Compelling Content Experiences
Multi-Channel WCM Projects:
Making Them Work
Vern Imrich
CTO Percussion Software
http://www.percussion.com/contentions
CM Pros Fall 2007

Today’s Agenda
 Introduction to Multi-channel WCM
 Usability
 Content Reuse
 Business Process and Lifecycle
 Modeling and Template Design
 Emerging Architecture Trends
 Summary

Multi-channel WCM
 Multi-channel content management
• Multi-media describes types of content
Rich media, structured vs. unstructured, files, data, etc.
•
• Multi-channel describes types of content delivery
Web, online vs. offline, your site vs. other site, mobile, etc.
•
• Most channels may consume and deliver ALL types of content
 Why multi-channel WCM
• WCM is about “customer facing” content
Brand, customer experience, loyalty, outreach, leads, etc.
•
• “it’s a multichannel world, united by content” – Forrester 2006

Perspectives on Multi-channel Initiatives
“Enterprises that expect an increase in customer interactions across multiple channels face the
daunting task of providing a consistent customer experience. Many have spent the last few years
experimenting with treating each channel independently, compounded recently by the use of blogs,
RSS, and wikis to both capture and publish content. This has led to duplication of content,
inconsistent content usage, redundant processes, and frustrated employees. Providing a consistent
customer experience across channels, and improving those processes, now pushes many
organizations to manage their content centrally and deliver it through the right channel.”
– Forrester 2006
“The market will be
positioned toward the
marketing buyer, not IT
departments. But fast
growth in this fragmented
market will require IT
involvement early and
often, because there are
many platforms, delivery
models and integration
points to reconcile.”
– Gartner 2007

Usability Challenges
 Content contributors expect to work in “the” channel
 Task flow dependent on “the” channel
• Pick a page design (template), fill it in, save the page
 Purpose of content elements based on “the” channel
• Q: “What is a promo blurb?”
• A: “the piece of text that shows up over here”
 Quality of content based on “the” channel
• Is this title “too long?”
 (need to add examples and screen shots of each)

Customer example

Usability examples

Addressing Usability for Multichannel
 Refocus users on the business task, rather than the
channel task
• Integrate channel communications with core business activities
• Example: Create an Event, not an Event Page
• Example: Launch a new branch office, not a new branch office
site or area
 Content Purpose and Quality ARE channel specific
• Embrace working in the context of a channel
• Leverage channel experts at steps in the process
Enable multiple users to touch the same content in the
•
context of the channel(s) they are familiar with
Do not force users to guess about channels they never see
•

Content Reuse Challenges
 Consistency versus practicality
 Form factor issues are real
• Text: too long, too short
• Rich media: aspect ratios, sizing, thumbnails
 Content type effectiveness varies across channels
• Example: True Podcasts vs. “reading articles”
 Usage paradigms in channels are different
• Content optimization diverges
• Example: Email/RSS subject line vs. link or title text in a page
Spam filters vs. SEO
•

Customer examples

Reuse examples

Content Reuse for Multichannel
 Consistency through “aggregation rather than
integration” of channels
• Similar themes, messages done distinctly for each channel
 “Derivative reuse” critical
• Content is “translated” for each channel
Copies are made specific to form factor, media type
•
Special fields/elements created for each channel
•
Linkage back to originals is maintained
•
Process allows all to be maintained in unison
•
• Consistency of phrase, color, “brand”

Business Process and Lifecycle Challenges
 Workflow
• Approvals/permissions, usage restrictions, business rules can
be channel specific
• Example: Special promotion available only from Web site
• Example: Syndicated article may not allow use of graphic
 Publishing modes
• Not all channels allow all modes: update/edit, remove/unpublish
• Example: Newsletter cannot be corrected after sent
 Lifecycle (Time) issues
• Channels set different times for: launch, expire, embargo,
archive, restore
• Example: “Expired” vs. “old” vs. “no longer accurate”

Customer examples

Process Examples

Business Process for Multichannel
 Mix of manual vs. automated processes
• Add additional approval steps for use in channels, over and
above steps for content approval
• Leverage channel experts as “down stream” editorial control
• Allow editors to “override” time issues not relevant to channel
Example: Continue to promote old articles
•
 Distinct publishing processes
• Separate “approved” from “live” (public vs. published)
• Group publishing activities by channels
Use channel-specific date-time triggers
•

Modeling and Template Design Challenges
 WCM: separation of content from format
So channels should be easy, right?
•
 Channels are NOT just formats!
 Aggregation modes are different
Example: Multiple “snippets” on a page vs. focused landing page for
•
email campaign
 Navigation modes are different
Example: RSS short linear time-sorted lists vs. relevancy and click-
•
path driven web site links
• Example: Link text vs. rich media links (embedded into Flash etc.)
 Preview
What does it mean to preview a Feed, Newsletter, Syndicated article?
•
• Preview the “whole” or the “parts?”
• Example: preview the article fragment or where/how it appears in the
feed?

Customer examples

Template examples

Modeling and Template Design for Multichannel
 Nested “levels” of templates (template reusability)
• Innermost templates deal with format of channel
What is a title, subject, subtitle, link text, etc.
•
Adopt heavy use of CSS to maximize reusability
•
• Outer templates manage aggregation, navigational differences
Can also apply channel-specific business rules
•
Example: sort by relevancy to target vs. sort by date
•
 Multichannel requires multi-preview
• Users need to switch from one template to the next
Reuse models drive this
•
Example: different test used for “title” showing in channels
•

Emerging Architecture for Multichannel
 WCM: Separation of content from format
Reuse content elements across many formats
•
 Multichannel WCM: Separation of “customer targeting” logic from
“channel presentation” logic
Reuse customer segments and targeting rules across all applicable
•
channels
• Centralize the “customer experience” to maximize consistency
• Example: segment content based on customer demographics, reuse
aggregation in email campaigns, or when they visit Web site
independently of email.
• Example: Promote an event or product across channels
 Cross channel feedback
Use Web site based usage analysis to drive other channels
•
• Example: Web site A/B Test results drives better newsletter
• Example: RSS/blog traffic drives visitors to internal cross promotions

Architecture examples

Summary
 Multichannel is NOT simply multi-format
 Usability
Embrace both “content centric” AND “channel centric”
•
 Content Reuse
Derivative content reuse is critical, channels managed like “locales”
•
 Process
Use process to iterate between content and channel experts
•
Key enable to marry reuse and usability modes
•
 Templates
Separate aggregations from individual content elements
•
 Architecture
Separate “customer” from “channel” to maximize consistency
•

Compelling Content Experiences
Multi-Channel WCM Projects:
Making Them Work
Vern Imrich
CTO Percussion Software
http://www.percussion.com/contentions
CM Pros Fall 2007