Content Marketing Consultant Earning $114,344/year

Welcome to another post in the $100k Club series. You can see the full series here. This is "My Morning Routine" for content marketing folks making six figures. The goal is to shed light on the skills and habits that enable people to achieve lucrative jobs and help get more people in this club.

These will be anonymous and updated regularly. If you make more than $100k/year and want to contribute, email Jimmy.

For more info on content marketing salaries, check out our salary report.

If you'd like to see more info on salary by job title, check out these resources: Content Marketing Manager Salary, Content Strategist Salary, Head of Content Salary, and Content Director Salary.

What was your first full-time job in content? What was the salary?

My first full-time content role was working as a content marketing specialist for a B2B SaaS accounting company in England. It was 2015 and I earned £24,000 which in today's exchange rate is $27,000 USD.

List out your income by year for as long as you've been working in content marketing.

• 2015: £24,000 / $27,000 USD
• 2017: $49,000 CAD / $35,000 USD
• 2019: $55,000 CAD / $40,000 USD
• 2020: $73,000 CAD / $53,507 USD
• 2022: $156,000 CAD / $114,344 USD

How much do you earn today? What's your job title?

I just wrapped up my first year of business. My job title is content marketing consultant which is a bit vague. While I do consult (usually on strategy), the bulk of my earnings is from editorial work and managing editor contracts.

My total earnings was $156,000 CAD / $114,344 USD (and I didn't work for two months of the year). So yeah, I'm pretty stoked—especially as a minority queer woman who works in a highly-dominated male field (tech/software industry).

What's the single biggest salary jump you've made? (either from job-hopping or a promotion/raise)

Going freelance full-time! My salary more than doubled within a year.

What is your most valuable skill?

Communication. I'm able to express myself clearly and articulately, and strive to create meaningful conversations. I actively participate in conversations, am naturally open, and share opinion freely and without judgement. I'm candid, naturally relaxed, friendly, easy-going, and help put others at ease.

What's the best book you've ever read on writing, marketing, sales, business or productivity? (Feel free to suggest more than one!)

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski.

Have you had a career mentor/coach? If so, how did you find them and what have you learned from them?

Jon Norris, currently the marketing lead at Codeworks. I was lucky enough to work under Jon for a while at Crunch Accounting—a business we collaboratively helped scale to become the most-read independent tax advice blogs in the UK.

Since 2015, we've collaborated on freelance projects and Jon remains a trusted advisor, friend, and mentor. In the past, he's been instrumental in helping me navigate challenging relationships at work and always gives realistic, BS-free feedback which I find encouraging and truly refreshing.

What skills or habits help you thrive at work?

Oh man. After a lot of trial and error, I thrive the most when I don't have my business email, Slack, Twitter or LinkedIn on my phone which creates an easy work life balance because I never find myself aimlessly/anxiously reading or scrolling during downtime.

I prioritize exercise (cycling + weight lifting) and practice yoga most days. I take afternoons off guilt-free when creativity is lacking and go for cold plunges at the beach or hiking in the forest. I stick to a fairly strict sleep schedule which includes no screens an hour before bedtime and I don’t drink alcohol because honestly, it’s expensive and makes me feel like shit.

Most importantly, I don't sweat the small stuff and treat myself with maximum kindness when I do fuck up (which everyone does from time to time!)

What advice would you give to someone who wants to join the $100k club?

Know your worth! Understand current market rates for your specialization or industry. Don't be afraid to say no or walk away from employers/clients who give you the ick. Get contracts drawn up. Be kind to people. Use your voice! Lift up other women; don't put them down. Focus on providing continuous value.

Who are you?

I'm a 35 year old, LGBTQ white woman living in Vancouver, BC.