After six months of Refresh Bellingham, I was very excited to attend a "meetup" event with Maya Belka that was a bit more applicable to the work I do here at Mindfly. This week, we trekked down to Seattle to find out more about the content strategy movement that's gaining recognition in the web industry.
One of the leading voices of content strategy, Kristina Halvorson of Brain Traffic, defines the practice as "plans for the creation, publication, and governance of useful, usable content" ("The Discipline of Content Strategy"). In her book Content Strategy for the Web, she specifically outlines changing the process of how websites are planned and executed.
A primary concern for content strategists is that after a website has been designed and coded and polished, the content—the meat of most websites—is finally inserted into the site. Whether it is text, images, or multi-media, if the designers don’t know what to expect in terms of content, the overall aesthetic of the website can get thrown off.
So before the design is even considered, a content strategist wants to know "What's your overall goal?" Once a goal is established (usually to increase profits or gain customers), the next question is "Why?" Why do you want an image rotator of your four dogs on your website? (Are you selling dogs? Are you selling dog products? Is it "meaningful" to your audience?) If the "why" isn't directly related to the goal, a content strategist will help you figure out what content will help you reach your goal.
Content Strategy: Seattle was founded in October of 2009 by web writer James Callan. On Wednesday, January 27, 2010, a group of about 16 individuals in the web industry (writers, editors, information architects, and, yes, even an actual content strategist) gathered at Vermillion Art Gallery Wine Bar to try to figure out "What is Content Strategy?"
While we didn't figure out everything that it is, we at least established what it's not. It's not simply a collection of tactics, as Halvorson reminded us in a recent blog post ("Content Strategy: More Than a Bunch of Tactics"). According to Halvorson, tactics, combined, do not equal a strategy. Rather, a strategy makes the tactics make sense, giving them a specific purpose in the process.
We also discussed that the growing importance on usability (or, at least, the acceptance among clients that investing in usability and usability testing can help make a website better) is a helpful "selling point" for content strategy. Like usability testing, content strategy is something that has to begin before a tangible product (as tangible as a two-dimensional website on your computer screen can be) is created. It's an investment with long-term benefits, not a quick-fix to improve site rankings after the fact.
Both Maya and I are excited to continue to learn more with the Content Strategy: Seattle community at upcoming events, including Operation Halvorson on April 6, 2010, in which Halvorson graces us with her presence and wisdom during her Seattle visit for An Event Apart. Stay tuned!
