Content strategy

Interview with content strategy author Ann Rockley

Getting your hands dirty with markup for real.

"Content strategists should realize that XML isn't scary and it is really powerful for doing cool things with your content. In the 'olden days' when we first began creating Web-based content we used to have to use HTML codes to tag the content, now you create content in web forms or Word and rarely, if ever, have to think about the HTML codes. The same is true of XML, you don't have to use codes to create content, there are lots of tools that 'hide' the XML tags. However, XML is much smarter than HTML. HTML tags describe the formatting structure of the content, XML defines the semantic structure of the content. For example, we can define that some content is a teaser and then have the system handle it differently when published to the Web, mobile, or even print."

(Words+Pictures=Web)

Posted on May 23, 2013 | Permalink

The Governance component of content strategy success

The larger the organization, the more important this component becomes.

"While all three components (creation, publication, governance) of the content strategy lifecycle are intended to be ongoing, it's the Governance component that often requires the most dedication due to its never ending need for attention. Once content is created and published then it will forever need to be managed, maintained, optimised and compliant which leads to the age old question of 'where to begin?'"

(Jessica O'Sullivan ~ Siteimprove)

Posted on May 14, 2013 | Permalink

WYSIWTF

Including the notion that form (a.k.a. presentation) has meaning too.

"Arguing for 'separation of content from presentation' implies a neat division between the two. The reality, of course, is that content and form, structure and style, can never be fully separated. Anyone who's ever written a document and played around to see the impact of different fonts, heading weights, and whitespace on the way the writing flows knows this is true. Anyone who's ever squinted at HTML code, trying to parse text from tags, knows it too."

(Karen McGrane a.k.a. @karenmcgrane ~ A List Apart)

Posted on May 02, 2013 | Permalink

The content strategy order of operations or 'Dear Aunt Sally Can Perform Magic'

Mnemonic device for the UX disciplines: LATCH re-visited.

"The reason I ask has to do with something you may remember from early math classes when coursework introduced multiple types of operations. There needed to be a set of rules in place so that little Jimmy would know whether or not multiplication happens before or after subtraction. Enter the Order of Operations, a.k.a 'Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally'."

(Tom Harari a.k.a. @tomharari ~ iAcquire)

Posted on April 12, 2013 | Permalink

The three components of content strategy success

Reducing the essence of content strategy to a holy trinity: create, publish, and govern.

"Creating effective website content can be an arduous task, especially when so many factors must be considered: varying role capacities, internal politics, customer expectations etc. However, following a structured strategy can make creating focused content a piece of cake!"

(Jessica O'Sullivan ~ SiteImprove)

Posted on March 27, 2013 | Permalink

The five elements of modular and adaptive content

Object orientation moving up the ladder. Now, it's entering the info layer.

"When the word modular comes up in a conversation about web design, it's usually in regards to the code. Object oriented programming on the backend, separating structure, presentation, and behavior on the front end, or perhaps the reuse of certain visual patterns like buttons across the site. However, if we're going to spend some time talking about modularity in web design our first stop, like everything else web design, should be the content."

(Steven Bradley a.k.a. @vangogh ~ Vanseo Design)

Posted on February 18, 2013 | Permalink

Content strategy: Separating content from information

A kind of new style DIKW and DTDT thinking with "(...) describes what content really is."

"Content is a piece of information we want to share with our audience. We create content by turning a piece of information into a type that our audience is familiar with. Then we distribute that content on the channels where we think our target audiences spend their time."

(Ahava Leibtag a.k.a. @ahaval)

Posted on February 13, 2013 | Permalink

A history of content management in two humps

Desperately hoping CM and CMSs get consumerized as well.

"One last thing that end-users need to keep in mind as they think about solutions that are migrating from the consumer world to the enterprise world. A consumer application is not necessarily battle hardened for enterprise use."

(Digital landfill)

Posted on February 07, 2013 | Permalink

What to expect from a content strategy process

Testimonial for content strategy, the Canadian way.

"Content strategy is the most important part of your project. It is where you plan what to put into the website, trade publication, brochure, catalog, fifty foot outdoor advertisement, or whatever. Some companies do content strategy intuitively, but most need a lot of help. Enter the content strategist."

(Darcy Hastings a.k.a. @bioagency ~ BIO digital)

Posted on February 07, 2013 | Permalink

"All of the work we do is change management"

Karens star is rising and rising.

Interview with Karen McGrane. ~ "For us this is a generational issue, and it's our life's work to help contribute to organizations’ learning how digital design (and information architecture) should fit into their organization. If we are going to be successful, we may not fix it for ourselves, but for the next generation of digital designers, I want to leave those organizations better off. There will also be some social darwinism, where the organizations that successfully navigate this transition are the ones that are going to survive."

(IA Summit 2013)

Posted on February 05, 2013 | Permalink

Three digital governance challenges

Embedding in the existing organization. A big challenge for UX and CX management and staff.

"It's time to leave the web sandbox and lead the organization into a deeper understanding of the power and use of digital channels. It's time to inform and engage executives so that organizational expectations are reasonable and that they're supported culturally and fiscally. So maybe you can clean up the mess in six months - but it's going to take a lot of resources and a cultural shift that can probably only be directed from an executive level. Most likely though, tough 'redesigns' are going to be ongoing evolutions."

(Lisa Welchman a.k.a. @lwelchman ~ WelchmanPierpoint)

Posted on January 30, 2013 | Permalink

We must remove publishing and content management concerns from authoring systems

We tend to forget how important the content infrastructure and technology is.

"They create a language to express publishing, content management, or reuse concerns, and then expect writers to write directly into what is really an internal content management format. Putting a graphical face over the markup does nothing to change this. The graphical interface only hides the syntax of the XML. It does nothing to change the fact that authors are being asked to create what should be the internal semantics of the publishing system — semantics they generally neither care about nor understand."

(Mark Baker ~ EveryPageIsOne)

Posted on January 30, 2013 | Permalink

The evolution of technical communication

Information management and technical communication appear to be the parents of content strategy.

"Over the years technical communication has transitioned from a conventional author-reader engagement to a realm of social collaboration. Let's take a look at how technical communication has progressed over time and the significant milestones along the way."

(Monalisa Sen and Debarshi Gupta Biswas ~ tcworld)

Posted on January 09, 2013 | Permalink

Content Planning Demystified

Without a plan, no project. Without a plan, no modification of the planning.

"It turns out that the only real way to avoid a trainwreck with editorial work is to get ahead of the trouble, line everything up carefully, and leave oodles of room for all the pieces to connect on time. The same is true of content strategy, content planning, and just about everything to do with content on the web, except for the writing itself – and that, too, usually takes far longer than anyone expects. If you’re not a professional editor and you suddenly find yourself dealing with content creation, you’re almost certainly going to underestimate the time and effort involved, or to skip something important in the planning process that pops up to bite you later."

(Erin Kissane a.k.a. @kissane ~ 24ways)

Posted on December 21, 2012 | Permalink

An Interview with Ann Rockley, the "Mother of Content Strategy"

A mother, not thé mother. Who's the father? Who's the child?

"The other driver is the digital content revolution. While best-of-breed technical communication and training departments have been creating multi-channel outputs for years using a write-it-once, use-it-often strategy, traditional publishers haven't felt the pressure to adopt this approach until the Kindle, smartphones, tablet computers - and of course, the iPad - changed consumer demand."

(Scott Wrangler)

Posted on November 29, 2012 | Permalink

The first rule of content strategy: Don't talk about content strategy

Can be the first rule of almost all fields of practice.

"(...) the most employable people are hybrids."

(Guerilla-Editor)

Posted on November 27, 2012 | Permalink

Planning for Homepage Content

Homepage is a hierarchical concept, which doesn't apply to a network. Every page is 'home'.

"Let's explore some helpful approaches to creating a meaningful, successful homepage."

(Georgy Cohen a.k.a. @radiofreegeorgy)

Posted on November 27, 2012 | Permalink

Content, the once and future king

Shaping compelling experiences with data, lots of them.

"This is a new sandbox for technologists, data scientists, marketers, and experience designers. What are the corpora we have access to? What is lurking within our data smog? What are the new experiences we can create? No doubt we will continue to see art and humor, but let’s use those to inspire us as we imagine what else is possible. The biggest potential (and as always the hardest problem) is in the development of game-changing experiences. I look forward to seeing where this goes."

(Steve Portugal a.k.a. @steveportigal ~ ACM Interactions November + December 2012)

Posted on November 15, 2012 | Permalink

Content Strategy Is A Process Not A Deliverable

Or to put it differently, it's a verb, not a noun.

"Strategies involve objectives. They have to. Either a strategy supports the attainment of the objective or the longer term impact to outcomes after the objective has been reached. Either way, a strategy is something that uses tactics but is not exclusively about them. Strategies also have to support measurable objectives. That is, a strategy's success can only be realized once an objective has been met and that objective has a set of metrics against which it is measured."

(Kris Mausser a.k.a. @krismausser ~ The Discontented Company)

Posted on November 13, 2012 | Permalink

Structured Content is Like Your Closet

Based upon the principle of structure: common properties connected.

"Imagine you have a house with a decent-sized closet. But the closet only has couple of hanging rods across the top and middle. Into this closet, you put all of your clothes, from shoes and socks, to suits and ties, sweatpants, your entire wardrobe. And you try to loosely organize the closet – given that all you have are hanging rods. You have a hanger for all of your ties (hanging haphazardly across the middle), you have a pile of socks in one corner, your shirts are on hangers, but placed randomly on the bars. You get the picture."

(Content Rules)

Posted on November 09, 2012 | Permalink

Your Content, Now Mobile

Congrats Karen with this major achievement!

"It is your mission to get your content out, on whichever platform, in whichever format your audience wants to consume it. Your users get to decide how, when, and where they want to read your content. It is your challenge and your responsibility to deliver a good experience to them."

(Karen McGrane a.k.a. @karenmcgrane ~ A List Apart)

Posted on November 05, 2012 | Permalink

Orchestrated Content: A Cross-Disciplinary Approach

Next up: content choreography.

"In recent months, colleagues and I at Razorfish have been interested in a somewhat related effort to situate the practice and define how it gets things done. We have been looking at the discipline from a broader viewpoint, from the perspective of how content strategy abuts, intersects with, and influences other disciplines. We have proposed an approach to content that we call 'Orchestrated Content'. Rather than focus on how content strategists work within their own discipline, phase by phase through the duration of a project, we look at how our practice is deeply interwoven with many other practices and plot out how content strategy functions across disciplines. We embrace the inevitably porous nature of the practice and highlight its role in tying together the larger strategy of transforming businesses."

(Michael Barnwell ~ Scatter/Gather Razorfish)

Posted on October 31, 2012 | Permalink

Content Strategy for Decision Makers: Connecting the dots between business, brand, and benefits

Content strategy 101 for people with a lot on their minds.

"If we were to sum up the mandate of a content strategy in a single phrase, it would be this: understand the gap between your user experience and your customers' needs, and fix it."

(Rahel Bailie and Noz Urbina ~ CS for Decision Makers)

Posted on October 30, 2012 | Permalink

Bring Mockups to Life with Real Content

Content, the 80-90% driver of transformational user experiences.

"How do you create the perfect pitch for your new product or service? With a bunch of screens filled with Lorem ipsum? We don't think so! Here we share our experiences creating mockups for some tough presentations."

(Antun Debak a.k.a. @adebak ~ UX Passion)

Posted on October 17, 2012 | Permalink

How Visuals Can Help Content Strategists Find Their Voice

Visual thinking and communication, the way to tackle many wicked design problems.

"It's not just clients who are compelled by visuals. Visuals grab everyone’s attention in meaningful, memorable ways, whether we're trying to influence project managers or CMOs. Content strategists use words to argue our points, yet our colleagues (UX and Creative, and even Project Management) use visuals. We should, too. Not sure how to turn data into information?

(Tosca Fasso a.k.a. @toscafasso ~ SUBTXT)

Posted on October 15, 2012 | Permalink

Empathy and Content Strategy: on Teaching, Listening and Affecting Change

Would this also apply to non-textual data?

"Our job is to help make useful, usable web things. Our job is also to ensure that the passion is passed along to the next in line – that we provide some level of empathy and empowerment for the people who will work the content long after we're gone."

(Corey Vilhauer a.k.a. @MrVilhauer ~ @MrVilhauer ~ Eating Elephant)

Posted on October 12, 2012 | Permalink

Content and the journey: Building a good user experience for news sites

Finally, content as main driver of the user experience.

"Discussions at recent news industry conferences have often referred to the importance of good user experience, particularly during discussions about how news outlets are reaching and interacting with their users on digital platforms. References to user experience could cover a range of aspects, including the user's journey through content, an app or a news website, the usability of those products and the experience of consuming a single piece of content. For the purposes of this feature I asked managing editor of the Wall Street Journal's digital network, Raju Narisetti, what user experience meant to him in the context of news and journalism."

(Rachel McAthy ~ Journalism.co.uk)

Posted on October 11, 2012 | Permalink

Why Big Content Is Worth the Risk

So from Big Data, to Big Content to Big Wisdom?

"We all want the low-hanging fruit, but let’s be honest - the low-hanging fruit is rotten, bruised, and covered with the grubby fingerprints of all the other spoiled brats pawing at it. There's a time for easy wins, but easy only gets you so far. Sadly, I see too many SEOs putting days or weeks of effort into crafting the perfect low-value scheme, when that same time could’ve easily gone into content that has real staying power and drives sales. I'm obsessed with 'Big Content' lately - resources that go beyond our narrow bins of blog posts, videos, and infographics. I'm going to show you how that obsession is paying off, and why building real content is easier than you think."

(Peter J. Meyers a.k.a. @dr_pete ~ SEOMoz)

Posted on October 04, 2012 | Permalink

How to Bake Content Strategy into Your Web Design Process

How can 'developing content' be a part of 'content development'? Self-referencing.

"Let's face it, content development is still a massively frustrating process."

(James Deer a.k.a. @jamesdeer ~ Six Revisions)

Posted on August 29, 2012 | Permalink

How Transmedia Storytelling will Transform the Role of the Content Strategist

But... what's The Story to tell.

"This report provides clear foundations for the future of content strategy. It means Content Strategists can no longer afford to specialise in just Digital or even Social Media. You will need to expand your skill set to include a deep understanding of above the line, mobile, games and offline experiences. Transmedia Storytelling is not a fad; it's the convergence of media channels to meet the need of the user."

(Kohlben Vodden a.k.a. @kohlben ~ WhatWorksWhere)

Posted on August 29, 2012 | Permalink

We Must Develop Topic-Based Information Design

Always remarkable how people perceive InfoDesign.

"(...) in the age of the Web, and particularly of the mobile Web, topic-based information design is essential."

(Mark Baker ~ Every Page is Page One)

Posted on August 28, 2012 | Permalink

Enterprise Content Strategy Comes Down To Governance and Workflow

Enterprises, the new hunting grounds for experience design.

"The problem today is that this bastion of the Industrial Revolution remains as businesses try to mobilize their human capital for the content demands of an always connected marketplace. Further complicating matters, workforce downsizing and the flattening of corporate hierarchies in the mid 1990's continues to cripple many organizations in their ability to deliver the content needed to be successful in the Information Age."

(Kris Mausser a.k.a. @krismausser ~ Follow the UX leader)

Posted on August 21, 2012 | Permalink

Bursting the Content Bubble (and Getting What You Want)

The context you're getting into as UX and its related fields of practice gets more complex every time.

Presentation video - "As content strategy people, we need to learn about sales, metrics, figures, change management, PR, and marketing, if we’re going to get our content strategy adopted by our companies and our clients. Which means stepping out of our comfort zones, and having the courage to learn about other disciplines. Kate shows us how, by sharing her recent experiences doing exactly that."

(Kate Kenyon a.k.a. @kate_kenyon)

Posted on July 24, 2012 | Permalink

Unified Content Strategy: Fact or Fiction?

Caring is just one thing, paying attention is another.

"(...) the notion that customers don't care about the quality of content is bunk. People do care and content quality does reflect on the overall perception of the product and its creator."

(Val Swisher a.k.a. @contentrulesinc ~ Content Rules)

Posted on July 24, 2012 | Permalink

The Psychology of Content Design

Content and Design are partners in a happy marriage.

"The way that we shape content is absolutely paramount to the success of our ventures on the web. Beyond this, the way that we design and craft user experiences should forever be considered not only important, but an integrated part of our content. With that said, this article is not an attempt to pit content against design. Instead, I will simply make the claim that good design is an integrated part of the content."

(Jonathan Cutrell ~ Tuts Plus)

Posted on July 16, 2012 | Permalink

The Content Strategy Knowledge Gap

Content rulez.

"Being smart about content is the road to success for all web professionals."

(Rick Allen a.k.a. @epublishmedia ~ Meet Content)

Posted on July 12, 2012 | Permalink

The case for responsive web content: it's all about the users

Every design discipline and concept comes back to the same place: the 'user'.

"Most responsive design projects start out as a functional or technical endeavour. I know our projects often do. But if responsive web design is device-agnostic, aimed at people instead of devices, we should try to finally step away from the technical and functional approach, and truly start to put content first."

(Christiaan W. Lustig a.k.a. @ChristiaanWLstg ~ .net magazine)

Posted on July 11, 2012 | Permalink

Developing a User Centric Content Strategy

What's wrong to make content just for yourself?

"Content should exist because there is a target set of audience - people who will read, watch, and/or look at your stuff. Keep in mind that the reason we are making content is not to make ourselves feel good, or to archive and document what our company is about. We make content for people - users who drop by in your site because they want to know you!"

(Sean Si a.k.a. @h3sean ~ SEO Hacker)

Posted on July 04, 2012 | Permalink

The definition of content strategy

Sounds simple: two thousand words of copy a month makes you a thought leader in the end.

"Through your content strategy you should describe your firm's expertise as clearly and openly as possible. You want to be generous with the knowledge you share through your site's content strategy. This idea makes many agencies feel uncomfortable (...)"

(Mark O'Brien a.k.a. @NewfangledMark ~ Newfangled)

Posted on June 20, 2012 | Permalink

Adaptive Content: Our primary platform is burning. Time to jump!

Lot's of jumping going on lately.

"I think the greatest insight I gained from Karen's adaptive content talk is the idea that historically, all content has been designed and created for a 'primary platform', whose format is well understood. After its initial publication, it must then be reformatted to meet the design realities of any other contexts in which it is to appear."

(R. Stephen Gracey a.k.a. @rsgracey ~ The Content Strategy Noob)

Posted on June 13, 2012 | Permalink

Content Modeling

Abstracting the content universals from their particulars.

"We're in the middle of a paradigm shift from unstructured content to structured content. It is unsustainable to continually unpick unstructured content, at the last mile, across our broadcast, print and digital channels. This shift is making us revisit the way we capture, structure and store content in fundamental ways. Content modeling is one of those. These pages outline the role of content modeling as a effective communication tool for structuring content."

(Cleve Gibbon a.k.a. @cleveg)

Posted on June 07, 2012 | Permalink

Content Strategy: in 3D!

Just looking for my stereoscopic goggles.

"Content strategists have been leading the charge on how to deliver a consistent message across channels. The advent of smaller, cheaper technology is making it possible for every surface to be a new channel. Sensors such as the Microsoft Kinect depth-sensing camera are removing the need for complex input devices or even touchscreens. The more that physical environments gain digital and interactive dimensions, the more important it is to provide clear, focused storytelling that has been considered carefully. The strategies that have become codified over time for the web and are helping us with the transition to the mobile web also provide us with a powerful framework to design great experiences in physical environments."

(Scott Smith ~ Boxes and Arrows)

Posted on May 30, 2012 | Permalink

Content strategy in 600 words

That's easy, just six hundred words.

"My master's thesis, is an insightful look at content strategy effectiveness, including web writing, aesthetics, information architecture, social media, information design, and usability. The research focus was on college and university websites, but much of the information is applicable to nearly any industry."

(Gary Teagarden a.k.a. @garyteagarden ~ Teagarden-tech)

Posted on May 27, 2012 | Permalink

(Re)consider the Source

Rule: verify the facts from three independent sources.

"People turn more often to digital content but don't necessarily trust it. Why? One reason is that people judge the credibility of content by the credibility of its source. Let's take a closer look at the role of source in perceived credibility."

(Colleen Jones a.k.a. @leenjones ~ Contents Magazine)

Posted on May 22, 2012 | Permalink

Confab 2012: Thoughts and Reactions

Finally, somebody said it.

"I was one of about 5 technical writers among the 650 attendees, which is why I found it surprising to hear Kristina Halverson say, We can learn a lot from tech comm. Let me repeat that. We can learn a lot from tech comm."

(Tom Johnson ~ I'd Rather Be Writing)

Posted on May 21, 2012 | Permalink

Content strategy is not always ux

The DTDT thing disguised as an opinion.

"The complex interplay between UX and content strategy allows for many different scenarios, but one thing is clear to us: Most of the time, content strategy efforts should not fall under UX. UX professionals are expert in creating intuitive, clear paths within websites for visitors to consume all your audience-targeted content. Content strategists are expert at creating content that meets audience needs."

(Linda Leung ~ Tendo Communications)

Posted on May 02, 2012 | Permalink

Content Modelling: A Master Skill

Data, information, or content modelling: entities, properties and relations. Stuff and structure.

"A content model is a powerful tool for fostering communication and aligning efforts between UX design, editorial, and technical resources on a project. By clearly defining the assembly model, the content types, and the content attributes, we can help make sure that the envisioned content strategy becomes a reality for the content creators. In my recent projects, I find that content modeling is more and more in demand. It's a valuable skill for any content strategist, especially those that strive for mastery."

(Rachel Lovinger a.k.a. @rlovinger ~ A List Apart)

Posted on April 24, 2012 | Permalink

Personas: A Critical Investment For Content Strategy

Personas as the silver bullet to guarantee empathy?

"Content strategy isn't really a discipline but a defined approach to handling an organization's content consistently across departments and channels. It can only be effective if it becomes ubiquitous to the processes and procedures that already exist within business - communications, public relations, customer service, marketing, graphic design, IT, etc. While the defined strategy may be about content, the tactics by which we achieve our content goals are really about people. Who are we publishing content for? How will they interact with the content we present? How do they define relevancy? What is meaningful and engaging to them? Borrowing a tool that user experience and interaction designers have used for years, personas are a powerful way to not only create and implement a sound content strategy, but to facilitate its adoption by everyone in the organization."

(Kristina Mausser a.k.a. @krismausser ~ Follow the UX Leader)

Posted on April 10, 2012 | Permalink

The State of the Content Industry

Content (the stuff formerly known as information) has always been my reason to go to the WWW.

InfoDesign WebGem #6,400 - "At the forefront of this shift is the re-emergence of original, quality content and the surge in brands acting as publishers. Add to this changing landscape a redefining of journalism, shaped by social media, and the latest disruption in the broadcast industry, and media analysts see an industry that is both exciting and unsettling."

(Patrick Burke ~ The Content Strategist a.k.a. @contently)

Posted on March 28, 2012 | Permalink

Mental Modeling For Content Work: Creation

Philip Johnson-Laird's mental model being there for decades (since 1983). Finally entering CS.

"(...) when a mental model can be produced, it can be extremely useful for planning, maintaining and governing content over time."

(Daniel Eizans a.k.a. @danieleizans)

Posted on March 22, 2012 | Permalink

Adaptive Content for Multiple Devices

The more you chunk it, the better is gets. Up to a certain level of granularity.

"Adaptive content lets you automatically provide your content anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Adaptive content is limited only by your design decisions, the functionality of the device being used, and the intelligence of your content."

(Ann Rockley a.k.a. @arockley)

Posted on March 15, 2012 | Permalink

The business value of content and content strategy

Content marketing in disguise.

"If you don't yet grasp the value of content and content strategy to your business or organization, then it's time to learn. If you do get it, then it's time to step up and start teaching the executive team about the value of content. It's time to illustrate that without good content to attract and engage potential customers, to educate them about their pains, to convince them to commit to change and to explore your solution, then the phones down the hall in the Sales organization will not be ringing much... or as much as they could be."

(Jim Woolfrey a.k.a. @informative ~ strategeezy)

Posted on March 07, 2012 | Permalink

Responsive-Ready Content

Getting more and more towards the direction of virtual, computational documents a.k.a. content.

"(...) to expand on the discussion around responsive design specifically, demonstrating why we need a foundation of content types, micro-structures, and business rules if we want to keep priority, relationships, and meaning intact."

(Sara Wachter-Boettcher a.k.a. @sara_ann_marie)

Posted on March 07, 2012 | Permalink

Yes there is

'There is such a thing as...' versus 'There is no such thing as...'

"(...) I mostly walk away with the idea that the author just doesn't understand content strategy. It is the lack of content strategy that helps promote the silo-fication of content creation, in which the silo with the strongest voice prevails, however disconnected from the customer’s needs and culture that voice might be."

(Jim Woolfrey a.k.a. @informative ~ strategeezy)

Posted on March 01, 2012 | Permalink

What Does Digital Analytics Have in Common with Content Strategy, InfoArch and UX?

Another take on the same event.

"Not many would dispute that organizations need a Web strategy to be successful. When it comes to execution, operational governance is considered the key to getting the organization to act on the strategy. Governance takes the strategy and makes it real through alignment of roles, responsibilities, management policies and budget decisions."

(Web Analytics Management)

Posted on March 01, 2012 | Permalink

Three Of My (Somewhat) Intelligent Insights From ICC

And a mess it is.

Or, Why I Didn't Get to See Many Palms in Palm Springs - "Content is innovation; Content everywhere raises new questions for credibility and ethics; We're in this content mess together - and we'll fix it together."

(Colleen Jones a.k.a. @leenjones ~ Content Science)

Posted on February 29, 2012 | Permalink

Future-Ready Content

Future-proof might be a better qualification.

"The future is flexible, and we're bending with it. From responsive web design to futurefriend.ly thinking, we're moving quickly toward a web that's more fluid, less fixed, and more easily accessed on a multitude of devices. As we embrace this shift, we need to relinquish control of our content as well, setting it free from the boundaries of a traditional web page to flow as needed through varied displays and contexts. Most conversations about structured content dive headfirst into the technical bits: XML, DITA, microdata, RDF. But structure isn't just about metadata and markup; it's what that metadata and markup mean. Sara Wachter-Boettcher shares a framework for making smart decisions about our content's structure."

(Sara Wachter-Boettcher a.k.a. @sara_ann_marie ~ ALA Issue 345)

Posted on February 28, 2012 | Permalink

Is there such a thing as content strategy?

There is no such thing as... A rhetorical question?

"Strategy is defined at a senior management level. Good content can help implement that strategy. (...) To me the essence of strategy on the web is customer centricity. The Web is about the rise of customer power. Social media is just one example of that."

(Gerry McGovern)

Posted on February 27, 2012 | Permalink

Bylines for Web Articles?

Mobile anonymous.

"Should you say who wrote the content on your site? Sometimes yes (for credibility), sometimes no (for brevity). And rarely in mobile."

(Jakob Nielsen ~ Alertbox)

Posted on February 27, 2012 | Permalink

Make Content Strategy the Foundation of Social Service Design

Content, interaction, service, design, architecture, experience, ... all elements of the UX soup.

"Content is a key element of customer experience. It may well be one-way to begin with-a white paper, a podcast, and so on-that people read or listen to. But in all its glory content should serve as a primary, integrated element of interactive experiences."

(Rohn Jay Miller a.k.a. @rohnjaymiller ~ Social Media Today)

Posted on February 23, 2012 | Permalink

Why Personas are Critical for Content Strategy

Personas are great for any UX field, content strategy included.

"The most popular content strategy tools borrow from the discipline of information architecture, but there is one invaluable tool that is imperative to the process of strategy and implementation of tactics that we can thank our user experience cousins for: personas."

(Kristina Mausser a.k.a. @krismausser ~ Johnny Holland Magazine)

Posted on February 16, 2012 | Permalink

Message and Medium: Better Content by Design

Content is all that matters. To begin with...

"In this presentation, live at An Event Apart, Kristina Halvorson teaches you to identify your key business messages, understand how they inform your content strategy, and learn how they impact multi-channel content development and design."

(Jeffrey Zeldman a.k.a. @zeldman ~ An Event Apart)

Posted on February 14, 2012 | Permalink

Structure First. Content Always.

First, second, third... sequential thinking. Think parallel, synergy, dialectic.

"There is an emerging fallacy in our industry recently. The idea that you cannot create good design without knowing your content. (...) You can create good experiences without knowing the content. What you can't do is create good experiences without knowing your content structure. What is your content made from, not what your content is. An important distinction."

(Mark Boulton a.k.a. @markboulton)

Posted on February 07, 2012 | Permalink

How Taxonomy and Metadata Leads to Findability

Taxos and metadata have been around for centuries. Locked in the paper technologies.

"Taxonomy and metadata are becoming much more popular these days. Companies need to keep track of their information, but can't use traditional classification systems, such as Dewey Decimal or Library of Congress Subject Headings. In the last 10 years, faceted taxonomies have taken on new importance on the web; XML has upgraded the visibility of metadata. Having the skills to create taxonomies and metadata will serve you well. Most people don't have the instinctual skills to create information organization structures that are useful or the practical knowledge and experience to be confident in the structures they create. Understanding how taxonomies and metadata feed into user interfaces allows you to recommend good designs that improve findability."

(Theresa Putkey ~ E3 Content Strategy)

Posted on February 07, 2012 | Permalink

Mental Modeling For Content Work: Information Gathering

Mental modeling, the black swan of webdesign.

"If you don't have much of a background in philosophy, the social or psychological sciences, you may not be familiar with the concept of intersubjectivity. Most would agree that it refers to a cognitive state somewhere between subjectivity (judgment based on individual personal impressions and feelings and opinions rather than external facts) and objectivity (judgment based on observable phenomena and uninfluenced by emotions or personal prejudices), which refers to a shared understanding of meaning or concept by more than one person."

(Daniel Eizans a.k.a. @danieleizans)

Posted on January 31, 2012 | Permalink

Content strategy in technical communication

Also, content strategy can learn a whole lot from the field of Techical Communication.

"In this webcast recording, Sarah O'Keefe explores how to develop a content strategy specifically for technical content. That means stepping back from the temptation to focus on tools and instead taking a hard look at what the users need and how best to deliver it."

(Scriptorium Publishing)

Posted on January 23, 2012 | Permalink

Content Strategy and Responsive Design

Keep, hide or move. But are you telling the same story different on the desktop, the iPad or the smartphone?

"Responsive design can have a major impact on your content. I'll tell you how it works, how it can affect your content, and why you should-and need to-care."

(Sean Tubridy a.k.a. @tubes ~ Brain Traffic Blog)

Posted on January 20, 2012 | Permalink

Using Content Modules to Improve Efficiency and User Experience

Re-usable patterns, templates, components, modules, elements, and 'what-have-you' for content is the future.

"Content modules are small chunks of content that can be placed on standard web pages, typically in the right side-bar area or at the bottom of the page. Each module contains content that can be automatically (or manually) updated or changed based on certain criteria. Some types of pages, such as a home or landing pages, can be built almost entirely by using content modules as building blocks."

(@KathyHanbury ~ E3 Content Strategy)

Posted on January 11, 2012 | Permalink

Content Strategy Within The Design Process

(DTDT) Just name one field with a single universal definition.

"The first thing to understand about content strategy is that no two people understand it the same way. It's a relatively new - and extremely broad - discipline with no single definitive definition."

(Brad Shorr a.k.a. @bradshorr ~ Smashing Magazine)

Posted on December 05, 2011 | Permalink

Mental Modeling For Content Work: An Introduction

Introducing an old concept to a 'new' field of practice. Sigh!

"All it takes is a moment for our mood to change. Ideas and complex concepts can form in seconds given the right amount of cognitive capacity. Even something as simple as the way a sentence is structured or the words we choose will impact perceptions or the potential for another's comprehension. It's precisely for all of these ambient, behavioral and situational factors that content strategists should be better leveraging mental mapping and modeling for the planning, design and implementation of content. Mental Modeling is far from a new thing. (...) the first post in a three part series about adapting traditional views of mental modeling for the practice of content strategy."

(Daniel Eizans a.k.a. @danieleizans)

Posted on November 22, 2011 | Permalink

The ROI of content

ROI ('return-on-investment') is this weird bean counter concept addressing the question what do you buy, in atoms or in bits.

"The idea that content contributes to the bottom line is no longer a novel idea. I can't really blame management for their skepticism; after all, what has been rather thin in public discourse about the benefits of content is the actual ROI."

(Intentional Design Inc.)

Posted on November 18, 2011 | Permalink

The Content Triangle: Empathy and Accountability Create Engagement

Out with deliverables, in with prototypes.

"By not focusing on the deliverable value, but on the quality of the idea within, we stand to motivate and engage people to a much higher degree. By helping focus colleagues on the value of their direct input, we stand to create a sense of accountability as ideas spread and evolve."

(Tom Bennett a.k.a. @tom_bennett ~ DachisGroup)

Posted on November 17, 2011 | Permalink

Contents Magazine

Great initiative!

"Contents is a digital magazine devoted to content strategy, online publishing, and new-school editorial work. We publish each issue gradually, over several weeks. Each issue explores a central theme; each piece offers a different angle. We're glad you're here."

(About Contents Magazine a.k.a. @Contents)

Posted on November 16, 2011 | Permalink

Kristina Halvorson on Content Strategy

Spreading the gospel with exposure of the person and the field in the MS universe.

"Content strategy identifies how content will help achieve your business objectives. It informs how organisations create, deliver and govern or take care of their content, online and beyond. It helps people move from thinking about content launch to content life cycle, allowing them to create a plan to manage that content over time."

(Tom May a.k.a. @tom_may ~ .net Magazine)
courtesy of contentcafe

Posted on November 04, 2011 | Permalink

Cutting the Complexity of Content Marketing

As an exception, I'll post something on marketing. For making things a little better.

"Content marketing and online marketing, in general, have gotten seriously complicated, but it doesn't have to be. So, what makes content marketing so complex? And how can we simplify it for the sake of all our sanity?"

(Jayme Thomason ~ Content Marketing Institute)

Posted on October 26, 2011 | Permalink

Fear of Content

Not really sure why we changed data and information into content, as if it's something completely different.

"Content can be a little frightening, it's true. Not to everyone mind you. Some people simply love content, with all its oddities and challenges. More often than not these are the people who spend much of their time designing and creating content. But there are definitely people who look somewhat askance at this thing called 'content'. The reasons why some people are less than enamored with content are worth considering and not only to refute them. There may well be good reasons to be afraid - or at least to approach content with due respect."

(Joe Gollner a.k.a. @joegollner ~ The Fractal Enterprise)

Posted on October 19, 2011 | Permalink

Mobile Content: If in Doubt, Leave It Out

Less screen estate, higher constraints on publication.

"Writing for mobile readers requires even harsher editing than writing for the Web. Mobile use implies less patience for filler copy."

(Jakob Nielsen ~ Alertbox)

Posted on October 10, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy for the Web

For many, adding value through content means more 'conversion' (a.k.a. traffic, leads, and sales).

"(...) the purpose of your web content centers on the customer's experience. Just like keyword research attempts to identify what your customers are searching for in your industry, your website can provide the answer to those searches. A smart content strategy begins with understanding what the customer needs rather than what you want to offer them."

(Arnie Kuenn a.k.a. @ArnieK ~ Business 2 Community)

Posted on September 05, 2011 | Permalink

Web Content Strategy: Sites vs Apps

Labels, copy, and paragraphs are all text. Where's the strategy for all the other content?

"Content strategists should work with interface and UX designers to minimize these changes, by considering what future features and updates are likely to appear in the app. With this knowledge, the interface and labels can be designed to minimize changes in position or text."

(Dan Zambonini a.k.a. @zambonini ~ contentini)

Posted on July 25, 2011 | Permalink

Designing for Content: Creating a Message Hierarchy

In the end, hierarchy will be replaced by network.

"When we integrate content creation early in our web development processes, we are more effective at orienting our conversations to the end goals for the user and the business. This is a huge win for our users, who are increasingly demanding meaningful content experiences before they engage with our web sites and apps. It's also vital to businesses, whose success depends on communicating value in ways that convert bystanders to buyers."

(Stephanie Hay a.k.a. @steph_hay ~ Web Standards Sherpa)

Posted on July 19, 2011 | Permalink

Building a Content Strategy Methodology in Several Thousand Easy Steps

"Methodology. An ugly word, to be sure. Cold and clinical, it marginalizes flexibility in the name of process. Gross. Yet, we all seek it out. We all want a methodology - a guide to doing what we are going to do. We want it for us. We want it for our clients. We want to take the amorphous blob that is content strategy and define WHAT THAT MEANS on a task-related level. Great. But how?"

(Corey Vilhauer a.k.a. @MrVilhauer ~ Eating Elephant)

Posted on June 21, 2011 | Permalink

CS is (Still) Not (Only) UX ... and Why It Matters

"(...) I tend to think of UX design as a kind of design work associated with certain methods, processes, and values. It's not limited to the web, or even (theoretically, at least) to the digital world."

(Erin Kissane a.k.a. @kissane ~ Brain Traffic)
courtesy of basevers

Posted on June 10, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy: A brief history of the Web

"The idea of content strategy isn't as easy to grasp for others, and that's ok because some folks appreciate naming things and seeing them all in relation to one another. It's a kind of wayfinding in the growing complexity of the digital age."

(R. Stephen Gracey a.k.a. @RSGracey ~ The Content Strategy Noob)

Posted on May 18, 2011 | Permalink

Agile Content Strategy: Scrum Favors Generalists

"One of the features of Scrum that is difficult for us to implement relates to specialization. We are indoctrinated to focus our talents on one primary field or specialty. When specialists work as a team, they contribute their unique work at the prescribed phase of a project and otherwise they sit on the sidelines and watch the progress. While they're on the bench, they might as well work on other projects. So it is not uncommon for one person to be involved in a dozen or more projects with the hope that the timing will align and they can do their part when needed in all of them. Of course, it rarely works that way. Project plans overlap. So specialists typically vacillate between crazy overtime and burnout." (James Mathewson ~ Writing for Digital)

Posted on May 17, 2011 | Permalink

The Importance of Web Content Strategy

"Some web design and web development agencies have it all. They provide their clients with a complete site solution from beginning to end, from site planning and information architecture to web design, web hosting, and SEO. It's tough for a smaller web design company or the solo freelancer to compete. Or is it? It may be easier than you think to broaden your competitiveness by adding web content writing services to your web design company." (Rick Sloboda ~ Six Revisions)

Posted on May 16, 2011 | Permalink

Confab Session Wrap: Selling Content Strategy

"Karen McGrane, of Bond Art + Science and an interaction design instructor at SVA, spoke to a packed crowd of audience of content strategists searching for tips and tricks on making the content strategy sell within organizations. She started with a personal history, entitled, Ways I Fucked Up By Not Talking About Content Strategy a Lot Earlier. It was a painful kind of funny, as most of us nodded when she spoke about dealing with organizational structure, budgets where one person wins and another loses, and recurring scoping heartaches. McGrane says we need to see our present day as an opportunity to change the way we work and do business. Not just to fix things for unhappy people. And psst, it's also a good opportunity to sell more work." (Sadia Latifi ~ barbarian group)

Posted on May 13, 2011 | Permalink

Q&A with Colleen Jones

"How did you come to think of influential content in this way? Two big reasons. One was I studied rhetoric in grad school. I kept using rhetorical principles in my work successfully. But, if I tried to explain to people what I did as rhetoric, they had no idea what I was talking about. So, I saw an opportunity to make those principles practical and usable. The other big reason was over the past few years, I've seen persuasive marketing and design use pushy tactics in the name of cognitive and social psychology. Psychology principles focus more on form than on substance. Psychology, as a simple example, would tell you to have logos and quotes that endorse your product or service. Rhetoric would tell you to have those endorsements be from brands and people that your audience identifies with." (Rachel Lovinger ~ Scatter/Gather)

Posted on May 05, 2011 | Permalink

Three Questons: The Content Strategy Discipline

"Most of the content strategy literature tries to define the discipline in terms of the deliverables practitioners produce–audits, plans, style guides and other resources, UX recommendations, human resource models, tooling recommendations, process engineering flow charts, etc. This is all well and good. But it won't help to evangelize the practice of content strategy, or help define what unifies all these activities." (Writing for Digital)

Posted on May 02, 2011 | Permalink

Creating a Content Strategy Maturity Model

"A strategic and disciplined approach to content strategy will explicitly support overall business intent, explain how it will do so, and align with annual sales and marketing (and perhaps customer care) objectives. Done well, it could be a source of strategic advantage for the enterprise." (Christine Thompson)

Posted on April 27, 2011 | Permalink

The UX of this article

"In many respects, when we talk about, evaluate, and revise products from a usability standpoint, we overlook the most important piece: content. Our tendency is to be concerned only with the wrapper or container, navigation through that container, and the interplay of the elements that make up the container. But what about the content which populates this otherwise dead space?" (Brett Sandusky ~ UX Magazine)

Posted on April 27, 2011 | Permalink

Content/Communication

"The way we talk about our content has significant impact on the way we treat it within our organizations... and, therefore, the quality of the content we produce. How can we make the shift from treating content as a commodity to valuing it as a business asset? With a little storytelling and the help of a few powerful metaphors, you can begin to turn the tides." (Kristina Halvorson ~ Webstock 11 videos)

Posted on April 12, 2011 | Permalink

Making the right products in the right way: a consistent product lifecycle

"Creating a world class BBC Online depends on teams from diverse backgrounds working together, and this demands clear and consistent terminology, processes, and governance structures across all products in the BBC Online portfolio. The Product Lifecycle Management provides a framework for collaboration between technical and editorial disciplines." (BBC)

Posted on April 11, 2011 | Permalink

Karen McGrane: CS Forum podcast episode 4

"People love the recent history of things like Xerox PARC and Apple Computer. And I might set the history of content strategy almost on like a separate track, an alternate timeline. A lot of the history of principles that apply to content strategy come out of very old traditions in rhetoric and technical communication. (...) And that's one of the things that's so exciting to me about content strategy is, it's bringing a lot of these principles that have been discussed for decades into this new space of the web and digital media." (Randall Snare ~ CS Forum '11)

Posted on April 05, 2011 | Permalink

IA and Content Strategy

Content Talks Episode #3 ~ "Kristina picks Louis Rosenfeld's brain about the relationship between IA and content strategy, and how the burgeoning content strategy community can avoid the pitfalls of other professional associations." (Content Talks)

Posted on April 04, 2011 | Permalink

The Five Models Of Content Curation

"Content Curation is a term that describes the act of finding, grouping, organizing or sharing the best and most relevant content on a specific issue. It is such a powerful idea because curation does NOT focus on adding more content/noise to the chaotic information overload of social media, and instead focuses on helping any one of us to make sense of this information by bringing together what is most important." (Rohit Bhargava ~ IMB)

Posted on April 04, 2011 | Permalink

The Importance of Strategic Micro Copy: An iTunes Case Study

"Poorly devised, unhelpful content is wasteful. It potentially wastes the time of users and can also have financial implications for the company responsible for it, in this case Apple. Because they were not more thoughtful about their micro copy, they’ve had to correspond with me multiple times, costing them and me money and time. They've also left me feeling frustrated and, if at all possible, I will probably look to spend my money elsewhere. Lucky for them, they are one of the only providers of digital MP3 and video content online in my region of the world. Unless you're Apple, can you afford to alienate customers because of careless copy?" (Amy Thibodeau ~ Contentini)

Posted on March 28, 2011 | Permalink

Ten European content strategists to watch

"The task of identifying 10 European individuals that make a difference when it comes to content strategy has not been easy. The emerging field is dominated by US-based consultants and at least in Europe, many don't use the term to describe what they do." (J.Boye)

Posted on March 21, 2011 | Permalink

Introducing Content Talks

"When Dan Benjamin asked if I'd be interested in doing a podcast for 5by5, I said Absolutely not! I hate talking about content strategy!" OK, no, that's not what I said. I accepted on the spot and immediately put together a long, exciting list of smart, interesting people I hoped to interview in the months to come." (Kristina Halvorson ~ Brain Traffic)

Posted on March 18, 2011 | Permalink

Why Curation Is Just as Important as Creation

"The personal web publishing boom has led to an information explosion. It's a data free-for-all, and it's just beginning. Andrew Blau is a researcher and the co-president of Global Business Network in San Fransisco. Blau has foretold the changes in media distribution and content creation. Now he's watching this new, historic emergence of first-person publishing." (Steve Rosenbaum ~ Mashable)

Posted on March 18, 2011 | Permalink

Eric Reiss: CS Forum podcast episode 2

"(...) Eric Reiss talks to Destry about content strategy, information architecture, and why it's time to stop marking our territory." (Destry Wion ~ CS Forum 2011)

Posted on March 17, 2011 | Permalink

The European content strategy industry is on the rise

"From the accomplishments of the past two years and the unrelenting momentum of content strategy discourse, it’s safe to say local communities will grow and international events will continue. We'll probably even learn of one or two more books in the works by the end of 2011. These events will increasingly draw content-minded people of varying kind, who will, in turn, roll ideas back into the businesses they represent. Opportunities will start opening up for CS consultants and agencies alike. Even positions inside larger companies will form as a more cost-effective way to retain and grow internal content strategy processes." (Destry Wion ~ CS Forum 2011)

Posted on March 11, 2011 | Permalink

App Madness & The Open Web

"Web content is publishing: we've been saying it for awhile now, and it's starting to sink in. And if everyone is a publisher, then we—content strategists and other people who specialize in content work—should be able to advise our clients on their publishing plans, or at least those that cross into the online world. We’ve done so before, in the long push to demonstrate that the web isn’t the same as print, and that dumping print content into a web page serves neither user nor publisher. But in the last two years, the online publishing landscape has undergone a major change, both in perception and reality." (Clinton Forry ~ Confab 2011 blog)

Posted on March 09, 2011 | Permalink

A Checklist for Content Work

"There's really only one central principle of good content: it should be appropriate for your business, for your users, and for its context. Appropriate in its method of delivery, in its style and structure, and above all in its substance. As Erin Kissane explains, content strategy is the practice of determining what each of those things means for your project - and how to get there from where you are now." (A List Apart)

Posted on March 08, 2011 | Permalink

Content Centred Design: A methodology (Part 2)

"I recognize that all web projects are unique is some way and any approach has to be tailored, so in this post I'm going to provide a fairly high level methodology, a methodology however that gives users and content the same emphasis. It has now become the norm that the needs and wants of users are considered at every stage of a project. I want content to have the same recognition." (Patrick Walsh ~ manIA)

Posted on March 08, 2011 | Permalink

CS Forum podcast episode 1: Gerry McGovern

"There is nothing more important on the web than content. But don't talk about it. Talk about the success of the customer or the lack of success of the customer. Because most organizations realize today that if they're not customer centric, they don't have much of a future." (Randall Snare ~ CS Forum 2011)

Posted on February 24, 2011 | Permalink

STC: Content Strategy SIG

"The Content Strategy SIG is to be the STC home for members who are practitioners in this new space. The SIG is the forum in which to establish and develop the practice area of content strategy, particularly as it pertains to technical communication, to provide resources that prepare STC members wanting to transition to this as a career option, and to allow SIG members to support one another as practitioners as the field develops. Additionally, artifacts may be developed that allows practitioners to build a body of knowledge specifically pertaining to content strategy. The Content Strategy SIG was inaugurated in September 2009. As a new SIG, we are actively seeking members." (Society for Technical Communication) ~ dead-on-arrival

Posted on February 23, 2011 | Permalink

Content and Clout: A Chat with Colleen Jones

"There's a big difference between persuasion, or influence, and manipulation. People have experienced much interactive marketing (...) as a collection of manipulative tricks—to the point that the connotations of marketing and advertising are now almost synonymous with lying. That really needs to change." (Kristina Mausser ~ UXmatters)

Posted on February 21, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy and UX: A Modern Love Story

"Why the gold rush? The answer is pretty simple: it's inherently impossible to design a great user experience for bad content. If you're passionate about creating better user experiences, you can't help but care about delivering useful, usable, engaging content." (Kristina Halvorson ~ UX magazine)

Posted on February 17, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy Is Not User Experience

"(...) content people who come from or work in the UX world say content strategy and mean bits of all of the above, but with user-centered design at the core of the work. Product design becomes feature design; messaging and branding become content goals and style guides; data modeling becomes content templates and page tables." (Erin Kissane ~ Brain Traffic)

Posted on February 11, 2011 | Permalink

The Changing Role of Content Strategist

"So even though the distribution of content and the role of the distributor may change, the old rules of trust and value are not going away. In fact, these features will still be the main tools bridging the gap between the brand and consumer." (Giedrius Ivanauskas)

Posted on February 04, 2011 | Permalink

What next for content?

"We all need to be working out what users want, how they want it and where they want it. And that’s what content strategy is for." (Tamsin Hemingray ~ iCrossing)

Posted on January 26, 2011 | Permalink

About Content Strategy

"One of the things that stands out for me in any consideration of 'content strategy' is that it is centered upon the business goals of the organization. It sounds almost painfully obvious but grim reality shows us that it is not as obvious as it sounds. A content strategy should bring to the fore the idea that the content must be expressly designed and developed so as to address specific business objectives. This content must also, it follows, be designed to work with and leverage the tools that are being used, such as the search technology that a customer or prospect is most likely to call upon when looking for an answer. (...) the content strategist must take on board a raft of considerations and then chart an efficient and effective path of content investment." (Joe Gollner ~ The Fractal Enterprise)

Posted on January 24, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy: A Roadmap for Technical Communicators

"(...) content strategy is more than a buzzword and goes above and beyond traditional project management or information architecture. Content strategy is a coordinated plan between the disciplines, which shows where an organization intends to put its content development efforts." (Peg Mulligan)

Posted on January 24, 2011 | Permalink

UX, It's Time to Grow Up

"(...) one of the main issues that we see, but at times ignore, in this field is that most of us try to be jacks of all trades within UX." (Elisabeth Hubert)

Posted on January 20, 2011 | Permalink

What is Intelligent Content?

"(...) is content which is not limited to one purpose, technology or output. It's content that is structurally rich and semantically aware, and is therefore discoverable, reusable, reconfigurable and adaptable. It's content that helps you and your customers get the job done. It's content that works for you and it's limited only by your imagination." (Ann Rockley ~ The Content Wrangler)

Posted on January 18, 2011 | Permalink

Content Strategy Design Patterns

"A content strategy plans the full lifecycle of content: how it will be created, delivered, maintained and archived or destroyed. This project focuses on web content: all forms of digital language and media found on websites. As an integral part of User Experience, web content strategy must take account of search engine optimization, user interface design, user needs, business needs, and other aspects of online strategy. (...) To paraphrase IAWiki, "Design Patterns are solutions to common problems. As problems arise in a community and are resolved, common solutions often spontaneously emerge. Eventually the best of these self-identify and become refined until they reach the status of a Design Pattern." (Contentini)

Posted on January 17, 2011 | Permalink

SEO and the Dirty White Lie About Content Strategy

"Listen. We don't need to live in separate clubhouses with our own secret handshakes, here. I think everyone agrees that doing better business online is our shared goal, no matter who you are or how you’re contributing." (Kristina Halvorson ~ Braintraffic)

Posted on January 12, 2011 | Permalink

A Contentmas Epiphany

"Be honest, did you immediately think of a sketch or mockup you have tucked away? Or some clever little piece of code you want to fiddle with? Now ask yourself, why would you start designing the container if you haven't worked out what you need to put inside? Anyway, forget the content strategy lecture; I haven't given you your gifts yet. I present The Twelve Days of Contentmas! This is a simple little plan to make sure that your personal site, blog or portfolio is not just looking good at the end of these twelve days, but is also a really useful repository of really useful content." (Relly Annett-Baker ~ 24Ways)

Posted on December 22, 2010 | Permalink

Testing Content

"Nobody needs to convince you that it's important to test your website's design and interaction with the people who will use it, right? But if that's all you do, you're missing out on feedback about the most important part of your site: the content. Whether the purpose of your site is to convince people to do something, to buy something, or simply to inform, testing only whether they can find information or complete transactions is a missed opportunity: Is the content appropriate for the audience? Can they read and understand what you've written?" (Angela Colter ~ A List Apart)

Posted on December 14, 2010 | Permalink

An Intelligent Content Strategy for the Enterprise

"One of the challenges facing anyone considering a content strategy, whether on the scale of a single web offering or a global enterprise, is sustainability. It is only with intelligent content that it becomes possible to talk about a sustainable enterprise content strategy. Automation can be used to minimize the time, effort and money needed to apply a good content strategy. However, automation doesn’t just happen. Content must be consciously designed to support it. An intelligent content strategy establishes a coherent plan under which content will be designed, developed and deployed so as to achieve maximum benefit to the customer and the organization while minimizing the cost to the organization." (Ann Rockley and Joe Gollner ~ ASIS&T Bulletin Dec. 2010 Jan. 2011)

Posted on December 10, 2010 | Permalink

The Elements of Content Strategy

"Content strategy is the web's hottest new thing. But where did it come from? And why does it matter? And what does the content renaissance mean for you? This brief guide explores content strategy’s roots, and quickly and expertly demonstrates not only how it’s done, but how you can do it well. A compelling read for both experienced content strategists and those making the transition from other fields." (Erin Kissane ~ A Book Apart)

Posted on December 01, 2010 | Permalink

Content Strategy Will Make or Break Your Process

Karen McGrane and Jeff Eaton presentation ~ "User experience is key, and applying the basic principals we know about human-centric design can help give information and how it’s processed the place it deserves. By factoring this into pre-planning, task optimization, and above all communication, a beautiful site can have beautiful content without the last-minute chaos state." (Duo Consulting)

Posted on November 26, 2010 | Permalink

The Art and Science of Influential Web Content: An Interview with Colleen Jones

"The goal is helping people make good decisions and then act on those decisions. The goal is matching a business, product, or idea with users who are interested in and can benefit from it, then act on it. The goal is being a trusted advisor to users, not controllers of users’ minds. (...) Content strategy is more than a set of skills. It’s a mindset and a process. I would advise anyone interested to focus on that first, then worry about the skills. Skills, tools, and tips constantly change and are hard to use properly without understanding the mindset and process first." (Peachpit)

Posted on November 26, 2010 | Permalink

Designing for Content Management Systems

"Designing and indeed front-end development for a website that will have content edited by non-technical users poses some problems over and above those you will encounter when developing a site where you have full control over the output mark-up. However, most clients these days want to be able to manage their own content, so most designers will find that some, if not all, of their designs end up as templates in some kind of CMS." (Rachel Andrew ~ Smashing Magazine)

Posted on November 22, 2010 | Permalink

Micro Copy: Content Strategy and Writing the User Interface

"When we think about writing, planning or implementing copy for the web, most of us probably picture longer form text: blogs, about pages and information on products and services. As content strategists we audit websites and try to come up with holistic content solutions for our clients. But apart from Help content, we rarely talk about the expanding world of web applications and the implications of user interface copy for our practice." (Contentini)

Posted on November 22, 2010 | Permalink

Web Content That Persuades and Motivates

"In this article, I am going to explore the written Web site content whose purpose is to cause prospective customers to take action—or that results in their not taking action—from the perspective of its achieving a company's sales and marketing goals. This discussion assumes the company has a service or product to sell. If you’'re not interested in the motivational aspects of sales psychology and what their proper use can do to help a company’s sales efforts, then stop right here, because you will not like this article." (Chandler Turner ~ UXmatters)

Posted on November 22, 2010 | Permalink

Content strategy for dummies

"Information architects need to understand content. Content strategists need to understand context. In terms of traditional sitemaps, the boxes have no value without the interconnecting arrows. And the arrows have no meaning if there are no boxes to which to point. And that’s why there is so much gray area in the definition – and why the pedants will spend years fighting over definitions in the years to come." (Eric Reiss ~ FatDUX)

Posted on November 14, 2010 | Permalink

Text Matters

"In the realm of content, an image can play a strong supporting role, as can a design or a video. But text is the lead actor. Text engages readers on a deeper level because text allows you to explore and communicate complex ideas in ways not possible with other mediums. In the world of content, text matters. A lot." (Tom Johnson ~ I'd Rather Be Writing)

Posted on November 09, 2010 | Permalink

Imagine a Nimble World: Challenging the Publishing Industry

"Presentation at Smart Content: The Content Analytics Conference, October 19, 2010 in New York, by Rachel Lovinger, content strategy lead at Razorfish. ~ As a Content Strategy Lead at Razorfish, Rachel Lovinger is interested in connecting users with the quality content they want and need. She uses her experience in online content production and publishing to help develop processes, best practices and innovative ideas for Fortune 500 companies looking to use digital content in more meaningful ways. She started Razorfish's Semantic Web Affinity Group, and she's interested in relevance, findability, signification, and inherently funny words. Rachel was doing Content Strategy long before she realized it was an actual field." (@rlovinger ~ The Content Analytics Conference)

Posted on November 04, 2010 | Permalink

We're All Content Strategists Now (the video)

"The "Best Careers 2009" issue of U.S. News and World Report gently mocked the user experience profession for its inability to agree on a name for itself. Indeed, many job titles seem like a mix-and-match game, mashing up words like "information" and "experience" and "architect" and "designer." And now "content strategy" comes around, looking for a seat at the UX table. Some say the profession fills a gap in our professional practices. Others argue that it's just a different name for the things that we already do. In this session, we'll discuss why UX needs content—and how UX practitioners of every flavor can put content strategy to work on their projects." (Karen McGrane ~ IDEA 2010)

Posted on November 02, 2010 | Permalink

Why Content Strategy Matters (video interview w/ Scott Abel)

"The conversation around content strategy has exploded in the last few months. We’ve certainly contributed to that conversation ourselves, as you've undoubtedly seen on this blog. Still there remains some ambiguity about what exactly is content strategy and why it's important? In the following series of videos, MindTouch's Mark Fidelman spends some time with Scott Abel, aka The Content Wrangler, and investigates the realm of content strategy, the benefits of application, and its relation to technical communicators and social media." (MindTouch)

Posted on November 02, 2010 | Permalink

Fear, loathing and content strategy

"There is a prevailing and ongoing confusion around the relatively new title of content strategist, and the field called content strategy. I find these arguments simultaneously boring and frustrating, and while I hardly think one post from me is going to silence the issue, I wanted to see if I could tease out some of the arguments here." (Mapped)

Posted on October 12, 2010 | Permalink

The Increasing Momentum of Content Strategy

"(...) the content strategist's role requires you not only to wrangle an immense amount of content into one unified whole, but also to wrangle and guide large groups of stakeholders and other decision leaders toward the same end." (I'd Rather Be Writing)

Posted on October 04, 2010 | Permalink

Content strategy: The essential link

"Content strategy is catching on fast in the web world. But in many corporate communications departments, or their equivalent, it seems few people know what it means or what to make of it." (Diana Railton)

Posted on September 30, 2010 | Permalink

How to measure the effectiveness of web content?

"(...) I can see two issues that make this a pretty difficult task, and it's the reason why the above three methods should not be used in isolation. In combination, they help tell the whole story. It is difficult to know what users really read on a page and it is difficult to isolate the effect of content changes from the other influencing factors on a page." (Rian van der Merwe ~ Elezea)

Posted on September 27, 2010 | Permalink

Strategic Content Management

"The rise of content strategy is dealing the content management industry a huge kick up the backside. In the web's Wild West era, the CMS was run by the IT department—or sometimes a lone webmaster who knew HTML—so CMS choices were based on features, price, and cultural fit, rather than web or content strategy. It was the classic IT drill: selection committees, feature matrices, and business lunches with men wearing neckties." (Jonathan Kahn ~ A List Apart)

Posted on September 07, 2010 | Permalink

Are you prepared for the Semantic Web?

"If you want to stay ahead of the web publishing curve, now is the time to start learning and experimenting with the Semantic Web. It’s been in development since the ’90s, led by Tim Berners-Lee himself. When media historians write books about the information transformation we are in (from print to web), the Semantic Web will be at least as important as the invention of HTML. Having Semantic Web-enabled pages will soon be a big competitive advantage for you and your company." (Writing for Digital)

Posted on July 20, 2010 | Permalink

How content strategy fits into the user experience

"I just presented a talk to the Content Strategy Seattle group on how content strategy fits into the user experience. Here are my slides and a videocast for the talk." (Nick Finck)

Posted on July 16, 2010 | Permalink

Content strategy and customer service: A talk with Ann Rockley

"A unified content strategy is a repeatable method of identifying all content requirements up front, creating consistently structured content for reuse, managing that content in a definitive source, and assembling content on demand to meet your customer’s needs. Intelligent content/smart documents are the way in which we prepare our content so that it's structurally rich and semantically aware, and is therefore discoverable, reusable, reconfigurable and adaptable. So the content strategy is the plan of action, and intelligent content is the way we implement it." (Jill C. Nagle ~ Zengage)

Posted on July 13, 2010 | Permalink

Designing from the Content/Story Out

"If you create a design that doesn't build from the content, you end up with a mismatch. When it comes to add your content, you find that your content/story doesn't actually fit the design/theme." (Tom Johnson ~ I'd Rather Be Writing)

Posted on June 28, 2010 | Permalink

On Curation and Curators: Skills vs. Roles

"(...) if content strategy is going to succeed, the community needs to know how they’ll get every team members skills dialed up to world-class levels. Once they do that, they'll see a world of difference. No ivory tower or self-serving academic interests here. This is the real world, baby." (Jared Spool)

Posted on June 23, 2010 | Permalink

Paris, je t’aime

"Led by some of the biggest names in the content strategy world, the workshops and sessions covered a lot of territory. Here are a few of the biggest takeaways for me from my two days in Paris." (Stacey King Gordon)

Posted on May 28, 2010 | Permalink

Why You Should Adopt An 'Accessible Content Strategy'

"With the burgeoning number of computing devices and software solutions, it is easier than ever before to deliver single-sourced content such that it is accessible, consumable and actionable by as many users as possible." (The Content Wrangler)

Posted on May 25, 2010 | Permalink

Organizating Content: A 7 Parts Series

"I'm starting a new series on organizing content. I'm not sure how many parts there will be in this series. Writing essays in a serial format is an experiment I'm exploring. Basically this approach to writing follows the agile model. I write a bit, get some feedback, write some more, get feedback, and keep going. The feedback along the way shapes the direction I'm heading. Also, with each serial post, I hope to take the issue a little deeper." (I'd Rather Be Writing)

Posted on May 25, 2010 | Permalink

Content strategy

"With the mass of online content available, merely repurposing offline material for the web won't satifsy the expectations of today's consumers. A more adventurous strategy is required." (Meg Carter ~ New Media Age)

Posted on May 21, 2010 | Permalink

A Common Sense Content Strategy

"Lately, everyone on the web is talking about content. Content strategy has made its way into our collective consciousness and web writing is coming into its own." (Tiffani Jones ~ MIX Online)

Posted on May 11, 2010 | Permalink

Intentional Communication: Expanding our Definition of User Experience Design

"Design and content. Content and design. It's impossible (and stupid) to argue over which one is more important than the other - which should come first, which is more difficult or 'strategic'. They need each other to provide context, meaning, information, and instruction in any user experience (UX)." (Kristina Halvorson - interactions XVII.3)

Posted on April 26, 2010 | Permalink

A DIY Guide to Content Strategy

"You’re a web professional: a designer, developer, information architect, or strategist. Your team has the web design disciplines covered: research, strategy, user experience design, standards-based development, and project management. But something’s going wrong with your projects; the user experience just isn’t meeting your expectations. You're reasonably sure you know why: there’s a problem with the content. You realise that your team could use some help from the discipline of content strategy, but for whatever reason, hiring a dedicated content strategist isn't a feasible option. So what can you do to add some content strategy to your projects? Learn how web professionals can practise content strategy for ourselves, through advocacy, improved design processes, and community engagement. And when we have the luxury of a dedicated content strategist, learn how we can engage with the discipline in our everyday practice." (Jonathan Kahn)

Posted on April 23, 2010 | Permalink

Content Strategists Gather in Paris!

"You may not have heard of them yet, but you will. They're called Content Strategists, and they're fast becoming the most in-demand advisers for Web sites and corporate customers looking for a way to evolve into content makers and curators." (Steve Rosenbaum - Huffington Post)

Posted on April 16, 2010 | Permalink

Why You Need A Content Strategist?

"Are you investing in your content? Do you have a strategy? If not then help is at hand. You need a content strategist, but who are they and what do they do?" (Paul Boag)

Posted on April 14, 2010 | Permalink

Content: Not Always King

"The strategy you adopt when tackling a project needs to take this continuum in mind. If your product is about content consumption, content is king and you should do due diligence and start from a content strategy perspective. Users of those products are coming to be informed or entertained and need the content to be front-and-center; the product is in service to displaying the content in as appropriate a manner as possible. The meaning of the content matters; you wouldn't display a cartoon the same way you’d display an analysis of the stock market. At least, not usually." (Dan Saffer - Kicker Studio) - Goes back to the old web app (code) versus doc (data) distinction.

Posted on March 22, 2010 | Permalink

Starting Out Organized: Website Content Planning The Right Way

"So many articles explain how to design interfaces, design graphics and deal with clients. But one step in the Web development process is often skipped over or forgotten altogether: content planning. Sometimes called information architecture, or IA planning, this step doesn't find a home easily in many people's workflow. But rushing on to programming and pushing pixels makes for content that looks shoehorned rather than fully integrated and will only require late-game revisions." (Kristin Wemmer - Smashing Magazine)

Posted on March 17, 2010 | Permalink

Content Strategy as Information Design

"Content strategy is in many respects information design. And as Steve Jobs famously said, 'Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.' Content, and content strategy are experiential – much the same as design. And design requires planning." (Will Sullivan - Craft Interactive)

Posted on March 17, 2010 | Permalink

Content Strategy Is About Publishing

"When people talk about the imminent death of publishing, they’re usually talking about something narrow, specific, and tied to ways of working that predate the internet: the publication of books, magazines, newspapers, and all kinds of printed legal and business data, along with the economic, logistical, and aesthetic structures that have made that process possible. And that kind of publishing is indeed getting whipped around like a very small cowboy on a very large bull. Why? Because the internet is made of publishing, and its new and often anarchic publishing models are messing with older models in all kinds of ways." (Erin Kissane - Incisive.nu) - courtesy of khalvorson

Posted on March 03, 2010 | Permalink

Eyes on Content Experience

"(...) slides about the special aspect to user experience: content experience. The value for user comes typically from the content, not the interaction itself. It is sometimes hard for us HCI people to remember this." (Virpi Roto - Eyes on User Experience)

Posted on March 01, 2010 | Permalink

Content strategy is, in fact, the next big thing

"Content strategy is more or less on the same trajectory as social media was three years ago. Why? I think it’s because the reality of social media initiatives—that they’re internal commitments, not advertising campaigns—has derailed more than a few organizations from really implementing effective, measurable programs. Most companies can’t sustain social media engagement because they lack the internal editorial infrastructure to support it." (Kristina Halvorson)

Posted on February 26, 2010 | Permalink

Words that Zing

"To select the right words, take cues from rhetoric and psychology. I do not mean use unctuous sales language or manipulative mind control, nor do I necessarily mean use catchy words. I simply mean add influential weight to web writing based on centuries of rhetorical wisdom and a growing body of scientific knowledge." (Colleen Jones - A List Apart)

Posted on February 10, 2010 | Permalink

Content Is King

"Just because content is king doesn't mean, however, that the designer's job is any less important. How seriously would people take the King if his suit was poorly made? It has to look good." (Paul Boag)

Posted on February 02, 2010 | Permalink

Writing for the Web: The Right Strategy

"When it comes to designing a website, content is often overlooked, but why? Very rarely do users browse the web looking for a good design or decent experience. Users come for the content. Not giving them what they want with poorly written content will frustrate users. Not only does it waste their time, but your time as well." (Shay Howe - letscountthedays) - courtesy of destrywion

Posted on January 26, 2010 | Permalink

It's time for content strategy

"Content is anything that informs, instructs, or entertains people. Text, raw data, images, games, music, lectures, videos, flash widgets, a good joke, roadside signs – it's all content. A content strategy is a plan for creating, sharing, and governing content effectively. Content strategy isn't just a web thing. In fact, it's been around for thousands of years. Content creation and sharing began when our earliest ancestors started telling each other stories." (Melissa Rach - Scroll Magazine)

Posted on January 15, 2010 | Permalink

In Defense of Lorem Ipsum

"If content strategists want to ask designers to stop using Lorem Ipsum, maybe designers should insist that content strategists add style sheets to their copy decks that match the proposed design direction." (Karen McGrane)

Posted on January 12, 2010 | Permalink

Testing Content Concepts

"As UX professionals, we’re all familiar with the need to test user experience designs. Testing content, however, might be a different story. Most companies haven’t given testing content the attention it deserves—partly because it’s challenging. One challenge is that time and budget usually do not allow us to test every single piece of content. Another challenge is that gathering too much unfocused feedback can freeze our projects in analysis paralysis. To meet these challenges, try testing your content concepts—and start testing them early in your projects." (Colleen Jones - UXmatters)

Posted on December 21, 2009 | Permalink

The Content Strategist as Digital Curator

"Curation has a distinguished history in cultural institutions. In galleries and museums, curators use judgment and a refined sense of style to select and arrange art to create a narrative, evoke a response, and communicate a message. As the digital landscape becomes increasingly complex, and as businesses become ever more comfortable using the web to bring their product and audience closer, the techniques and principles of museum curatorship can inform how we create online experiences — particularly when we approach content." (Erin Scime - A List Apart)

Posted on December 08, 2009 | Permalink

Why Strategists Need Content Managers

"(...) I'm of the opinion that content strategy is most certainly NOT content management. As strategists, we have input on how the content is produced, managed and governed, but our goal is ultimately to aid in the creation of a strategic set of best practicies and personas to be sure that content developers are creating the most appropriate content for machines and humans." (Daniel Eizans)

Posted on December 07, 2009 | Permalink

CS and IA Unite Already, Will Ya!

"Content Strategy is not Copywriting. Design is not Window Dressing. Information Architecture is not Boxes and Arrows. (...) CS and IA are the same thing, or at least they should be." (Ian Alexander - Eat Media)

Posted on December 02, 2009 | Permalink

The Scoop on Content Strategy: An Interview with Kristina Halvorson

"There are lots of different definitions floating around out there. It was important to me to talk about content strategy in a way that people can understand easily. I define content strategy as planning for the creation, delivery, and governance of useful, usable content. Planning is the key. Planning is about asking the right questions to collect data and information, with the goal of delivering a plan that gets you from where you are now to where you want to be." (Colleen Jones - UXmatters)

Posted on October 20, 2009 | Permalink

No Chief Web Officer Required

"It's a widely-held belief among various Web practitioners (from content strategists and information architects to Web infrastructure tool builders and application developers) that senior executives don’t understand the real power and capability of the Internet. And, that this lack of understanding has left Web Teams executing in a vacuum, with inappropriate funding and inadequate headcount. More importantly, it has left organizations exposed, as new Internet-enabled businesses sneak up and shut down the slower-to-react belle-weathers. The house is on fire and the C-Suite has got a garden hose. To address this strategic deficit, there’s been a lot of discussion about the placement of a senior Web-savvy person in the C-Suite to drive the creation of a sensible Web content and information strategy. I've thought about this potential new role in the C-suite a lot and think that it's not required." (Lisa Welchman) - courtesy of ruudruissaard

Posted on October 01, 2009 | Permalink

The Importance of Website Content in Online Purchasing Across Different Types of Products

"Several authors have suggested that the importance of website content elements in online purchasing varies across different types of products. Our aim is to empirically test this proposition. Here, we focus on goods versus services and hedonic versus utilitarian products. After reviewing the literature on the role of website content, we hypothesize which elements are more important for which type of product. The results of an empirical study confirm most of the different roles across different types of products. This suggests that retailers would profit from taking the differences in product types into account in designing their online stores." (Tibert Verhagen and Jaap Boter - VU Amsterdam)

Posted on September 22, 2009 | Permalink

Content Strategy for the Web Professional

"You're a web professional: a designer, developer, information architect, or strategist. Your team has the web design disciplines covered: research, strategy, user experience design, standards-based development, and project management. But something’s going wrong with your projects; the user experience just isn't meeting your expectations. You're reasonably sure you know why: there's a problem with the content." (Jonathan Kahn - lucid plot)

Posted on September 09, 2009 | Permalink

STC Content Strategy SIG

"This site is the home of the Content Strategy SIG (Special Interest Group) of the Society for Technical Communication. (...) Content strategy is an emerging field of practice dealing with the planning aspects of managing content throughout its lifecycle. Strategy includes alignment to business goals, analysis, and modeling, and influences the development, production, presentation, evaluation, measurement, and sunsetting of content, including governance." (About Content Strategy SIG)

Posted on September 09, 2009 | Permalink

Smart talk about content strategy

"A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of visiting the lovely city of Atlanta to moderate a panel discussion on content strategy. Panel participants were selected from a variety of disciplines in order to facilitate discussion about how content strategy has impact on (and benefits for) a number of roles and functions across an organization. (OK, we were also hoping for a little fighting.) Participants were: Karen McGrane, Bond Art + Science (User Experience), John Muehlbauer, InterContinental Hotels Group (Marketing), Brian Ikeda, Philips Design (Visual Design), and Ryan Esparza, Content Management Consultant (CMS/IT)." (Kristina Halvorson - Brain Traffic)

Posted on August 27, 2009 | Permalink

The Case for Content Strategy - Motown Style

"Over the past year, the content strategy chatter has been building. Jeffrey MacIntyre gave us its raison d'être. Kristina Halvorson wrote the call to arms. Panels at SXSW, presentations at An Event Apart, and regional meetups continue to build the drum roll. But how do you start humming the content strategy tune to your own team and to your prospective clients? Listen up and heed Aretha Franklin. No, really." (Margot Bloomsteim - A List Apart)

Posted on August 18, 2009 | Permalink

The Debut of Usable, Influential Content

"What happens when we architect a user experience that makes the content easy to find? The content becomes a focus of the experience, a star of the show. If the content performs well, it will have an influence. Users will be more likely to take the action we want them to take, make the decision we want them to make or have the perception we want them to have. Users will be more likely to consider our brand, our product or our idea." (Colleen Jones - ASIS&T Bulletin Aug/Sep 2009)

Posted on August 06, 2009 | Permalink

Blinded by Content Bliss

"Consider the source of the content you're reviewing. What's his or her background? Consider the individual’s education, career, and publishing history. That's not to say, of course, that people's opinions are only valid if they have the right alma mater, but that information may provide context and insight as to whether someone's qualified to make the particular claims he or she's making." (Robert Stribley - Scatter/Gather)

Posted on August 04, 2009 | Permalink

The Content Conundrum: Bridging the gap between design and content

"As web designers and information architects, we often dismiss deep consideration of content when we design interactive experiences. By content I'm not only referring to the various forms of text (e.g., headers, body copy, error messages) but also imagery, graphics, and videos or audio that make up the full interactive experience. Sure, we have a sense of what content is available, and we've likely considered it to some extent when creating flows, wireframes, and prototypes. But the design artifacts that we create represent only part of the overall user experience that we're designing. The content that sits inside of our design framework is often the final arbiter of success, yet we sometimes diminish it's importance and separate ourselves from it. The more we separate our design activities from content development, the greater the risk of design failure." (Christopher Detzi - Boxes and Arrows)

Posted on August 04, 2009 | Permalink

Content Analysis: A Practical Approach

"To know your content is to love it. Content analysis is an essential part of many UX design projects that involve existing content. Examples of such projects include migrating a Web site to a new platform or design, merging multiple Web sites into one, or assessing Web content for reuse in a new channel. Just as you cannot nurture a garden without regularly inspecting its plants and flowers, you cannot take proper care of your content without looking at it closely. You must become familiar with your content to judge whether it's effective, understand how it relates to other content, make decisions about how to use or format it, identify opportunities for improving it, and more." (Colleen Jones - UXmatters)

Posted on August 04, 2009 | Permalink

Content Templates to the Rescue

"A content template is a simple document that serves two purposes: it's a paragraph-level companion to your website's wireframes (or other IA blueprints), and it's a simple, effective means of getting useful information from your experts to your writers." (Erin Kissane - A List Apart)

Posted on July 08, 2009 | Permalink

A practical definition of content

"Simply put, content is contextualized data." (Intentional Design)

Posted on June 29, 2009 | Permalink

Redefining content strategy

"When we talk about content strategy, then, my contention is that the type of content we include in the definition needs to broaden beyond Web content, as does the recognition that the content, even if just for the Web, includes not only persuasive content, but instructive/informative, user-generated, and even entertainment content." (Intentional Design)

Posted on June 29, 2009 | Permalink

Content First

"Kristina Halvorson quotes the origin of the phrase information architecture. Then Tufte came along. Designers took it upon themselves to craft information that was understandable and digestable. Then the web came along. To begin with, it was treated as a visual medium. Jesse James Garrett changed the emphasis to user experience. But where is content in Jesse's diagram? It's on the second level. Then it disappears. We were approaching content on the same level as functional specs; a feature than can be ticked off a list. But content is a living, breathing thing that evolves over time. Once you put it online, you are required to feed it and take care of it." (Jeremy Keith - Adactio)

Posted on June 22, 2009 | Permalink

Content Strategy: Content is King! (preso)

"Why do users visit a website? Most likely it's for the content. Then why is content strategy the most neglected aspect of user experience design? Delivering the right content to meet user needs requires attention throughout the process -- it must be planned, analyzed, produced, edited, managed, and maintained. Even though content is the centerpiece of the user's experience, it rarely gets the attention it deserves during site design and development. This workshop addressed how to integrate content strategy into the website design process, ensuring that the content that gets created is what users need." (Karen McGrane)

Posted on June 16, 2009 | Permalink

Using Content to Grow Customer Relationships

"Want to keep your customers despite tough economic times? Don't add yet another feature to your Web site. Stop worrying about redesigning it. Instead, take a hard look at improving your site's content." (Colleen Jones - UXmatters)

Posted on June 08, 2009 | Permalink

Dear Content Strategists

"Well done. You guys are fantastic. You've got some great leaders among you, and more importantly, you seem to be generating a lot of meaningful grass roots activity. The world really needs you, and you're poised to achieve some big things over the next couple years. Just don't screw it up, OK?" (Louis Rosenfeld)

Posted on June 07, 2009 | Permalink

Web Strategy: A Definition

"An effective Web Strategy provides the required guidance and implementation authority required to create and maintain a high-quality Web presence. It also emplaces accountability mechanisms to ensure that Web teams take a mature approach to developing and managing the organization’s most powerful communications and transactional tool." - (Lisa Welchman)

Posted on May 16, 2009 | Permalink

Content strategy and the new face of documentation

"The idea of looking at trends in our profession speak directly to the idea of content strategy. It’s a 'beyond the document' look at how we create and deliver content to various audiences. It's about content re-use and single-sourcing, about content management, about filtering content, about creating better ways to serve content consumers. It's also about how social media has raised the bar, and how consumers will take matters into their own hands if we don't step up to the plate." - (Rahel Anne Bailie - Intentional Design Inc.)

Posted on May 11, 2009 | Permalink

The Content Strategy Land Rush

"I don't have the answers. I’m sorry if that's disappointing news and I have lead you this far to learn it. In fact, this is what we are all watching to see. Such things as the social web explosion and the recent economy crash will undoubtedly shape content strategy considerations. The semantic web, and web as a platform, are increasingly becoming a part of that picture too." - (Wion)

Posted on May 05, 2009 | Permalink

Content Typology: Getting a Handle on Your Content Types

"Content types are among the least understood, and yet most potent, aspects of user experience and web design. Most people encounter them for the first time when implementing a grand-scale content management system (CMS) because you have to define content types before building templates for each kind of content you're going to publish." - (The Content Strategy Noob)

Posted on May 04, 2009 | Permalink

Toward Content Quality

"How do we know whether content is any good? This simple question does not have a simple answer. Yet, I think having a good answer would help us show our employers and clients why their content needs to improve and how their content compares to the competition's. As a start toward an answer to this question, I offer a set of content quality checklists for seven different lenses through which we can view content. I see these checklists as the groundwork for content heuristics, which would enable us to do heuristic evaluations and competitive analyses efficiently. With good content heuristics, we could make a case for better content without painstakingly doing an analysis of all of the content up front. Imagine, making a case for better content quality in a few hours instead of a few weeks." - (Colleen Jones - UXmatters)

Posted on April 14, 2009 | Permalink

Future Practice Interview: Kristina Halvorson

"I'd say that one of the biggest, hairiest questions I'm getting asked (ed. on content strategy) is how to plan for and govern user-generated content." - (Louis Rosenfeld - Rosenfeld Media)

Posted on April 08, 2009 | Permalink