content strategy for designers

Content strategy for designers

Brought to you by Alaine Mackenzie on January 14, 2014

Content strategist @yellowpencilweb

Occasional Twitter user @alainemack

Hey that’s me

Today you’ll learn

How to steal from content strategy to make your designs better and

your projects more successful

You’ll also learn

what is content strategy what happens without it

how do I fix it

What is content strategy?

“…the practice of planning content creation, delivery, and governance.”

Kristina Halvorson, “The Discipline of Content Strategy”, A List Apart, 2008

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wparsons/3502120483/

Okay but why do I care

Without content strategy

You’re just guessing

Without content strategy

You don’t know your priorities

Without content strategy

You don’t (really) know the brand

Halp, halp!

Your content arsenal

Content audit

Voice and tone guide

Content models

Governance plan

Content audit

Find the complexity Find the meaning

Find the suck

Voice and tone guide

Expand on the brand Resolve the gaps

Fun but not childish

Clever but not silly

Confident but not cocky

Smart but not stodgy

Cool but not alienating

!!

Kate Kiefer Lee, content strategist at MailChimp: voiceandtone.com uxmag.com/articles/the-elements-of-a-style-guide

Content models

Define the elements Define their relationships

Eliminate ambiguity

Governance plan

Prevent future heartbreak

Who will request, create, edit, approve, publish, and maintain this stuff?

!What resources will you need?

!How much effort will it take?

Your content arsenal

Content audit

Voice and tone guide

Content models

Governance plan

In sum

Don’t design impaired Be an undercover content ninja

You can do it

Thanks for comin’

alaine@yellowpencil.com

@alainemack