12 Days

mlns='> That’s all the productive workdays left in 2021. Are you ready? [View Message in Browser]( / [Add Us to Safe Sender List]( Weekly News 12.3.21 Connect With CMI [4 Business Storytelling Examples That Break the Problem-Solution Mold]( You know the formula: someone faces a challenge, a product offers a solution, and the problem gets solved. Content like this fills an information need – but rarely keeps people coming back. Get inspired to break the mold with examples that show the heart of business storytelling. [Read more]( By Ann Gynn More of the best stuff from this week (and last): - [[Video News Update] What Optimizely’s Acquisition of Welcome Means for Content Marketers]( by Robert Rose - [How To Make Content a More Effective Part of Your Sales Funnel]( by Ann Smarty - [8 Fresh Content Types Every Marketer Should Consider in 2022]( by Irina Weber - [13 Stand-Out Content Examples That Give Us All the Holiday Feels]( by Jodi Harris - [17 New, Newly Updated, and Timeless Books Content Marketers Love]( Ann Gynn - [How To Build a Content Operations Framework (and Why You Need One)]( by Cathy McKnight - [How To Amplify Your Podcast (Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Ideas)]( by Holly Pels - [3 Hot Takes: Stand Against Social Media, Delivery App Fees, and Poor Personalization]( by Content Marketing Institute Team Want To Be Featured on the Content Marketing Institute Website? Fill out [this short form]( to share your opinion about any exciting, unique, puzzling, or eyebrow-raising content example, idea, or trend you’ve seen this week (including pieces you’ve created). We’ll credit you as the source (and include your commentary) if we include your submission in an upcoming Friday article.  12 Days of Planning It’s that time of year. Look at the calendar. The math says there are 20 weekdays before the new year. But, with vacation schedules and holiday closures, that number is closer to 12. Twelve. I’ve received a fair share of emails from last-minute planners developing their content and marketing plans for 2022. Budgets and plans are due. And one question comes up more than any other: How will I get everything done? Spoiler alert: You won’t. Humans have a funny relationship with “planning.” We tend to trick ourselves into believing that the output of planning is a plan to accomplish all the tasks we’ve already decided on. It’s not. It’s the opposite. Planning involves making decisions about which things we should build a plan to accomplish. I see this all too frequently with content marketing teams. Content planning consists of listing out the decisions passed along from upper management, the requests from other parts of the business (product, sales, and so on), and the content team’s goals. They look at all the decisions in each category, then rigorously analyze how to create a plan to achieve them. I’ll let you guess which category of “decisions” get crossed off as teams discover there’s no way to achieve them all (hint: It’s the last one). If your content plan is simply a list of all the decisions made – it’s not a strategic plan. It’s a production schedule. This kind of approach explains why so many senior executives feel skeptical about content planning. A planning process that simply determines how to accomplish already-made decisions inevitably becomes a barrier to good decision making. No matter how much content gets produced, the focus invariably shifts to what we are not doing rather than what we are. The way out is to wipe the whiteboard clean. Content teams must stop looking at the “plan” as the output of planning and focus instead on decisions that influence the strategy. Making that shift involves thinking of planning as a continuous process rather than a year-end project that produces a map to follow faithfully. Strategic content planning isn’t a project – it’s a continuous decision-making process. Work with all the proposed decisions – and decide on what will and (most importantly) what won’t be done. If you move in that direction, it won’t matter that you only have 12 days left in the year because you’ve been planning all along. The decisions you’ve made will influence how you’ll approach the 365 days that come next. Content creation without planning is expressing ideas without commitment. If you believe in what you want to say, then plan on committing to saying it. It’s your story. Tell it well. (And [tell us your thoughts](mailto:cmi_info@informa.com?subject=Feedback) about Robert’s note.) Robert Rose Chief Strategy Advisor Content Marketing Institute You're getting this exclusive article from Robert Rose as a perk of your newsletter subscription. Do you have colleagues or friends who would benefit from Robert's weekly updates? If so, please invite them to [subscribe]( here.  Sponsored Content DAM+PIM: Creating Highly Compatible and Quality Customer Experiences An integrated approach to digital asset management (DAM) and product information management (PIM) allows brands to create quality, connected experiences across the customer journey. [Download the E-Book »](   More From CMI Lead the Conversation at Content Marketing World 2022 Calling all content marketing thought leaders, brand practitioners, and creative storytellers! You’re invited to showcase your expertise on a global stage and inspire your peers at Content Marketing World 2022, September 13-16 in Cleveland, Ohio. We want to hear your unique insights and practical advice that will arm attendees with the latest tools and innovations to accelerate their content marketing and grow their business. [Submit Your Proposal »](   Visual Storytelling: More Than Words to Pictures Struggling with how to best tell a story using visuals? In the latest episode of Marketing Makers, Robert Rose explains the difference between story and narrative, plus shares three tips to improve your visual storytelling. [Watch Video »](   [Content Creation Resources]( Events [Content Marketing World]( [ContentTECH Summit]( [Content Marketing Awards]( Resources [Research]( [White Paper/eBook Library]( [Content VIPs]( [CMI Business Directory]( Education [Content Marketing University]( [Chief Content Officer]( [Webinars]( [Job Listings]( Interested in advertising with CMI? 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