This slide presentation was used as part of Brutal Pixie's first Summer School at the Majoran Distillery in Adelaide. The exercises are extended versions of suggestions made by Margot Bloomstein in her fantastic book Content Strategy at Work.

1. Introduction to Content Strategy
Presented by Leticia Mooney
of Brutal Pixie
(we <3 content strategy)
www.brutalpixie.com
@brutalpixie
Hashtag: #PixieSessions

2. What we're going to do


Learn what tonight's about
Learn about who you are
& why you're here

Smash through content strategy 101

Have some fun
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3. What tonight is about

Definitions

Strategy versus Tactics

The C.A.R.E. Factor

Content = $$$$$


What does a content strategist DO,
anyway?
Your turn (games time)
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4. Introductions
GO FIND SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW.
This bit is touchy feely and makes you
talk to each other.
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5. Definitions
There are HEAPS of definitions for what
Content Strategy is.
Let's look at some.
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6. Definitions
Kristina Halvorson, Goddess and Patron
Saint (depending on your religion) of
Content Strategy has several.
1. “Content strategy defines how you're
going to use content to meet your
business's goals and satisfy your user's
needs.”
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7. Definitions
2. “Content strategy guides decisions
about content throughout its lifecycle,
from discovery to deletion.”
3. “Content strategy sets benchmarks
against which to measure the success of
your content.”
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8. Definitions
4. “Content strategy guides your plans for
the creation, delivery, and governance of
content.”
5. “Content strategy can be purely
editorial. It may also be purely strategic (at
a business planning level).”
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9. Definitions
Havorson believes strategists exist under
different umbrellas.
“Whatever they do, just get it done.”
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10. Definitions … Halvorson's model
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11. Definitions
Margot Bloomstein also has more than
one definition.
1. “Content strategy is the practice of
planning for the creation, delivery, and
governance of useful, usable content.”
2. “Content strategy asks why, how, when,
by whom, and not just what.”
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12. Definitions
Rachel Lovinger of Razorfish:
“Content strategy is to copywriting what
information architecture is to design.”
(… in other words, a framework)
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13. Definitions
Pratek Sarkar, Director of Creative
Services at The Walt Disney Company:
“Content is story. And content strategy is
storytelling.”
(… in other words, a framework)
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14. What do the definitions all mean?
Bloomstein again:
“Content strategy addresses planning. The
strategy part targets planning, not just
execution & implementation.”
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15. Strategy Versus Tactics
Halvorson again:
“Content strategy is NOT a series of
articles, full-service knowledge base, blog
post series, new tablet subscription service,
social media accounts. These are Tactics.”
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16. Strategy Versus Tactics




By far most of a strategist's time is in
planning and analysis.
6 minutes of thinking will save you 6
weeks of work
You need a content process for a new
website
Project management... on steroids
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17. Strategy Versus Tactics

What happens after the planning – at
design level?

And at implementation?

And maintenance?

Other applications – e.g. web apps
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18. Strategy Versus Tactics
Content strategy is also about:
Audience advocacy

Business strategy

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19. Strategy Versus Tactics
The what is tactical: blog series, guest
bloggers, whitepapers, infographics,
repurposing, social media interactions.
The who, when, where, why, and how is
strategic.
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20. Strategy Versus Tactics

Battle plans versus battle tactics

Strategic planning's long-lost sister

Strategy and silos
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21. The C.A.R.E. Factor
Comprehensive: Does a user have
everything she needs to achieve her
goal?
Appropriate: properly labelled, defined,
easy to find
Relevant: to what the user is doing
Efficiently produced: reviewed,
approved, published, right tools, enough
time Hashtag: #PixieSessions

22. Content = $$$$. But why?

The process is big

Creation has many parts

It's often not properly planned

It's often rushed

It can be wrong

It's not often internally curated
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23. What's a strategist DO, anyway?

Summarises the project

Content Inventory

Datascape

Missing content reporting

Message architecture

Audit & analysis of existing content

Competitive audits
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24. What's a strategist DO, anyway?

Readiness, editorial, process audits

Gap and risk analyses

Reports on project recommendations.
… and that's just at analysis level.
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25. What's a strategist DO, anyway?
At design, implementation & maintenance levels, all
of the following:


Produce & maintain a content matrix
Document processes for approval, governance,
translation

SEO Keyword research

Create content reviewer guides

Workshop post-launch detail

Create editorial calendars

Work through archival & removal processes
Hashtag: #PixieSessions

26. Change Management




Content strategy is usually disruptive
Content strategy involves change
management
Content strategy needs executive buy-in
Culture of a business can influence
implementation & methodology
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27. Tools used?

Mainly Excel and Word

Analytics incl heat mapping

SEO spiders

Card sorting (in person or online)

Workshops
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28. In summary...
Strategists work with producers or agency
project managers, information architects,
designers, and programmers, to safeguard
the user's experience and advocate on the
audience's behalf.
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29. Group Activity: Message Architecture
You will:
Learn what message architecture is

Learn the process

Identify its application to your world

Present to everyone else your outcomes
and what you learned

Hashtag: #PixieSessions

30. Group Activity: Message Architecture

Brand Values

Emotional offerings

Audience Needs

Identify overlaps, odd pairs, question it

Focus and prioritise

Implications for your strategy (voice,
tone, style, visuals, etc)
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31. Group Activity: Message Architecture

Start with the card sorting exercise

Proceed to a Venn diagram exercise
Brand
values

Related
terms
Audience
needs
End with an assessment of outcomes
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32. Group Activity: The Dinner Party
You will:
Learn about Pre-Mortems

Create a content strategy for a dinner
party

Note key take-aways (pun intended)

Present to the group

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33. Group Activity: The Dinner Party
What do you have? Quantitative audit, datascape,
matrixes
Is it still good? Message architecture, qualitative
audit, expiration details & life-cycle assessment.
Do you even need it? Message architecture, lifecycle, process & workflow experience mapping
Do people even like it? User research, analytics
Are you making enough? What do you need the
content to do?
How are you doing it? Workflow, process mapping
Hashtag: #PixieSessions