The Content Marketer’s Guide to Performance Reviews

Employee show reviews person been utilized successful companies for decades. For employees, these reviews are an accidental to get feedback connected their enactment and adjacent a raise. For managers, reviews are an important absorption and enactment tool.

The occupation is cipher truly likes show reviews. They’re stressful, awkward, and ineffective (according to some). Yet it seems they are necessary. 

So however should managers spell astir show reviews successful their contented selling teams? Read connected to larn immoderate basal theories and spot the insights that immoderate selling managers shared with us. 

We’re going to cover:

• What is simply a show review? 
• Why are show reviews important?
• Types of show reviews
• Results of our survey
• Five tips to guarantee effectual show reviews

​​A show reappraisal (also called show valuation oregon appraisal) is a process wherever managers measure an employee’s enactment show to place their strengths and weaknesses, connection feedback, and assistance with extremity setting.

A communal misconception astir show reviews is that they are meant to payment lone the businesses oregon managers and not the employees. However, decently conducted reviews (in immoderate form) tin connection an contiguous assistance for each “sides.”

For businesses (and managers conducting the reviews), show reviews are a instrumentality for optimizing the show of staff, strengthening leadership, creating a amended alignment with the strategy, and knowing the perspectives of employees. 

For employees, reviews are a mode to get an overview of their strengths and weaknesses and progress. During reviews, employees tin besides dependable criticisms, sermon vocation opportunities with managers, oregon get a raise.

A show review, successful general, is simply a multi-layered phenomenon, specified arsenic the evident concern show broadside of things, antithetic absorption theories, institution policies, HR and, of course, the intelligence facet of giving and receiving a show reappraisal successful a modern workplace. 

In the past, erstwhile businesses tried to prioritize immoderate aspects implicit others oregon equilibrium them, caller types of show reviews emerged. These days, it seems determination is nary statement for a single, close mode to bash a show review. Each mode has its advantages and disadvantages. 

If you’re funny successful however show reviews evolved, spot this timeline. 

Among each of the alternatives, present are the types of show reviews that look to beryllium astir applicable to evaluating the enactment of contented marketers.

• Rating scale – Probably the astir accepted type. The reviewer evaluates the reviewee by assigning ratings to variables (e.g., creativity, teamwork) arranged successful a table.
• Self-assessment – As the sanction suggests, the worker performs a self-assessment based connected goals, KPIs, oregon OKRs defined either by the manager oregon by the worker themself. Then the worker discusses the results with the manager; for example, some sides tin comparison results of the aforesaid appraisal form. 
• 360 feedback – Practically, the full nonrecreational surrounding of the worker takes portion successful the valuation process: managers, co-workers, customers and, sometimes, adjacent the worker themself. This method usually utilizes a questionnaire handed retired to the participants. 
• Management by objectives (MOB) – Performance is reviewed based connected however good an worker meets their goals. In contented marketing, the goals tin beryllium thing similar the fig of articles written, postulation growth, generated leads, etc. 
• Continuous, real-time feedback – In this method, the worker receives ongoing feedback by openly discussing however tasks and projects are progressing. Often utilized successful agile management. Typically, it does not utilize immoderate signifier of scorecards oregon ceremonial appraisals acceptable successful longer intervals; it’s benignant of an antithesis of the accepted mode of doing show reviews. 

Within those types, with the objection of real-time feedback, determination are 3 commonly utilized techniques for gathering and passing information: checklist (aka forced choice), scorecard, and escaped signifier (aka an essay). Let’s instrumentality a speedy look astatine immoderate elemental examples. 

Example 1. A scorecard method utilized successful the standing standard method. Here, the manager marks the people of an worker for a fixed play of time, e.g., the past 3 months. In the end, each of the points tin beryllium summed up to represent a wide score. 

Performance level/ Work dimension1 — Poor2 — Fairly poor3 — Fairly good4 — Good5 — Excellent

Creativity					X
Efficiency					X
Teamwork			X

Example 2. A checklist method utilized successful the self-assessment method. The worker is handed a questionnaire with forced-choice questions. There is nary standard here, lone “black” and “white.”

StatementYesNo

I americium originative at work.	X
I fulfill the quota of written articles.	X
I assistance different squad members execute their goals erstwhile needed.		X

Example 3. A free-form effort technique. This tin beryllium utilized arsenic a standalone method oregon arsenic a supplement to the different techniques. 

With immoderate basal mentation retired of the way, let’s look astatine the applicable broadside of things. Let’s spot however immoderate of the marketers we asked behaviour show reviews for contented marketers and however they consciousness astir the thought successful general. 

Some of the methods listed successful the conception supra are decades-old, immoderate person been transplanted from different fields (e.g., military), and immoderate were designed for corporations. 

This means that what we person conscionable discussed whitethorn perchance beryllium outdated and/or not suitable for startups and SMBs. After all, marketers whitethorn person adopted antithetic methods implicit the years that enactment well, particularly successful the country of contented marketing.

So successful our hunt for the reply to doing show reviews for contented marketers, we decided to spell further than conscionable knowing the theories.

What’s more, we besides wanted to larn what peculiar metrics are being utilized to measure the show of contented marketers. 

So we asked selling managers to reply these 2 questions successful a speedy survey connected societal media: 

— Tim Soulo 🇺🇦 (@timsoulo) February 11, 2022

In immoderate cases, we’ve added an further question: How bash you find if a contented marketer deserves a raise?

Two disclaimers to enactment here. First, selling is simply a wide tract with assorted specializations. Hence, we decided to bounds the scope of the survey to conscionable contented marketing. Second, the survey was conducted connected societal media successful an unfastened forum. So we chose not to regularisation retired the anticipation of respondents being influenced by existing responses. 

All successful all, we’ve got 20 responses to questions #1 and #2 and 10 responses to the further question #3, plus immoderate comments. Here’s what we found:

1. Marketers usage antithetic types of metrics to measurement the show of contented marketers:
   1. 55% usage lone quantitative metrics.
   2. 20% don’t usage immoderate metrics. 
   3. 15% usage some qualitative and quantitative metrics.
   4. 10% usage lone qualitative metrics.

      

2. Among the quantitative metrics, the astir fashionable are postulation and MQLs. Some others mentioned are societal media shares, power connected MRR, keyword rankings, engagement rate, referrals to shop, and dwell time.
3. Among qualitative metrics, marketers mentioned feedback from readers, prime of merchandise placement, interior feedback, managers’ idiosyncratic opinions.
4. Half of the surveyed managers (50%) usage a quarterly interval for conducting show reviews. However, managers often premix those with monthly, weekly, and adjacent real-time feedback.
5. For reasons to springiness a raise, the clearest signifier among the responses is that managers utilize the aforesaid metrics utilized for measuring performance. However, immoderate managers mentioned they see further factors similar enactment ethic, a regular yearly raise, worker being underpaid, oregon wanting to support the employee. 

   

6. A number of marketers don’t execute show reviews. Notably, astir answers came from Twitter. Here are a mates of those answers that explicate the reasons for this approach: 

— Guillaume Moubeche (@GuillaumeMbh) February 11, 2022

I got to hold with @GuillaumeMbh determination are much than a fewer things that measuring volition conscionable get connected the way, specially erstwhile it comes to having a speech and creating invaluable content.

— Marcos “Piktochart” Bravo C. (@MBravoCaradeuc) February 11, 2022

I deliberation each scholar volition marque their ain conclusions aft studying the survey results. Some volition dainty it arsenic a motion that the “traditional way” of doing show reviews is inactive the mode to go. 

Others whitethorn flinch astatine the specified show of immoderate benignant of scorecard, and they whitethorn dainty the tiny but important percent of managers who don’t usage immoderate metrics oregon bash show reviews arsenic the astir important group. 

Here’s my instrumentality connected the subject. It’s based connected the information from the survey, the probe I did for this article, and my idiosyncratic acquisition arsenic a selling manager a mates of years back. I tried to distill them, and this brings america to the pursuing tips… 

Finding 1 definitive reply to the occupation of show reviews seems intolerable until you effort it retired connected your ain turf. Whatever you do, you whitethorn privation to see these tips. 

1. Try antithetic methods and techniques to find what works

One undeniable decision from our survey is that managers measure the show of contented marketers differently. There definite are patterns and commonalities but nary unanimity. 

Reason? Very prosaic: People are different, and organizations are different. What could enactment successful a 500+ corp whitethorn neglect miserably successful a startup. While immoderate contented marketers similar to person strict guidelines and travel precisely what is expected of them, others execute champion if they are near with a batch of country to move. 

Then we person antithetic styles, strategies, and types of contented marketing. One squad whitethorn absorption connected writing SEO content; different whitethorn absorption connected societal media, income enablement, oregon video marketing. They won’t person the aforesaid process, challenges, and objectives.

In each of those differences and complexities, I deliberation nailing the close show reappraisal method boils down to 1 thing: How tin you arsenic a manager assistance your squad members execute their goals? 

In different words, cipher needs (and trusts) a manager who lone judges people. Your show reviews should beryllium constructive and ideally payment some “sides.”

So don’t conscionable blindly transcript what idiosyncratic other is doing. Instead, instrumentality immoderate proposal for a “test drive” and spot what happens. Observe your team, get feedback, and look astatine the interaction of your decisions connected the show and prime of content. 

2. Be cautious with the “carrot and stick” 

What often concludes a show reappraisal is the anticipation of a rise for the reviewee. 

If you privation to reward employees by giving them a raise, you astir apt can’t spell incorrect with the answers our respondents gave. But if raises are a portion of an inducement program successful a originative tract similar contented marketing, things go a spot tricky. 

Incentive plans are fundamentally “carrot and stick” systems: rewards and punishments utilized to induce a definite behaviour oregon a definite level of enactment performance. Using nonstop punishments (pay decrease, demotions, etc.) is astir apt rare. But successful a workplace, a deficiency of reward practically equals punishment. 

A fig of studies (e.g., here and here) person shown that inducement plans whitethorn bash much harm than good. Here’s why:

• Any pay-for-performance strategy tends to marque radical little enthusiastic astir their work. They go little committed to excellence and little creative. This isn’t large for contented marketing, an country that requires much open-ended reasoning and, thus, is much cognitively demanding.
• If radical are forced to vie for rewards—especially if they are ranked against each other—it’s the extremity of teamwide cooperation. 
• When radical enactment for a reward, they whitethorn beryllium much tempted to conceal problems, instrumentality connected easier tasks, and minimize the situation (i.e., debar risk-taking and innovation). 
• If you’re looking to induce a semipermanent alteration successful an employee’s behavior, don’t bother. Rewards effect successful impermanent compliance only. 

Let’s marque things wide here. Rewarding contented marketers with raises and bonuses for large enactment is thing abbreviated of doing justness for their inputs. 

But it doesn’t enactment the different mode around. Introducing a reward strategy to amended the quantity and prime of contented is astir apt a atrocious thought for the reasons mentioned above. 

You whitethorn privation to bash this instead: supply training, springiness utile feedback, and permission country for self-determination. Other than that, you whitethorn privation to reappraisal your recruitment process, which brings america to the next tip. 

3. Performance reviews won’t hole a breached recruitment process

From my experience, if you prosecute the close people, each you request to bash successful presumption of show reviews is to regularly speech to them. No awkward pressure, nary formalities, nary scores. In fact, casual chats work best. 

The crushed for this is the close idiosyncratic for the occupation volition person the intrinsic information to excel astatine their role. They volition want to bash the occupation arsenic champion arsenic possible. They whitethorn adjacent beryllium much acrophobic astir their show than the manager. 

So if they recognize that you, arsenic a manager, are determination to assistance them execute their goals, region roadblocks erstwhile needed, region yourself from a fixed process erstwhile needed, oregon adjacent measurement successful erstwhile needed, you volition summation their trust. 

Otherwise, you volition go different acheronian unreality successful their bluish sky. Another occupation to lick and obstacle to avoid. You won’t gain their trust. And without trust, you won’t spot their existent potential.

If your recruitment process is breached and you extremity up hiring radical who don’t truly acceptable the relation oregon the institution culture, you volition apt conflict with show reviews arsenic a result. This means you volition person to devise immoderate analyzable strategy of appraisal alternatively of simply having regular chats. 

4. Let your employees way their ain performance 

A bully thought whitethorn beryllium to inquire your employees to hole their ain show reports. Here’s why:

• Makes appraisal standards much transparent 
• Leaves little country for unfair assessments from managers 
• Gives employees an accrued consciousness of ownership of their work 
• Makes it easier for managers to cod accusation (especially successful bigger organizations) 

For example, if your strategy is based connected contented designed to fertile connected hunt engines, contented marketers connected your squad tin usage an SEO instrumentality similar Ahrefs to way things specified arsenic keyword rankings, hunt visibility, backlinks, oregon integrated postulation growth. This information tin past beryllium aggregated for immoderate play of clip and discussed with a manager. 

5. Don’t hide the tiny things 

Last but not least, let’s instrumentality enactment of the tiny details that tin marque oregon interruption your show reviews. Without further ado, here’s a abbreviated database of things worthy remembering:

• Make show standards clear– Don’t marque your squad members conjecture what effects you’re after. Also, don’t marque it a weird intelligence crippled of “impress me.”
• Find the close clip and place – A country afloat of radical astatine 7 a.m. won’t beryllium a clip and spot wherever thoughts and words volition flow. Reviews are a delicate matter. Try to support it backstage and non-intimidating. Typically, the champion clip is adjacent to the extremity of the time but permission capable clip for discussions. If you’re doing the reappraisal remotely, don’t beryllium successful a spot wherever the full institution tin perceive you (or the reviewee). 
• Give your worker a transcript of the review – If you’re utilizing immoderate benignant of a scorecard oregon checklist, it’s a bully thought to stock it with your employee. Otherwise, your show standards are not clear. 
• Prepare notes and agenda – Don’t travel to the show reappraisal gathering unprepared. Take clip to stitchery your thoughts and constitute them down. You tin adjacent nonstop the gathering docket to your worker beforehand. 
• Ensure a two-way conversation – This is existent for each reappraisal methods. If you don’t fto the reviewee explicit their opinions, you’ll marque them frustrated. Nothing bully tin travel retired of that. 

Final thoughts

Our archetypal program for this nonfiction was to see a template for show reviews. A one-size-fits-all solution each contented selling managers and heads of contented departments tin usage to measurement the show of contented marketers. 

I’m gladsome we didn’t spell successful that direction.

If we did, we would suffer each that diverseness successful opinions connected the taxable and antithetic practices of conducting show reviews. 

So to reiterate the question from the introduction: How should managers behaviour show reviews of their contented selling teams? Well, it seems that they should find their ain mode due to the fact that nary 1 volition reply this question for them. 

Sure, determination are methods and techniques, but they don’t travel with immoderate promises. Furthermore, asking different managers won’t effect successful a elemental reply either. 

When it comes to show reviews, you request to see the consequences of choosing 1 method implicit the other. They should beryllium tested wrong one’s circumstantial enactment environment, arsenic they tin heighten conscionable arsenic galore things arsenic they tin undermine. 

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