data informed content strategy (1) clare o'brien - confab

Data informed content strategy

Clare O’Brien, CDA

Confab, May 2011

1

The appeal of instant analytics can obscure meaning and insight

2Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

• Who

• What

• Where

• When

• Why

• How

... and what do they think?3Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

...What do we make of the

wood and the trees?

Courtesy of www.fearlessconsulting.co.uk6

Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011 7

Insight n. 1. the capacity of understanding hidden truths etc, esp. of character or situations

Usability testing

User testing

Surveys

Focus groups

Online surveys

In-depth interviews

Google Analytics

Market profiles

Consumer data

Quantitative research

Qualitative research

Field studies

Anecdotal evidence

Task analysis

Gap analysis

Search logs

Keyword analysis Buyer

decision testing

Eye tracking

Coolhunting

Panel data

8Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Credit: Mapping the Mind by Rita Carter Chapter 2

9Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011 10

Content strategists need to apply bi-lateral analysis to the range of data sources available to find insights.

Facts

News

Research

Traffic

Insight

Knowledge

Information

Data

CONTEXT

REASONING

SYNTHESIS

CO

NTE

NT

STR

ATE

GY

Certainty

Understanding

Conviction... & direction

Good strategy needs strong insights

11Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

DATA WITHOUT INSIGHT IS JUST FALLOW LAND

12Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Data is the growing medium for your

insights

13Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

DEVELOPING CONTENT TO GENERATE LOYALTY USING COMBINED SEARCH & ANALYTICS DATA

14Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Keywords can be key to understanding content relevance... (and findability)

Keywords = intent

“Are we delivering the information that people intended to find in a way that turns them into customers?”

Arienne Holland, RavenTools

15Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

With thanks to Arienne Holland, RavenTools.com

16Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Keywords are the key to understanding content relevance... And findability

Learning to find patterns

Getting smart with custom segments and goals

Finding insight by relating the language of search with their subsequent behaviours

www.raventools.com17Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

ANALYTICS, CLICK DATA, A PLANNER’S EYE & ITERATIVE APPROACH

18Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Fluid approach, iterative changes produce instant wins and long-term gain

With thanks to Hugh Gage of www.engage-Digital.com

19Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Organised content

Recognisable content

Relevant content

Prominent offers

20Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Data-informed content changes drive immediate results: 3 weeks laterChange in onsite conversion rate• Online bookings 22%

• Online brochure requests 157%

• Email request 95%

• Call back -2%The above results delivered real revenue improvements at a

time when the recession has bitten hardest.

21Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

PINPOINTING STYLE AND STRUCTURE CHANGES USING GA & SURVEYS

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Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011 23

From dense texts... To text + image + space

Asking the audience who used cushion keywords

Interesting Enjoyable Useful Reason for leaving

Looking for advise on cushion making 8 5 2 Not Left

How to make piped cushions 1 1 1 Got Info

PIPING ON CUSHION COVERS 4 4 4 Satisfied

have made cushions out of display curtains and can't find very small toggle type buttons to go through very small punched holes.

3 3 5 Not Left

i wanted to make a cushion cover to go in my bedroom 3 4 2 Not Left

how to add piping to a cushion 1 1 1 Got Info

I want to make cushion covers 1 1 1 Got Info

Looking for cushion cover ideas. 4 4 4 Not Left

Wanted to make a cushion cover but didn't know how. 3 2 1 Not Left

wanted to find some ideas for cushions 5 5 4 Bad Info

learn to make cushions. cannot find what iwant in the shops 1 2 2 Bad Info

24Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

How to make a cushion cover

How to add piping to a cushion

How to make cushions

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Cushion and Salt dough learnings

Bounce does NOT = disengagement70-85% bounce rate but av time spent on page 1:55sec

Insight: People like pictures and spaced step-by-step structure

26Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Cushion and Salt dough learnings

Combine search data and analytics data to produce fresh insights and inform new ways of structuring and presenting content to suit all audience types – they all have value

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Cushion and Salt dough learnings

Keywords are their words• Salt dough narrow terms (‘recipe

for salt dough’) in and out• Broad ‘salt dough Christmas

decorations’ 3-4 page viewsInsight: people looking for ideas more likely to explore; people looking for an answer will still leave even if satisfied

28Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

CHANGING THE BRAND BY READING & UNDERSTANDING LONG TERM DATA

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From dry bottoms to provider of information and insight into babies’ experience of baby development

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Learning to use new kinds of data to create content-based relationships

BEFORE:

– Selling dry bottoms to millions

THEN:

– Followed Mums, learned about new behaviours, listened, experimented, earned permission for bigger role to help Mum facilitate her baby’s development - iterated online voice & purpose

NOW:

– Understand perpetual and rapidly evolving nature of interaction, growing the role of brand into previously no-go territory: SIDS, UNICEF, conversation, more fluid, more responsive...

MORE CONNECTED... More important31Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011

Thank you

Clare O’Brien, CDA

T: +44 20 8948 7636

M: +44 7850 922 076

Twitter: clareob

clare@webwordsworking.co.uk

www.webwordsworking.co.uk32Data informed content strategy | Clare O'Brien | © CDA, May 2011