“Everything you always wanted to know about content strategy*
*But were afraid to ask”
“Are content strategists glorified
peeping toms?”
• A clinical approach to content
• Understand the desires of users
• Understand the desires of the brand
• Understand the desires of experience designers, creatives, and developers
Masters of Content
• Organization• Empathy• Rhetoric
Masters of ContentThe art and science of
• Contextual inquiry (social listening & search behavior)
• Conceptual models (dashboards, infinite feeds, dynamic tiles,
immersive worlds, wizards)
• Personas• User testing• User journeys• Competitive analysis• Perceived affordances
A discipline within User ExperienceMasters of Content
BUSINESS NEED
ALIGN ON REVIEW STANDARDS
INVENTORY SITE
CONDUCT AUDIT
SYNTHESIZE & VISUALIZE
SUMMARIZE KEY RECOMMENDATIONS
Masters of Content: The Dreaded Audit
Masters of Content: Review Standards
• Voice and style• Useful, relevant, clear, persuasive• Findable, shareable• Readability, accessibility
GUIDELINES TARGET CONSIDERATIONS
Voice and tone
Brand Does the content consistently reflect the brand voice and attributes?Does the content reinforce the brand positioning?
Useful, relevant, clear, persuasive
Customers Is the content timely and up-to-date? Is the content consistent throughout the experience?Does the content improve user understanding of product or brand?
Usable, findable, shareable, optimized
Customers & Robots
Can customers find the content when searching using relevant keywords?Is the content easy to navigate to and through?
Readability,accessibility
Customers & Compliance
Is the content written at the appropriate grade level?Is the content accessible by those with visual or auditory impairments?
“Will you whisper sweet nothings into
my ear?”
Masters of Content: Content NarrativeTranslate brand meaning into content• Pillars/themes• Channels• Roadmap
Masters of Content: Content NarrativeTranslate brand meaning into content
“Does size matter to a content strategist?”
Size Matters
• Less is best• Too much
unkempt content hurts usability
• More to manage, more resources, higher costs
• Focus on what matters
“The food here is
terrible, and the portions
are too small.”
lesscontentmorestrategy.com
“How would a sadomasochist
interpret content strategy?”
Less Content, Better Results
• Identify top tasks• Prioritize content• Remove long-tail content• Reduce cognitive overload• Write shorter, more succinct
copy• Improve usability
• 22% decrease in online complaints
• 48% increase in inbound links
• 80% increase in visitors• 70% increase in new
registrations
Focus on ResultsBusiness-critical content solves business-critical goals
Customer Satisfaction = Better ROI
Customer Experience = Better ROI
Customer Experience = Better ROI
Customer Satisfaction = Better ROI
“Should content strategists and designers ‘go
native’?”
And now a sponsored post from The School for Digital
Craftsmanship
http://www.admci.org
“Are content strategists
monogamous?”
Should content strategists by monogamous?
CSXD/UXCreativ
eDev
Wireframe AnnotationsTemplate Type DefinitionsPage Element DefinitionsContent Interactivity
“Design thinking is the search for the magical balance between business and art, structure and chaos, intuition and logic, concept and execution...”
Clients
“Are there any deviant content
strategy practices I should know about?”
300,000 sites since 2012
The Robots Are Now Your Writers
Wear My Content
Wear My Content
Brand Newsrooms, Brand Content, RTM
Licensed per term
Outsource & owned
Exploit the death spiral
Big Data, Binge Viewing & Cadence
Big Data & Binge Viewing
Final Thoughts for CS Success
• Adopt the same curious approach to content as you had to sex as a teenager
• Bring a clinician’s mindset to your work with content
• Use the UX toolbox to help inform your content strategy, which in turn can be used to inform design strategy
• Don’t hate, collaborate – a brand’s content strategy is bigger than me or you. Guide the ship when you need to.
• Thin or play to win with your content
• A.B.E. – Always Be Evolving
“Thanks! Any
questions?”
“Are content strategists into cross-
dressing?”
Information Architect
SEO
Brand
Editor
Copywriter Database modeler
Business
Analyst
Front-end Developer
Salesma
n
Technology & Content
“Is it OK to learn ‘content strategies’ from older women?”
• Use natural language• Think of your site as a
conversation with your customer• Exhibit domain mastery• Stay “on theme” in your headlines
and copy• Use semantic linking• Maintain strong information scent
Redish ahead of her time
“Does food act as an aphrodisiac for
content strategists?”
GREAT ADS, CAMPAIGNS, CONTENT MARKETING, DESTINATION MICROSITES, BRANDED UTILITY APPS, SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT
PRODUCT INFORMATION, PRICING, CONTRACT INFORMATION, DISCLAIMER, LEGALESE
NEWSLETTERS, HOW-TO’s, TIPS and TRICKS, PERSONALIZATION, SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT, SWEEPSTAKES