It causes us stress because we know it’s vital for a successful project. Content is why people come to our websites. We should always be looking for ways to make our content more:
The key to doing all three and wrangling messy content is taking a cue from the world of print publications—hiring an editor-in-chief (EIC).
An editor-in-chief (sometimes referred to as an executive editor) is the head editor of a publication. They’re responsible for managing:
Ultimately, the editor-in-chief is responsible for ensuring all content fits into the publication’s big picture. By being the final pair of eyes on every detail, they ensure a polished, professional online presence that contributes to improved content marketing metrics.
Their role is crucial on big content projects, especially if you have multiple authors and subject matter experts contributing to your content pool.
To better understand the responsibilities of an editor in chief, let’s consider three core aspects of the job.
The more content contributors you have, the higher the chances of inconsistencies with voice, style, or format creeping into your content.
Because an Editor in Chief has a strong understanding of organizational goals, content strategy, and style guidelines, they can unify content from various contributors. Their work can make your website and overall online presence feel more organized, trustworthy, and cohesive.
The responsibilities of an editor in chief go beyond proofreading.
Incorrect statements, grammatical errors, and other content crises can wreak havoc on your reputation if you let them.
Finally, a shrewd, strategic editor in chief can ensure that every piece of content on the site lines up with your strategy. In other words, they give each piece of content the best chance at reaching your goals for it.
Editor-in-chief at os.me, Medha Shri Dahiya, summed up the role: “An editor-in-chief is where the buck stops for all things editorial. They’re the most senior editorial member of a publication or media outlet and are responsible for editorial policies and operations. Usually, all the departments report to them, and they report to the publisher or proprietor.
Principal responsibilities of an EIC include, but are not limited to:
They are the ultimate boss, and the onus of what goes in the publication lies with them.”
For more context, take a look at how some EICs speak about their job descriptions.
Let’s start with Elizabeth Puckett of Motorious. In her LinkedIn profile, she mentions everything from managing the editorial calendar and creating content to distributing content on social media and analyzing performance data.
Alyssa Mitchell of Cheese Market News mentions some similar responsibilities, along with the addition of page layout strategy and attending industry events.
And, last up is Suzanne D’Amato of PepsiCo, who describes her role as involving the “creation of key narratives and messaging” for internal and external audiences.
Based on the duties we’ve been talking about, you may be wondering if your content strategist could take on these responsibilities to save you the trouble of hiring someone new. The short answer is maybe. There are two factors to consider here:
If the former is the case with your content strategist, here’s the next step.
Of course, you can contract or hire a skilled copy editor for some outside perspective. The important things to look for are:
Alternatively, you may already have a senior writer, creative director, or marketing professional in-house who fits the bill and could fill this role. This person may even be you! How can you know if you'd be a good candidate?
In addition to the above soft skills and experience, a common path to becoming an Editor in Chief includes:
(Editing experience is especially valuable if you've worked your way up from other positions such as junior editor, associate editor, senior editor, or managing editor.)
And, of course, it's also helpful to have training and certifications under your belt, such as through the Advanced Editing Certificate Program.
Once you’ve found or hired the right person for the role, make sure they’re involved in every step of your content process. In particular, fold them in for:
Of course, if you’ve decided to head up the editorial staff, you’ll want to insert yourself into these same workflow stages.
If you’re using a content operations platform like GatherContent, you can easily build approval processes into your workflow and templates. This will prevent regulatory processes from being skipped or forgotten about and ensure compliance and consistency across your organization’s content.
In summary, our online publications should take a cue from the world of print. While online content production is different in some ways—more fluid, more complicated, more easily altered after the fact—in other ways, it is very much the same.
For example, it still addresses busy users, entertains, informs, and needs to be professional and polished. Thus, the processes used in the print world also have a place in our processes for online publications. But it’s up to us—and, specifically, EICs—to consistently implement and maintain those processes, using tools like GatherContent to make it easier.
It causes us stress because we know it’s vital for a successful project. Content is why people come to our websites. We should always be looking for ways to make our content more:
The key to doing all three and wrangling messy content is taking a cue from the world of print publications—hiring an editor-in-chief (EIC).
An editor-in-chief (sometimes referred to as an executive editor) is the head editor of a publication. They’re responsible for managing:
Ultimately, the editor-in-chief is responsible for ensuring all content fits into the publication’s big picture. By being the final pair of eyes on every detail, they ensure a polished, professional online presence that contributes to improved content marketing metrics.
Their role is crucial on big content projects, especially if you have multiple authors and subject matter experts contributing to your content pool.
To better understand the responsibilities of an editor in chief, let’s consider three core aspects of the job.
The more content contributors you have, the higher the chances of inconsistencies with voice, style, or format creeping into your content.
Because an Editor in Chief has a strong understanding of organizational goals, content strategy, and style guidelines, they can unify content from various contributors. Their work can make your website and overall online presence feel more organized, trustworthy, and cohesive.
The responsibilities of an editor in chief go beyond proofreading.
Incorrect statements, grammatical errors, and other content crises can wreak havoc on your reputation if you let them.
Finally, a shrewd, strategic editor in chief can ensure that every piece of content on the site lines up with your strategy. In other words, they give each piece of content the best chance at reaching your goals for it.
Editor-in-chief at os.me, Medha Shri Dahiya, summed up the role: “An editor-in-chief is where the buck stops for all things editorial. They’re the most senior editorial member of a publication or media outlet and are responsible for editorial policies and operations. Usually, all the departments report to them, and they report to the publisher or proprietor.
Principal responsibilities of an EIC include, but are not limited to:
They are the ultimate boss, and the onus of what goes in the publication lies with them.”
For more context, take a look at how some EICs speak about their job descriptions.
Let’s start with Elizabeth Puckett of Motorious. In her LinkedIn profile, she mentions everything from managing the editorial calendar and creating content to distributing content on social media and analyzing performance data.
Alyssa Mitchell of Cheese Market News mentions some similar responsibilities, along with the addition of page layout strategy and attending industry events.
And, last up is Suzanne D’Amato of PepsiCo, who describes her role as involving the “creation of key narratives and messaging” for internal and external audiences.
Based on the duties we’ve been talking about, you may be wondering if your content strategist could take on these responsibilities to save you the trouble of hiring someone new. The short answer is maybe. There are two factors to consider here:
If the former is the case with your content strategist, here’s the next step.
Of course, you can contract or hire a skilled copy editor for some outside perspective. The important things to look for are:
Alternatively, you may already have a senior writer, creative director, or marketing professional in-house who fits the bill and could fill this role. This person may even be you! How can you know if you'd be a good candidate?
In addition to the above soft skills and experience, a common path to becoming an Editor in Chief includes:
(Editing experience is especially valuable if you've worked your way up from other positions such as junior editor, associate editor, senior editor, or managing editor.)
And, of course, it's also helpful to have training and certifications under your belt, such as through the Advanced Editing Certificate Program.
Once you’ve found or hired the right person for the role, make sure they’re involved in every step of your content process. In particular, fold them in for:
Of course, if you’ve decided to head up the editorial staff, you’ll want to insert yourself into these same workflow stages.
If you’re using a content operations platform like GatherContent, you can easily build approval processes into your workflow and templates. This will prevent regulatory processes from being skipped or forgotten about and ensure compliance and consistency across your organization’s content.
In summary, our online publications should take a cue from the world of print. While online content production is different in some ways—more fluid, more complicated, more easily altered after the fact—in other ways, it is very much the same.
For example, it still addresses busy users, entertains, informs, and needs to be professional and polished. Thus, the processes used in the print world also have a place in our processes for online publications. But it’s up to us—and, specifically, EICs—to consistently implement and maintain those processes, using tools like GatherContent to make it easier.
Gigi is a content strategist and web writer specializing in travel, technology, education, non-profit, and wellness content. In 2010, she quit her agency job and started Content for Do-Gooders, where she helps clients solve messy content problems around the world. You should follow her on Twitter.