A planning model for content strategy

Planning your content strategy

Content Rules Seminar

22 January 2014

brilliantnoise.com

@katie3059

@amayfield

@brilliantnoise

Content strategy is about the ‘how’, the user, the big picture and the planning.

"the practice of planning the content creation, delivery, and governance." Kristina Halvorson. "The Discipline of Content Strategy".

“It's not the content, but the form of thought that counts.” Orhan Pamuk

“Why waste a sentence saying nothing?” Seth Godin

image (cc) eriwst

Content strategy gives you a formula for creating great content time and time again.

The emphasis on content is part of wider change in marketing and communications...

The models for audience engagement have been changing for the past decade. changing

We saw it first in the tech sector.

IBM’s investment model

IBM’s investment model

And the focus has shifted from channels to the customer.

Traditional sales funnel

Awareness

Consideration

Decision

Buy

Model first published Harvard Business Review

Bond

Advocate

Enjoy

Buy

Evaluate

Consider

Customer decision journey

Model first published Harvard Business Review

Bond

Advocate

Enjoy

Buy

Evaluate

Consider

Customer decision journey

What opportunities do we have to engage customers with content?

And success means designing systems more than campaigns.

Processes: content supply chain

AmEx

First: know your customer (or stakeholder, influencer, citizen, donor, user)

Digital ecosystem mapping.

http://brilliantnoise.com/the-digital-ecosystem/

Customer decision mapping.

Or in a more linear form....

Search Engine

Brand website

Price Comparison

Social Media

1 3

64

52

7 8

9 10

Consider Evaluate Buy Bond Advocate

6PPMSix Ps Planning Model

To create, publish and measure content against organisational goals.

Purpose

Performance

Prin

ciples

Pro

cesse

s

Platfo

rms

People

Often some key elements were missing...

Purpose

Performance

Prin

ciples

Pro

cesse

s

Platfo

rms

People

So let’s show you the questions we ask against each element.

The overarching reason why your content exists.Purpose applies to every piece of content, not just specific campaigns.

Purpose/ˈpəːpəs/ noun

Clear. Urgent.Compelling.Ours.

“What is content anyway?”

“What is content anyway?”‘Purpose’ gives you the answer.

Coca-Cola’s definition of content.

image (cc) Photon

“To bring inspiration to every athlete* in the world.

*If you have a body, you are an athlete.” Nike, http://goo.gl/XTLh7a

Exercise:Your purpose?

In one minute describe the purpose that guides your content strategy or a programme.

The fundamental propositions that form the foundations of your content.

Principles/ˈprɪnsɪp(ə)l/ noun

Guiding. Framing.Mantra-like.Ours.

More http://goo.gl/zJBSV

1. Consider the social opportunity in everything we do

2. Engage in better conversations with more consumers

3. Deliver personal experiences, be authentic, and earn trust

4.Sharing is more important than control

5. Define clear objectives from the outset

6.Invest and commit to social presences

More here http://goo.gl/aVmXT

Nokia

1. Inspire participation amongst the very best 

2. Connect these creative minds

3.Share the results of our efforts 

4. Continue development 

5. Measure success

Coca-Cola

1. Encourage bravery

2. Ensure clarity in our thinking

3. Embrace risk & all it entails

4. Culture of creativity

5. Be a catalyst for play

(+ 70 / 20 / 10 risk investment)

Coca-Cola’s kind-of-other principles

“There are too many different content silos, and there’s no consistency.”

“There are too many different content silos, and there’s no consistency.”‘Principles’ give you a solution.

Exercise:Guiding principles

What are your content mantras - or what principles would help if everyone in organisation understood them.

The places where and tools with which your create, publish and amplify your content.

Platforms/ˈplatfɔːm/ noun

Source Create Publish Amplify

RSS

Social listening

Bookmarking e.g. Diigo

Yammer

Wiki

Internet

Word/Pages

Spredfast

Editorially

Gather Content

Scrivener

ZenWriter

CMS

Blog

3rd party sites

Social networks

Social networks

Email

RSS

Paid content promotion e.g. PPC, OutBrain, Zemanta

“The CMS fills me with rage”‘Platforms’ make sure it never comes to this.

Exercise:Platforms for making and doing

Note down some platforms to try for content creation, collaboration, listening and measurement.

The systems and workflows required to create, publish and evaluate content

Processes/ˈprəʊsɛs/ noun

Content supply chain

- Trickle-down: Strong global creative direction, purpose and principles, light touch governance with independent markets executing.

- Federated: Strong central and regional hubs creating content and localising for each market. Dedicated editors/community managers part of a regional team.

- Central: Strong global team and light local resource to implement / localise content

- Networked: Central resource enables sharing and governance between strong local/regional teams - best practice and content travels in all directions.

Four content organisation shapes

START

Text

Content working group add ideas and/or source material to a content planner.

Editor prioritises based on user needs and content principles, creates content plan.

Editor writes content briefs and secures sign off from relevant stakeholders.

Editor gives briefs and source material to content writers.

Content writers write content.

Editor proofs, checks against the brief, style and tone of voice guide, and principles.

Editor gives stakeholders a final chance to sign off controversial/sensitive content.

Content is published. Content is amplified. Content is measured

and optimised.

GOAL: great

content

START

GOAL: great

content

Research content

Fail to find source

material

Create idea for

campaign

Write brief

Get brief signed off

Write content

Send content for

sign off

Content isn’t

approved

Content is approved

Content ready for

publication

Argue over who owns content

CMS doesn’t support content format

TextDelays mean content is

out of date

Content is published

No one reads the content

People read the content

Most people hate/are

indifferent

Some people like/

love it

“The sign-off process is ridiculous.”

“The sign-off process is ridiculous.”‘Processes’ plan away sign off problems.

Exercise:Processes - the good, the bad and the absent...

Note which processes are working well, which need improvement and new processes you need.

The people involved in the content process and the way they are organised in relation to it.

People/ˈpiːp(ə)l/ noun

- Content department: an in-house or agency team that creates content for the whole organisation.

- Content centre of excellence: content experts who provide leadership and guidance on best practice across the organisation

- Content council: a group of content professionals from across the organisation that meet regularly to make sure content is aligned.

- Cross-functional content chief: a senior executive with cross-departmental authority.

- Content lead: a person who leads content initiatives, but without cross-departmental authority.

- Executive steering committee: a cross-functional strategic group.

Content organisation models

Altimeter Group http://goo.gl/NdxkWC

“Everyone/no one thinks they own content.”

“Everyone/no one thinks they own content.”‘People’ makes the hierarchy and team involved clear.

Exercise:Processes - the good, the bad and the absent...

Note which processes are working well, which need improvement and new processes you need.

The benchmarks for success and the ways in which you measure the impact of your content.

Performance/ˈpəˈfɔːm(ə)ns/ noun

What is your objective? What metrics will help you see if you’re meeting that objective?

Visits, unique visits, page views, time on page, bounce rate, exit rate, return visits, new visits, shares, likes, links, views, downloads, comments, share of voice, brand mentions, customer satisfaction, number of calls/emails/inquiries, sales, leads, sales funnels...

Forrester’s Engagement Framework

Awareness Action Advocacy

Traffic

Bounce-rate

Views

Uniques

Sign-ups

Comm

ents

Downloads

Time w

atching

In-bound links

Recomm

endations

Mentions

Positive sentiment

Engagement

Scale and control

Returns

Purchases

Media uploads

Fans & followers

Blog posts

Engagement

Low effort / cost High effort / cost

Evolution - the 3As

The IAB framework - another A!

Exercise:Performance

Can you/will you be able to link metrics to business outcomes? Can you use data to inform editorial / content decisions?

image (cc) lindaybayley

Implementing content strategy is hard - take it one step at a time until you get it right.

katie@brilliantnoise.com@katie3050

antony@brilliantnoise.com@amayfield

brilliantnoise.com

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