Content Strategy Scorecard for HR Tech
Score your content against the HR buyer journey — from awareness through business case to decision. Identifies gaps, grades your content mix, and maps what to build next.
Get the template
Enter your email to access the full template. No spam, no drip campaign — just the resource.
Download the PDF
Print it, share it with your team, or keep it open while you work through the template.
Download PDFPDF — free, no strings
How to use this scorecard
Inventory your existing content, score it against the HR buyer journey, and identify what’s missing. This should take 2–3 hours. You’ll need access to your CMS, blog, resource library, and analytics.
This scorecard is built for the HR Tech buyer journey specifically. HR buyers don’t follow a generic B2B funnel — they research for months, involve a committee, and need to build an internal business case before they can sign anything. Your content strategy needs to account for every stage, not just top-of-funnel awareness.
Section 1: Content inventory
List all published content by type. Be thorough — content you forgot about is either dead weight or an untapped asset.
| Content piece | Type | Published date | Monthly traffic/views | Target buyer stage | Target persona |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Content type count
| Type | Count |
|---|---|
| Blog posts | ______ |
| Case studies | ______ |
| Whitepapers / guides | ______ |
| Webinar recordings | ______ |
| Comparison / vs. pages | ______ |
| Product/feature pages | ______ |
| ROI calculators / tools | ______ |
| Integration documentation | ______ |
| FAQ / knowledge base | ______ |
| Video content | ______ |
Section 2: Buyer journey coverage
This is the core of the scorecard. For each stage of the HR buyer journey, evaluate whether you have content — and whether it’s actually good.
Stage 1: Problem Awareness
The HR buyer realizes they have a problem but hasn’t started looking for solutions.
| Content need | You have this? | Quality (1–5) | Traffic/engagement | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Content that names the problem clearly (e.g., “Why your employee onboarding is costing you more than you think”) | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Benchmark data that shows where the buyer stands vs. peers | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Trend/regulatory content that creates urgency (e.g., new compliance requirements) | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Stage 1 score: ______ / 15
Stage 2: Solution Research
The buyer is exploring approaches — not vendors yet. They’re asking “what are my options?”
| Content need | You have this? | Quality (1–5) | Traffic/engagement | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ”How to” guides that educate on the approach (not your product) | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Buyer’s guides for the category (e.g., “How to evaluate an HRIS”) | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Content that frames the decision criteria the buyer should use | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Stage 2 score: ______ / 15
Stage 3: Vendor Evaluation
The buyer has a shortlist and is comparing options.
| Content need | You have this? | Quality (1–5) | Traffic/engagement | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comparison pages (you vs. alternatives, including status quo) | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Case studies with named companies and specific results | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Product demos, screenshots, or interactive previews | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Integration ecosystem / compatibility documentation | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Stage 3 score: ______ / 20
Stage 4: Business Case Building
The champion needs to justify the purchase to their buying committee.
| Content need | You have this? | Quality (1–5) | Traffic/engagement | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROI calculator or TCO analysis framework | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Executive summary / one-pager the champion can share with the CHRO | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Implementation timeline and resource requirements | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Security and compliance documentation | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Stage 4 score: ______ / 20
Stage 5: Decision and Validation
The buying committee has a preferred vendor. They need final validation.
| Content need | You have this? | Quality (1–5) | Traffic/engagement | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer references or peer conversations | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Implementation / onboarding guide | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Clear pricing model or cost-per-employee framework | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Stage 5 score: ______ / 15
Total journey coverage score: ______ / 85
| Score range | Assessment |
|---|---|
| 70–85 | Comprehensive coverage — focus on quality and distribution |
| 50–69 | Good foundation with specific gaps — the gaps are where you’re losing deals |
| 30–49 | Significant holes — your content is probably weighted toward one or two stages |
| Below 30 | Content strategy needs a rebuild from the buyer journey up |
Section 3: The business case content gap
This is the stage most HR Tech companies ignore entirely — and it’s where the most deals die.
When an HR Director finds your product and wants to buy it, they can’t just buy it. They need to:
- Get budget approval from the CHRO or CFO
- Get technical sign-off from IT or the HRIS Manager
- Get procurement to agree to terms
- Sometimes get legal to review the data handling agreement
Your content needs to arm the champion for each of those conversations.
Business case content audit
| The champion needs to… | Content that helps | You have it? | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Justify the cost to the CFO | ROI calculator, TCO comparison vs. current state, cost-of-doing-nothing analysis | ______ | ______ |
| Show IT it won’t break anything | Integration architecture doc, security certifications, SSO support, implementation plan | ______ | ______ |
| Prove it works for similar companies | Case studies matched to their industry, size, and use case | ______ | ______ |
| Address procurement’s concerns | SLA documentation, data processing agreement, uptime history | ______ | ______ |
| Explain why now (not next quarter) | Time-sensitive regulatory content, competitive pressure data, cost of delay | ______ | ______ |
The litmus test
Can your champion build a complete business case without talking to your sales team?
If the answer is no, you’re creating a dependency on sales conversations that slows your pipeline. The champion should be able to self-serve 80% of the business case materials from your website and content library. Sales fills in the final 20% (pricing, custom terms, reference calls).
Section 4: Keyword and topic opportunity analysis
For each stage of the buyer journey, identify the keywords your audience is searching:
High-intent keywords (Stages 3–5 — closest to purchase)
| Keyword / phrase | Monthly search volume | Your current ranking | Competitor ranking | Content you’d need |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Mid-intent keywords (Stage 2 — researching approaches)
| Keyword / phrase | Monthly search volume | Your current ranking | Content you’d need |
|---|---|---|---|
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Awareness keywords (Stage 1 — problem recognition)
| Keyword / phrase | Monthly search volume | Your current ranking | Content you’d need |
|---|---|---|---|
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
HR Tech keyword strategy principles
- Prioritize intent over volume. “Best HRIS for 500 employees” converts 10x better than “HR software” even though it has 1/100th the volume.
- Own the comparison searches. HR buyers search “[Your category] comparison,” “[Competitor] alternative,” and “[Competitor] reviews.” If you don’t have content for these, you’re invisible during vendor evaluation.
- Compliance creates urgency. When regulations change (ACA, FLSA, state-specific requirements), HR buyers search urgently for solutions. Timely compliance content ranks quickly and converts at high rates.
- Don’t compete with SHRM for generic HR content. Focus on content that connects HR challenges to technology solutions — that’s the intersection where you have authority and SHRM doesn’t.
Section 5: Content calendar framework
Based on your scorecard results, build a 90-day content plan:
Publishing cadence
| Content type | Frequency | Owner | Primary distribution channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blog posts / articles | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Case studies | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Guides / resources | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| Webinars / events | ______ | ______ | ______ |
90-day priority list
Fill in based on your gap analysis:
| Priority | Content piece | Target buyer stage | Target persona | Keyword target | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 2 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 3 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 4 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 5 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 6 | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ | ______ |
The prioritization rule
Always build bottom-of-funnel content first. It’s tempting to start with awareness content (blog posts, thought leadership) because it’s easier to produce. But Stage 4 and Stage 5 content — the business case materials, the comparison pages, the implementation guides — directly influences revenue now. Top-of-funnel content builds pipeline over months; bottom-of-funnel content closes pipeline this quarter.
Your #1 content gap that’s closest to revenue: ______
Start there.
Building the business case for content investment
If you need to justify content headcount, budget, or agency spend:
- “Our content covers Stages 1–2 of the buyer journey but has critical gaps in Stages 3–5 where the buying committee makes decisions. We’re generating awareness but not influencing the purchase.”
- “HR buyers who can self-serve their business case close [X]% faster than those who rely entirely on sales conversations. We don’t have the content for self-service today.”
- “Our top 3 competitors rank for [X] high-intent keywords in our category. We rank for [Y]. Each keyword we don’t rank for is a buyer we never reach.”
The ask: “I need [resources] to build [specific number] of content pieces targeting Stages 3–5 of the buyer journey over the next 90 days. These directly address the gaps our buying committee needs filled and will reduce our sales cycle length.”