Building and Managing a

Content Communication

Strategy

About Me

Shannah Hayley

Director of Marketing and Community Engagement

City of Plano, Texas

Twitter: @shannahhayley

• Higher education

• Non-profit

• Professional services

• Local government

Professional Background

Government Communications

Primary functions: • Informing• Advocating/persuading (for policies and reforms)• Engaging citizens (for participation and action)

Source: George Washington University’s Institute for Public Diplomacy and Global Communication, School of Media and Public Affairs (SMPA), and The World Bank’s Communication for Governance and Accountability Program (CommGAP)

Content Communication aka Content Marketing

Strategic evidence-based measurable business process involving• creation, curation, and distribution of • useful, relevant, and consistent content • designed to meet the needs of a specified audience to • achieve a desired citizen or stakeholder action.

Source: contentgroup

Engagement Funnel

The Why

What is Included in Content Communications?

• All content produced by your organization.– Bylined Articles– White Papers– Presentations– Direct mail (print & e-marketing)– Newsletters– News releases– Website– Social Media

Step 1: Develop Plan and SMART Goals

• What’s the ROI for your organization?– Constituent Engagement– Reputation– Trust– Economic Development– Customer Satisfaction– Employee Engagement– Action

The Big Question

Why are we doing this?

Step 2: SMART Goals

• Who are you trying to reach?• What do you want them to know?• What do you want them to do?• What results are you anticipating?

SUSTAIN DEVELOP EXPLORE

Constituent Groups | City of Plano

Step 3: Key Messages

• Strategic message framework• Messages by program• Messages by issue• Messages by department• Messages by constituent

Step 4: Sources and Channels

• What are we using?• How are we using?• What should we consider?

– Print– Online– Social Media– TV / Radio

• Remember THE question!

Example | City of Plano Social Media

ACTIVE STRATEGY

PASSIVE STRATEGY

Step 5: Develop Relevant Content

• Message based• Goal focused• CTAs

Content Best Practices

• Be constituent-centric• Be real and passionate• Identify your constituents’ hot topics• Evaluate, organize and repurpose existing content

Step 6: Organization

• Content plan & calendar• Actions, activities & initiatives• Channels• Resources required• Timing• Ownership

Step 7: Measurement

• Connect the dots• Use your goals as your baseline• Four metrics

– Awareness– Engagement– Impact– Business Value

Considerations

• Managing– Consider using outside help– Rely on content management calendar– Frequency matters, but quality matters more

• Count the Cost– What are our internal resources?– What is our budget?– Can we be consistent for the long-haul?– Is leadership on board?– Will we measure for true ROI?

Reality of Process

Questions?

Shannah Hayley

Shannah@plano.gov972-941-5669

Twitter: @shannahhayley