WINE IS NOT JUST GRAPE JUICE

How Content is Essential to UX September 21, 2010

I  Like  to  Drink  Wine  

Great  Content  is  Like  Great  Wine  

•  It  sends  a  message  to  taste  buds  

•  It’s  consistent  •  It’s  memorable  •  It  causes  a  reac9on  •  You  can  feel  it  •  It  creates  a  connec9on  •  It  creates  an  experience  •  It’s  the  finished  product  that  goes  into  a  package  

An  Online  Search  is  Like  a  Wine  Tas9ng  

•     You  barely  see  the  labels  •     The  user  is  distracted  by  choices  •     The  results  have  to  match  the  user’s  taste  

It’s  what’s  inside  that  keeps  people  coming  back  for  more.

New  Site  Content  is  Like  a  Vintage  

•  Would  you  use  sediment  from  last  year’s  vineyard  to  fill  a  brand  new  wine  boIle?  

•  Why  try  to  shovel  old  content  into  a  shiny,  new  site?  

Through  Online  Content  People  Decide:  

       If  they  can  trust  you.   If  they  like  you.  " If  you  understand  their  needs.   If  you  offer  what  they  want.   If  you’re  a  company  they  want  to  do  business      with.  

Content  is  not...  

•  TEXT    •  VERBIAGE  •  COPY  •  FILLER  •  FLUFF  

Content  is...  

•  Ar9cles  that  connect  to  users  •  Links  that  keep  users  engaged  •  A  voice  that  users  remember  •  Trends,  techniques  and  technologies  (informa9on)  that  users  experience  and  share  

Content  is...  

•  Clickable  •  Scrollable  •  Scanable  •  Sharable  •  Ownable  

Quantitative Impacts:

Links Subscribers

Rankings

Qualitative Impacts:

Word of Mouth Engagement Comments

Input:

Mo

nth

ly C

on

ten

t / C

on

vers

atio

n C

ale

nd

ar

Post

Post Post Post

Post

Post Post

Post

Content Affects UX:

Facebook Blog

Twitter YouTube Website

Value

Content  is…  

Valuable  to  

–  Users  –  Designers  –  Informa9on  Architects  –  Search  Engine  Marketers  –  Project  Managers  –  Brands  

Guiding Principles of Content Creation

1.  Enable human interaction with a healthy dialog 2.  Stay true to the brand personality 3.  Contribute valuable information and offers 4.  Allow for co-creation 5.  Stick to common themes 6.  Ask questions 7.  Be service-oriented 8.  Maintain consistent engagement 9.  Use multimedia 10. Encourage consumers to share personal stories

     “The  single  most  important  thing  most  websites  can  offer  to  their  users  is  content  that  those  

users  will  find  valuable.”    –  The  Elements  of  User  Experience,  Jesse  James  Garrre?