Merit Koutstaal is a freelance content strategist and fractional Head of Content, and founder of The Content Game. For 10+ years she's helped B2B (and B2C) marketing teams turn content into pipeline — not just impressions. She's worked with brands like Salesforce, ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Shell, Rituals and Otrium, building content strategies, KPI frameworks and tone-of-voice systems that scale across markets. Based in the Netherlands, working internationally.

Merit Koutstaal

Merit Koutstaal is a freelance content strategist and fractional Head of Content, and founder of The Content Game. For 10+ years she's helped B2B (and B2C) marketing teams turn content into pipeline — not just impressions. She's worked with brands like Salesforce, ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Shell, Rituals and Otrium, building content strategies, KPI frameworks and tone-of-voice systems that scale across markets. Based in the Netherlands, working internationally.

Available to hire

Merit Koutstaal is a freelance content strategist and fractional Head of Content, and founder of The Content Game. For 10+ years she’s helped B2B (and B2C) marketing teams turn content into pipeline — not just impressions. She’s worked with brands like Salesforce, ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Shell, Rituals and Otrium, building content strategies, KPI frameworks and tone-of-voice systems that scale across markets. Based in the Netherlands, working internationally.

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Language

Dutch
Fluent
English
Fluent

Work Experience

Freelance SEO Copywriter at Otrium
July 1, 2023 - December 31, 2023
Freelance SEO Copywriter at RITUALS
June 1, 2023 - December 31, 2023
Freelance Senior Content Strategist at Salesforce
January 1, 2023 - March 1, 2025
Running the NEMEA content strategy from set up to result evaluation and optimization.

Education

Master of Arts Communicatie- en Informatiewetenschappen at Vrije Universiteit
September 1, 2016 - July 31, 2018
Bachelor of Arts Communicatie- en Informatiewetenschappen at Vrije Universiteit
September 1, 2013 - July 31, 2016

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Software & Internet, Retail, Real Estate & Construction
    Content Strategy for Salesforce

    Salesforce — Quality over quantity

    B2B SaaS · 7 countries (Benelux + Scandinavia) · Since 2021

    Challenge: High content output, low clarity on ROI. No KPI framework, underperforming paid sponsorships, no cohesive strategy across markets.

    Approach: Cut volume, doubled down on quality. Built a KPI framework to guide production decisions, streamlined workflows with AI, relaunched employee advocacy, then rolled the model out from the Netherlands to Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark.

    Results:

    +2,412% YoY impressions (NL)
    +364.6% social engagement
    LinkedIn followers: 42K → 64K+ (+54%)
    All 5 markets beat Salesforce’s international benchmark (4.45%)

    “Merit combines strategic vision with a hands-on approach to deliver consistent, innovative solutions with measurable results.” — Dennis Stoutjesdijk, Director Region North, Salesforce

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