven mindset, you can transform your content operations into a powerful engine for business growth and customer engagement.

Next, identify your Current Cost of Content & Potential Savings

While costs related to content creation and production vary by type and organizational structure, it’s essential to start with a baseline. At the enterprise level, you’ll want to think more broadly and include such factors as:

• Labor costs (internal team and freelancers)

• Agency fees

• Technology costs (software licenses, hosting, etc.)

• Paid distribution costs

Check out UpperRight's quick diagnostic tool to help you begin assessing what drives the cost of content and what the projected savings might look like.

Key takeaways for optimizing your content supply chain:

1. Centralize planning and resource allocation to align content investments with business objectives

2. Take a holistic view of your content supply chain workflow, shining a light on inefficiencies and bottlenecks. The goal is to create once and deploy anywhere

3. Implement a data-driven approach to content creation and optimization

4. Continuously measure and refine your content processes and performance to maximize ROI. Remember that optimization is an ongoing process.

   Leverage technology to streamline workflows, improve collaboration, and automate repetitive tasks. As new technologies emerge and customer expectations evolve, it's crucial to remain adaptable and continuously seek out opportunities for improvement.

As the demand for content continues to grow, UpperRight helps CFOs and CMOs work together to optimize a content supply chain that is not only cost-effective but also agile and scalable. By implementing these strategies, you can create a more efficient, cost-effective content ecosystem that delivers personalized experiences at scale while driving meaningful business results. In doing so, you'll be well-positioned to meet the content demands of today while preparing for the challenges of tomorrow.

Let's continue the conversation about how to improve your marketing ROI by reducing cost of Content - reach out to me at alan@upperight.com.