Everyday Content Strategy
Frank Marquardt
Director of Content Strategy : San Francisco
topics:
filed under: Content Strategy and User Experience
http://tbg.cm/gY5tLZ
The Barbarian Group San Francisco has been the awesome host to a series of excellent content strategy Meetups throughout 2010—including a presentation by Kristina Halvorson, who wrote the book.
Last night’s panel on everyday content strategy, featuring John Alderman from Razorfish (creative director and former content strategist), Kris Corzine (content strategist at eBay), and CC Holland (content strategist at Cisco) brought together some 49 practitioners and interested parties in one of our most successful events yet.
A rapt crowd looks with deep concentration at the panelists.
What Did We Learn?
Our most excellent panelists (moderated by yours truly, who’s also the founder and co-organizer of the group) reminded us that a content strategist is never just one thing, but a chameleon: a brand strategist, project manager, UX designer, information architect, communicator, mediator, shepherd, translator, interviewer, diplomat, therapist, writing coach, copywriter, and obstacle of stupid. Seriously. We do all these things, or at least some of them, depending on the time of day and the meeting.
Our most excellent panelists (moderated by yours truly, who’s also the founder and co-organizer of the group) reminded us that a content strategist is never just one thing, but a chameleon: a brand strategist, project manager, UX designer, information architect, communicator, mediator, shepherd, translator, interviewer, diplomat, therapist, writing coach, copywriter, and obstacle of stupid. Seriously. We do all these things, or at least some of them, depending on the time of day and the meeting.
What Else Did We Learn?
Some of the things that got talked about:
Some of the things that got talked about:
- Stupid Is Good: Part of the job of the content strategist is to ask dumb questions.
- The Audience Is the Prism: If you don’t know who the audience is, you’re going to have trouble delivering relevant content.
- Less Is More: There’s a tendency to want to overwhelm people, but that’s often a way to bore and befuddle those you’re talking to.
- We Must Advocate for the User: Somebody’s got to.
- Measuring Success Isn’t Pass/Fail: Well, it’s best if you set it up so it’s not pass/fail. Much better to anticipate outcomes by working back and thinking through different options.
- Good Content Is Invisible: It’s there, but you don’t always think about it.
- Don’t Miniaturize, Mobilize: If you’re creating content for a mobile platform.
- The Audience Is the Prism: If you don’t know who the audience is, you’re going to have trouble delivering relevant content.
- Less Is More: There’s a tendency to want to overwhelm people, but that’s often a way to bore and befuddle those you’re talking to.
- We Must Advocate for the User: Somebody’s got to.
- Measuring Success Isn’t Pass/Fail: Well, it’s best if you set it up so it’s not pass/fail. Much better to anticipate outcomes by working back and thinking through different options.
- Good Content Is Invisible: It’s there, but you don’t always think about it.
- Don’t Miniaturize, Mobilize: If you’re creating content for a mobile platform.
With great intensity, the panelists look back out at the crowd.
Anything Else?
Yeah. Lots. But I lost a page of notes. Too many smart things were said to remember. Which only means that if you’re in the Bay Area you’ll have to check us out next time we meet.
Yeah. Lots. But I lost a page of notes. Too many smart things were said to remember. Which only means that if you’re in the Bay Area you’ll have to check us out next time we meet.
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