Content Creation (2)

Archive for the ‘Content Creation’ Category

A Brief Post About Content Brief Contents

Friday, January 15th, 2010

Content should be central to your projects.

The cool thing is, that’s happening more and more.

And I have to say that I really, really like that. Thinking about marketing strategies from a content POV has always been important. It’s how I got started working with Matterhorn in the first place. I’m saying that the focus is changing.

Not just around here. Out there.

Why is that? One reason is search. Google is rolling out new SERPS that are heavily influenced by content quality. And quantity. Well, one begets the other. Creating a lot of quality content is going to help your ranking, plain and simple.

That’s not news. But the fact that that content can come from anywhere, like facebook or twitter or urbanspoon or yelp, is. Or at least, the extent to which social content matters is news. It’s becoming more important every day.

Another reason to focus on content, and we’re mainly talking written content here, is because text is messy as hell (a direct quote from Content Strategy For The Web).

Meaning, if you leave content out of your plan, or think that you’re including it by writing the word “content” somewhere on a mindmap, you’re going to wind up a week away from the day you launch your site saying something like, “Man, we need to put some content up, quick.”

If no one “owns” the content you’re creating, you’re looking at no content. Or crappy content. That’s a terrific way to fail.

And this means that your (content) briefs need to contain more than just deliverables. They need to contain plans. They have to identify why you’re writing what you’re writing. There has to be a measurable element to your work that tells the rest of the team how this piece of content fits.

There are a lot of good reasons to focus on content. What are yours?

Tags: Ben Curnett, content marketing, content strategy, google social search
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Why Audit Your Online Content?

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Because you can.

Meaning, digital content is easier to manipulate than other forms of content. So use that to your advantage when you work on your digital marketing by going through an audit.

That doesn’t mean it’s easy to do. A content audit can be a bear of a project to tackle. Some people even recommend a continual audit, if your assets are big enough to demand it.

And just for clarification, we’re defining an audit as building a spreadsheet that lists your assets by going through everything you’ve got, and IDing it all. You inventory the category, the keywords, the meta data, the traffic, the strength of the writing, the consistency of the writing, and on and on. The more info you account for, the better you’ve audited.

A content audit can be like a bit of light housekeeping, or a spring clean where you have to rent a dumpster. It all depends on the kind of maintenance you do, and what condition your content was in when you moved it in.

Why (Really)

So, a bit beyond “because you can”, here are some reasons to audit:

-You’re getting a new site. Don’t take all your junk with you; audit before the move, and only take what’s useful. Same goes for a site overhaul, where reasons for an audit don’t need much explaining.

-You’re looking at your analytics. Amazingly, very few small businesspeople are actually paying attention to where their traffic comes from, where it goes, and what it does while it’s there. If you’re one that does, do an audit to see what people are actually doing on your site. Then, make more content like that.

-You’re organized. It’s one thing to have a site map, and quite another to have an audit. It’s the difference between the TV you have now and something like this. It’s easier to see what you’ve got.

-You want to find out what you need. An audit is just as good at showing you the holes in your content strategy as it is at showing you where your strengths are, especially if…

-You’re doing keyword research. It sure will be nice to have an at-a-glance reference at where you can put your research to work. Tweaking keywords can be tedious, but usually because there’s not a good enough map to follow. Your audit will take care of that.

It’s about time for an audit of the Matterhorn site. I’ll let you know what we find.

Tags: Ben Curnett, content marketing, content strategy, marketing strategy
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Thoughts on Content Strategy

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

This is what I’ve been reading lately: Content Strategy For The Web by Kristina Halvorson.

It’s a great book. I wrote a quick review of it on Amazon, though it’s the kind of book that I’m not even close to taking full advantage of yet. I love those.

Content Strategy is about creating and implementing a plan that uses all of your digital goods (your content) to support the best online experience you can. And it’s really hit its stride lately.

It’s no fad. Or, at least, it shouldn’t be. CS is a new ontology, a smart way to prepare our most important digital assets.

What I also like about CS is that content (especially text) is finally getting its due. What used to be the mongrel of the web development world now has the pedigree status it deserves. As a writer, I’m happy to see it, if only because so much content, especially written content, sucks.

Okay, so I’m biased. Doesn’t matter.

For a little more overview, there’s a skimpy wikipedia entry and a bulging google knol on CS for some overview. The knol authors all have blogs worth reading. Also on the overview side of things, there’s this post on A List Apart, also by Kristina Halvorson. Here’s your definition of CS in 1000 words or less. Can you tell I’m a fan?

So, what’s been most helpful so far?

Well, aside from creating a way to talk about content not being neglected, it’s got to be the process that comes along with taking good care of content. In the past, I had always kept my process for creation pretty close to what I had learned way back in the creative writing days. I research. I outline. I draft. I revise.

I’m now creating a much, much wider scope for the process than I’m used to. I’s not just writing. More like a strategy for content, if you will. I’m still working on a smaller scale than, for example, Richard Sheffield’s mindmap for CS. Most of what I’m doing in in the Creative and Process arms of that structure, and I’m in the process of building a mindmap of my own for my particular workflow.

So if you meet with a wordy-type like myself in 2010, and they start talking Content Strategy in capital letters, you’ll know what the landscape looks like.

Oh, and if you’re really interested in CS, you should definitely make plans for this.

Tags: Ben Curnett, blogs, books, content strategy
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How To Make One Simple Writing Change To Create Better Content

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

Here it is: Write what’s most important first. Always.

It’s a concept that a lot of people are familiar with, but not very many put into practice (I’ll give you an example of what I mean in just a bit). Why? We’re taught not to.

Think about it. All of the writing you did in high school and college had an introduction. You had to create a lead in, a little structure, maybe even use the dreaded metaphor.

(J majors, you can stop reading now.)

Anyway, if you’re writing introductions, quit it. Because your web reader wants to get the facts, fast. In order to give it to them, cut the structure and get to the point.

There’s plenty of room to elaborate. You should. Just make sure you’re doing it after you’ve given the information that your title promises

Brian Clark said that each line in a post is a war of attrition. If you think about your writing that way, you really have no choice but to start with everything you’ve got. If what you’re writing is worth reading, people will still be with you at the end.

Here’s an Example

Alright, one of my favorite things to do is to write mashups. So I present to you some famous first lines from Dickens’ A Tale Of Two Cities, rewritten as a blog post…

Original:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way — in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

Blog edition:

There has never been a more exciting time to be alive than right now.

Some people say the opposite. You’ll get that.

Thinkers, creators, and doers thrive right now. I know because I get to be one. You know who else thrives? A whole bunch of people you’d like to see in hell. Also: those people are very, very loud.

Just a side note- if this kind of thing makes you angry, like I’ve trampled the good name of literature forever, you might like this post better.

Anyway, I stripped all of the poetry and symbolism and rhythm (and everything that makes me love this quote) out. Then, I took the main point and simplified it. That’s how to start.

Other things that make this the beginning of a good blog post:

-The conversational style. It’s a blog, after all.

-The spacing. It makes ideas easy to read.

-It’s polarizing. Love it or hate it, at least I’m not wasting anyone’s time.

Next time you’re trying to think of a witty way to begin your blog post, don’t. Try writing just what you want to say, right from the start.

Tags: Ben Curnett, content marketing, writing
Posted in Content Creation, Copywriting | No Comments »

Five Steps To Writing What You Know

Monday, December 21st, 2009

“Write what you know” is pretty standard writing advice.

Still, most people have trouble creating any kind of worthwhile content. That goes double if they know that people are actually going to read it.

The secret to “write what you know” is in the process. You know what you want to say. You just have to match how you say it and where you’re putting it.

Here’s my best advice for writing on a subject you know a lot about…

1. Research. No, don’t research the subject. You already know that. Research the format. If you’re writing a blog post, go to copyblogger or men with pens and check out what they have to say. Visit alltop and search for something you’re interested in. Get your google on. Look at the form, and try to think about how you’ll interpret it for your writing.

2. Outline. Your eighth grade English teacher wasn’t wrong about everything. All an outline is is a little plan. Don’t worry about the form, if you’re intimidated by it. You can just write notes, like “This goes first, then I’ll write this…” and on and on. Just make sure each note is on a different line, to give you an idea of the flow. An outline is the most important step that people miss out on, except…

3. Make A Draft. Here’s what a draft means: don’t edit. It’s hard, I know. If you have to go back and use that delete key, give yourself some boundaries, like only correcting misspelled words. Let it flow. The quickest way to get stuck while writing is to edit as you go. Drafting and editing should be like oil and water when it comes to getting it all out.

4. Cut. this part can be tricky for someone that’s writing what they know. Because you’re an expert on your subject, you’ve obviously got a lot to say. When you finish your draft, and begin to edit, start the process with the word “cut” in your mind. Think about your specific theme, the one you’re covering in this piece. Anything that strays from that gets cut. Anything that distracts your audience gets cut. Long sentences get cut into shorter ones. Fancy words get cut into simple ones. Go all the way through your draft, and cut. Then do it again.

5. Read It Out Loud. Please, please, take the time to read your piece with your actual voice in actual words that make actual sounds. It’s different than the way it worked in your head, I promise. Plus, reading aloud is a good way to find mistakes. You don’t have to read to anyone else, necessarily. But do yourself a favor and hear how the whole thing sounds before you put it out there.

Well, did I miss something? Anyone out there, expert or otherwise, with a good “write what you know” tip, chime in…

Tags: Ben Curnett, blogs, content marketing, writing
Posted in Content Creation | No Comments »

Are You Creative, Or Clear?

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

It makes sense to be creative.

First of all, creativity is fun. People respond to it within your company and among your customers. With billions of web pages vying for attention, the creative ones, in both design and content, tend to have more people like them.

If more people like them, there’s more chance for interaction. Considering the channels of interaction now available in the world of social media, that’s hugely improtant; interaction is what your site is for.

The question to ask then is: What is your site doing creatively? Is it creative for its own sake? Is it clever? Because clever means most people won’t get it.

There’s a widespread fact/myth that gets spread around the web that the average site visitor reads on a 5th or a 7th grade level (I forget which one). I’m sure there’s some truth to it. Clarity is important above all else.

So, that fact/myth shouldn’t matter much if you remember that most visitors aren’t coming to your site to read (visiting your blog is a different story). They want information or help performing a task. That’s it.

But, they also need to know that the task is worthwhile, that the information is valid. That’s where creativity matters. Clarity and creativity need to be on equal ground.

Skip creative and go straight to creatively clear.

Tags: Ben Curnett, Digital Marketing, marketing strategy, writing
Posted in Content Creation, Digital Marketing | No Comments »

How To Write While Going Over A 14 Foot Waterfall

Friday, December 4th, 2009

The quick answer? Take notes on the way down.

There’s a waterfall here in West Virginia on the Gauley River called Sweet’s Falls. As a ballpark estimate, I’ve run the falls around 500 times. Here’s how it works… Kaali River- kuttibalu

When you start, there’s a line of waves that runs right up against a cliff on the right side of the river. You have to line your boat up on the left side of those waves. Once you start into them, get ready; no backing out now.

Follow the waves as they get bigger and bigger, and then…

That’s when you start writing.

Meaning, your message goes right here.

The process of writing for the web is like paddling into the entrance to Sweet’s Falls. You want to put readers on a path, a line of waves.

One thing to consider: Really good guides would run the falls without anyone ever taking a stroke. The current did all the work for them.

That’s how your website should be. Each micro conversion (getting to your About page, downloading your PDF) carries readers toward where they want to go. They don’t have to work for it.

Long paragraphs, ambiguous menus, and big chunks of test are all swirling eddies that pull readers off course. It’s work to get out of an eddy, and if you make readers work, they’re gone.

It takes a lot of practice and training to drop the falls just right. But if you start with that end in mind, you’ll carry your readers through safely.

Tags: Ben Curnett, content marketing, Copywriting, writing
Posted in Content Creation | No Comments »

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