content/communication: lavacon 2014
TRANSCRIPT
CONTENT / COMMUNICATION @HALVORSON • LAVACON 2014
AUDIT THE CONTENT. !
REWORK THE IA. !
MAKE SOME METADATA. !
REWRITE THE COPY.
YOUR COMPANY IS BROKEN. !
YOUR TOOLS SUCK. !
YOU’RE WAY BEHIND. !
YOU ARE DUMB.
My content is terrible!
It’s not your content. It’s you.
*sobs*
THERE’S SOME
FOUNDATIONAL STUFF
WE NEED TO (REMEMBER
TO) TALK ABOUT.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
A PRINCIPLE internally motivates us to do things that seem good and right.
A RULE externally compels you to do things someone else has deemed good and right. !!!!!!
ANONYMOUS CLIENT STORY
#1
!1. This content is not for us.
2. “Responsive” does not equal “reactive.” 3. The story informs the format. 4. Numbers aren’t everything.
!
!
OUR CONTENT PRINCIPLES
http://hillaryfox.com/inside-facebook-headquarters/
MOVE FAST AND BREAK THINGS
*
PRINCIPLES UNITE US IN OUR DAY-TO-DAY WORK.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
GOAL
STRATEGY
TACTIC
ANONYMOUS CLIENT STORY
#2
“We will become the industry leader in the financial services arena by providing our clients with superior service, world-class products, and a commitment to excellence at every touchpoint along the customer lifecycle.” !!
“We will become the industry leader in the [INDUSTRY] services arena by providing our clients with superior service, world-class products, and a commitment to excellence at every touchpoint along the customer lifecycle.”
We will share user-facing, task-based content that makes our customers feel smart and safe, both personally and professionally.
STRATEGY
• Rewrite “About Us” copy
• Improve “Help” section
• Create interactive company history timeline
• Restructure home page around top tasks
• Start some content marketing
• Get some user personas
!
STRATEGERY
STRATEGY KEEPS US ACCOUNTABLE.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
ANONYMOUS CLIENT STORY
#3
Content?
DO NOT MAKE PROCESS YOUR GOD.
“Different methods work or fail because of people, not because they are universally good or bad. !
– Pawel Brodzinski, Agile Bullshit
!
http://www.matthiasshapiro.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/IngebretsenDeliverablesWithPictures1.png
ARTIFACTS ARE TOOLS, NOT OUTCOMES.
GOOD PROCESS HELPS US MOVE TOGETHER.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
ANONYMOUS CLIENT STORY
#4
!1. Take away everyone’s job titles.
2. Have a series of four-hour working sessions to break
out “big tasks” and “little tasks.”
3. Managers go away and come back with “team
missions.”
4. Employees pick a team and write their own job
descriptions.
5. Select goals, review quarterly.
6. Go!
!
!
THE BIG PLAN
!R – Who is responsible for completing a task?
A – Who is accountable for the work’s success?
C – Who must be consulted before work can be signed-off on?
I – Who must be kept informed along the way?
!
!
THE RACI MODEL
!1. At some point, invite All the People
2. Make sure everyone’s aligned on terminology (e.g. audit vs.
inventory, wireframe vs. prototype)
3. Identify timing issues, agendas, overlapping responsibilities
EVERY PROJECT, EVERY TIME
ROLES GIVE US A PLACE.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
“ In content strategy, our master skills must include translating and negotiating, so we can facilitate communication between disparate disciplines and help them to communicate. !
– Rachel Lovinger, “Tinker, Tailor, Content Strategist”
PERCEPTIONS GIVE WAY TO PERSPECTIVE.
PRINCIPLES
STRATEGY
PROCESS
ROLES
PERCEPTIONS
200,000 years
1760 1 billion people
2011 7 billion people
210 years
37 years: +4 billion people
1995: The Internet is formally commercialized
WE ARE PERPETUALLY CATCHING UP.
“This multi-device web design increases stress exponentially.
!– Trent Walton, .net Magazine
ALL THE FEELINGS
“A study of over 350 people in 6 business units at a financial services company found that the greatest predictor of a team’s achievement was how the members felt about one another.” !
OUR WORK IS PERSONAL.TOGETHER.
WHO’S AWESOME? You’re awesome.
