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How do you know when your content strategy is failing? 

Creating a content strategy is a key part of long-term digital marketing. If you don’t have a plan for what to post on your relevant social media channels and when, you are limiting your potential for growth. Key parts of a strategy include a content calendar, SMART goals, scheduled posts, and a plan for the ideas or topics your content will cover. 

A successful content strategy will highlight your business through multiple platforms. In the end, it will increase your reach, engagement, and ultimately your customer base. 

However, not every strategy goes as planned. A campaign might not meet the goals you outlined. It may receive less engagement or conversion than anticipated. When this happens, it is crucial to understand when to stay the course with your current strategy versus when to pivot and adjust for better results. 

Identifying a failing strategy 

To know when to adapt, you need to first know when you are failing. Identifying when a content strategy is failing is not always straightforward. It requires you to look at the right things. 

1) Stagnation

One of the most telling signs that your content strategy is failing is stagnation. If more than a month has passed and your account seems to be in the same place (same follower count, same number of likes, and no new customers), it’s time to consider a new direction. 

2) Declining engagement rates 

The only thing worse than stagnation is actively declining engagement. What is interesting to people at one point may be completely unimportant to them a short time later. If you are receiving fewer likes, views, or follows after several weeks of using a content strategy, it is a strong signal that it needs to be adjusted or replaced. 

3) No compounding effect 

One not-so-obvious sign that a content strategy is failing is the lack of a compound effect across posts. When a strategy is working, you won’t just see it in your new content. The metrics for your older photos or videos improve as well. This is a great sign that you are doing well with the algorithms. If your old posts seem to be completely forgotten within a week of posting, your account is likely not in a period of growth or visibility. 

When do you make a change? 

So, you are analyzing your content performance and are reflecting on your strategy. You see these signs of a failing or ineffective campaign. How do you know when it’s time to change your strategy? 

First, be patient. One of the biggest mistakes people make is pulling the plug on a content strategy too early. In the first few weeks, it is easy to give in to fear and doubt when your posts consistently underperform. 

This period of uncertainty challenges your confidence in your plan. However, people often end good content strategies long before they can become successful. If it has been under three weeks, continue your plan and do not change anything. You need time to give a content plan to develop and grow. 

The one-month mark is a great time to reflect. At this point, if your plan has the signs of a failing strategy, you are left to make a decision. 

• Continue your current plan: You can keep doing what you’re doing, with the belief that the results will just take a little more time to show. Sometimes this works out, and consistency over time is good for your account. Don’t be stubborn, though. If you’re still not seeing results after two months, it’s probably time for a change.

• Adjust your plan: This is not completely changing. It is just about changing the parts of your plan that you think are ineffective. For example, your photos posted in the morning perform significantly better than those you post later in the day, so you start to post all content in the morning. This is not a change in content; it is just a small change in posting times, platforms, and posting volume. It could also include elements such as better CTAs, more popular hooks, or hashtags. For example, if a pilates studio is consistently posting workouts and receiving good engagement, but finds that the account is not growing, they may need to slightly adjust their call to action to receive more followers at the end of the video. This is a great option because it allows you to use data on what is working and what is not, and resturcture your plan without completely changing it.

• Start over: This is a risky decision, and only truly necessary if your content plan is consistently massively underperforming. Many failing content plans can be fixed with a few tweaks and adjustments. Always try to identify ways to improve your work before making a complete change. However, in certain situations, this is necessary. If it has reached two months of underwhelming results, even after adjustments, give this some serious thought.

Identifying when your content strategy is failing is important, but knowing how to act on the information is even more important. It can be easy to make decisions based on emotions when your content is failing. Having objective measures and procedures for when things are not going as planned is crucial for being an effective strategist. 

Author Bio 

Andrew Weber is a rising Junior at Elon University studying Digital Content Management and Cinema Television Arts. He has amassed a following of over 45,000 on Instagram and 20,000 on Facebook, working with numerous brands through promotional videos. He is additionally a Media Analytics Executive at Live Oak Communications, a student-run communications agency that works with local clients in Burlington, NC. He is also a freelance videographer and photographer, shooting live events and numerous sporting events for Elon University and previously the Durham Bulls.