How to integrate strategic content strategies into web design

Translator Note: For Web designers, how to organize and plan the content can be said to be a very critical and troublesome problem. This paper, from the perspective of managers, tells readers how to adopt and implement the correct content strategy from the three stages of content planning, development and maintenance, and also provides many practical methods and content planning tools, such as Basecamp, Trello, Gathercontent.

Original address: How%20to%20bake%20content%20strategy%20into%20your%20web%20design%20process

I have a big problem creating my own digital organization:%20 The content of the organization.

%20 content is a significant bottleneck for most of the projects we encounter. %20 It's hard enough to collect content from customers themselves,%20%20 but more troublesome is managing infrastructure, workflows, publishing technical details and certification workflows.

Let's just admit that the development of%20 content is still a huge, frustrating process. %20 client threw it at you. A 200-page Word document,%20%20 sometimes accompanied by a CD full of scattered pictures and only a partial agreement to achieve the process. How much time can you spend on sending and receiving a Word document for proofreading?

Based on the experience of managing and operating a 14-person studio,%20 based on three different content development phases,%20 I would like to share some tips to help you tame this troubling process:

• Content planning:%20 ask questions,%20 get first-hand needs,%20 create an information map%20–%20 information architecture.

• Content development:%20 gets content from customers,%20 the process of demanding change and certification.

• Content Maintenance:%20 To create a more vivid information map,%20 carry out the review to ensure the real-time requirements and content accuracy.

The above 3 steps help us streamline our plans,%20 the way we manage and publish content, and%20 our relationship with our customers. Let's take a look at the steps of these three content developments in detail.

　　I. Content planning

Content planning is the most important part of the process,%20 and definitely worth spending as much time and manpower as possible. The more time you invest, the less time%20 will take in the latter part of the year. %20%20 's early devotion to as many people as possible to this point will reduce distress and confusion,%20 help you set the right expectations,%20 and benefit the entire team to better understand your content strategy.

There are a few things to be aware of when making a content plan, and%20 now let us be specific about these considerations.

　　Found

The discovery is about using known customer information to find out what they need. Getting customers involved in ' discovery ' can give you a valuable revelation of what they really need%20–%20%20 what do they think their content should be organized? Why should it be organized in such a way?

Never forget that our customers are far more knowledgeable than we are about their customers.

Try the following methods:

%20 Mind Map:%20 for brain violence what kind of content you need and why you need it.

%20 Card method:%20 a very interesting way to test the usability of users and customers. %20 defines how content should be categorized and organized.

%20 Whiteboard Sketch:%20 helps you look at the structure of your site in more detail.

These content organization tools and techniques are very useful for finding out what you need and how to organize it, and%20 also allows users to see the importance of their site content. The importance of%20 to customers is self-evident,%20%20 it encourages discovering how content is linked to their business value. %20 so they will think more carefully about what is available to you and will be able to provide that information more punctually.

　　Demand

An important result of the discovery phase is that you should have a clear demand for the content. %20 in view of the fact that these requirements are almost the basis of all design-required services,%20 the sooner the findings are recorded, the better. %20%20 let everyone in the team know that these can prevent future detours.

You can consider different kinds of requirements:

%20 Legal requirements:%20 For example,%20 in the UK,%20 trade descriptions of goods and services must be clear and accurate.

%20 Business identity/brand requirements:%20 Some enterprises have special guidelines and regulations for how to use their trademarks.

%20 Technology Requirements:%20 for the site,%20 such as the request for a maximum picture of 550 pixels.

Of course, it's important for%20 to keep the streamlining of each requirement,%20 even if you have a long list of different requirements to worry about.

By adding rigorous rules early on,%20 you will encounter as few latency issues as possible,%20 because the project has moved forward in the process.

　　Content Map

Now that you have a clear understanding of the business goals of the site,%20%20 you know what you will need to achieve your goals and that you have a basic set of rules for those things.　　At this stage, you should have a rough outline of the basic structure of the site and the content of each page in your mind. But before you start making interactive drafts of web layouts,%20%20 even before you make a site map, (the site map usually turns into a separate page at the end,%20 such as Apple's sitemap) I suggest you take a moment to create a content map.

Content maps can help you create a better site map, such as a map of Apple's Web site to create a content map should take only a few minutes, which can be a good guide to the site map.

In addition to internal pages, your content map should include content such as emails and news emails, as well as external blogs and videos. This will provide a holistic view of the content flow based on your site.

You can use Mindmeister to create a content map

　　Present your findings.

Now that you have a solid understanding of the layout of the content, you can begin to map these to the layout of the site. Specifically, you can start designing.

By showing the results of your research to the designers, they can start building a home that is truly optimized for your content.

　　Collecting and editing content

When it comes to scheduling everyone's tasks, I find it useful to encourage collaboration, and to allow everyone to discuss and make contributions.　　To do this, you need an online, content-based platform for everyone to discuss. I'm sure you've heard the following tools more or less:

Basecamp

Trello

gathercontent (a tool created by the original author)

Using these tools allows everyone to see a complete roadmap and clear what they should do.

If there are potential delays and impact on the overall project schedule on the route map, the relevant principals will notice and proactively circumvent these risks earlier.

　　Second, the development of content

Perhaps you'll think of the "development content" phase, where everyone goes back to their seats and completes their personal deliverables. All you need to plan is to set goals for everyone, and now the rest is waiting for things to be done.　　In my experience, this is not the case. Even with detailed content requirements, style guidelines, content maps, site maps, frames, deadlines, and surprisingly CMS (site Content management systems), it's crazy to want everything to be a natural combination. This is like expecting two designers to create two completely free pages under the same grid structure, tonal collocation, and image set.

With this in mind, I will encourage as many ongoing communication, inspection and discussion as possible, and link these links throughout the actual production process.

Some suggestions:

• Continuous communication: keeping things in line through early detail discussions

• Everyone to participate: users, content strategists, designers, development, etc.

• Conventional technical commentary: avoid interruption, or do something humiliating;

Allow users to participate in regular technical reviews, while also opening their flexible ideas, finding ways to agile and continuously develop content, and making things easier when you talk to them about maintaining and updating the content process.

　　Third, the maintenance content

The website is on-line, the consumer also can use normally, and everything goes according to plan. Is it time to consider going home and opening a bottle of cold beer to relax?

I don't think it's time to catch my breath, at least not yet.

Items that are never obsolete are extremely rare, and there are strategies (and funds) to update and maintain the content of the site that are important to keep the project fresh, relevant and responsive to your and your customers ' interests.

Developing a Content Maintenance strategy is simple and can include the following elements:

　　Keep Content Editable

You don't want to end up with a website project, but you suddenly get cut off from all the content. By keeping your content open and organized, it makes it easier to locate and update individual modules.

The way you open the repository may be different, if you don't want your content provider to access your CMS directly, you should consider perch (perch is a simple, lightweight CMS with a detailed view of the perch site: http://grabaperch.com /), Gathercontent (https://www.gathercontent.com/), or even a simple, shared Dropbox folder (dropbox:https://www.dropbox.com/)

　　Set an Edit calendar

It is self-evident that the most important thing is that your users and team members can understand their expectations (and they can set aside enough time to deliver)

　　Guide both sides of the review

Content reviews (sometimes called content summaries) are key to maintaining a well-functioning content strategy, and they are also recognized as daunting tasks.

One tool that can help you review the process is page trawler (http://www.pagetrawler.com/), which automatically checks most of your links.

The most important thing is that you not only test user-oriented content, but also be aware of what is hidden behind the scenes, such as testing your SEO (Search engine optimization), content labels, and the reliability of links.

Other common problems are inaccurate dates and prices, server availability, and the details of the site-related staff.

　　Analysis and experiment

The last thing to consider when maintaining and optimizing content is how to analyze and test quality, efficiency, and get useful insights into the experiment. By taking into account commonly used analytical methods such as A/b test, you can improve the efficiency of your Web content by analyzing and experimenting with web layouts, (here you can refer to A/b test for content analysis in Google to get help: http://www.cardinalpath.com/ ab-testing-with-google-analytics-content-experiments/)

　　Summarize

In our view, the three phases of content development are:

• Content planning: Research content requirements, including user research, and help users understand the importance of their website or business content;

• Content development: Good work and cooperation with others, according to the road map, inspire people to continue to work enthusiasm. Hold regular discussions to make people aware of the larger goals of their website content.

• Content Maintenance: The introduction of strict editing calendar, so that content has been maintained freshness. In the context of the content review, but also to consider the content of the technical background.

These steps may seem like a lot, but the benefits are obvious: by putting content strategies back into your web design process, you can build better sites that are less stressful and you can spend time on more important things.

The content itself is not complex, and its delay and scarcity are simply a lack of planning (and Guiding principles).

I hope that through these suggestions, you will be able to find more fun in the content management of the project, and get rich reports on the integration of web design and content strategy.