Web 2.0 Expo: Content Strategy

What is your online content strategy?If it involves hiring a copywriter 10-days before the launch of your web page it's time to rethink your (non) strategy. As Kristina Halvorson would say, don't let your content be the forgotten elephant in the room. Here are my key take always from Kristina's session, "Content Strategy: What's Real, What's Relevant ."

Too often content is an after thought with the notion ("lies") that:

• It's not that big of a deal
• You think you already know what you want to say
• You think you already have most of the content
• You put it off as something you can fix post launch

What people don't consider is that your customers decided whether to do business with you based on your content. Ideally you should identify a single person in your company or organization that is responsible for your content, a Content Strategist. This person would be responsible for building your strategy to include:

Creation:

The creation of your content should start with your customer in mind. A good example of this is REI, they don't hammer you over the head with their products. Instead they want to be your partner in outdoor activities. Or Room and Board who sells through stories of real people who use their products. Ford Models builds a connection by providing everyday beauty tips on their YouTube channel. Content as to work for the user - an example of what NOT to do is Quicken, box shots don't help the customer decide which product to buy. They don't talk to the customer, they just want you to add products to your cart. When you create your content make sure it's useful, usable and enjoyable.

Publication:

There are many forms to publish content including: text, graphics, video, animation and audio. You should plan for a specific goal or result regardless of how and where you publish your content. Create a list to understand the business objectives and the user goals.

Governance:

Think of your content from a lifecycle perspective. Have a plan to update or remove. Do NOT do what Swiffer did and create a YouTube contest then abandon the site after the promotion is done (they haven't logged-in in over 10 months!). Have a plan to take it down if you're not going to maintain it.