Content strategy plans for the creation, publication, and governance of useful, usable content.

We must work to define not only which content will be published and what we are creating, but why we’re publishing it in the first place. Otherwise, content strategy isn’t strategy at all: it’s just a glorified production line for content nobody really needs or wants.

Content strategy is also—surprise—a key deliverable for which WE are responsible.

Its development is necessarily preceded by a detailed audit and analysis of existing content—a critically important process that’s often glossed over or even skipped by project teams.

At its best, a content strategy defines:

• key themes and messages;
• recommended topics;
• content purpose (i.e., how content will bridge the space between audience needs and business requirements);
• content gap analysis;
• metadata frameworks and related content attributes;
• search engine optimization (SEO); and
• implications of strategic recommendations on content creation, publication, and governance.
• the creation of your content

Now, this breakdown certainly doesn’t imply that a content strategist will be playing all these roles and creating the associated deliverables. In fact, in our experience, the content strategist is a rare breed who’s often willing and able to embrace these roles as necessary to deliver useful, usable content. We work with you...

BUT. And this is a big “but.” If our community fails to recognize, divide, and conquer the multiple roles associated with planning for, creating, publishing, and governing content, we’ll keep underestimating the time, budget, and expertise it takes to do content right. We won’t clearly define and defend the process to our companies and clients. We’ll keep getting stuck with 11th-hour directives, fix-it-later copy drafts—and we’ll keep on publishing crap.

We can do better. Our clients and employers deserve it. Our audiences deserve it. We as users deserve it.

We have designed strategy for numerous clients including:

• Natural Resources Defense Council
• Jose Cuervo
• Sony Ericsson
• Star Magazine
• Ford Models
• Buzztone Media
• Blender Magazine
• CCN Networks
• Snapple
• Eve – Clothing

Examples