Your company wants to form a content strategy team, and it’s up to you to make it happen. Or maybe they’re not so enlightened—perhaps you’re the lone voice championing content, and you’re looking for like-minded souls to help you bring good, usable content to life. At a large company, there might be resources available to hire content strategists to support your vision. But for those of us who don’t work for the big names, it’s time to get inventive. Presented by Keri Maijala at Confab Central, 2017.

1. FIND YOUR IN-HOUSE CHAMPIONS
GATHER YOUR CONTENT TEAM:
Keri Maijala @clamhead

2. KERI MAIJALA @CLAMHEAD

5. #SPOILERS

6. WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY
1. Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3. Put them to work
4. Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

8. THE CHOSEN ONE.
Buffy Summers

9. In every generation there is a
chosen one. She alone will stand
against lorem ipsum, jargon, and
the forces of inconsistency.
She is the content strategist.

10. 1.Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3. Put their skills to work
4. Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

11. @CLAMHEAD
THE HELLMOUTH'S GETTIN'
ALL RUMBLY AGAIN.
Buffy Summers
DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH

12. STAKEHOLDER
INTERVIEWS

13. DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH
• What are your goals for [area of ownership]?
• What’s your process for writing/editing/
approving/posting?
• What are the biggest pain points?

14. DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH
• What’s working?
• What’s on your wish list?
• Anything else you’d like to tell me?

15. @CLAMHEAD
YOU WANT TO LISTEN OR
YOU WANT TO DIE?
Faith Lehane
DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH

16. “It’s really difficult to…”
“I hate it when…”
“It’s great that…”

17. Why?

18. Say more about that.

19. @CLAMHEAD
COMPETITION IS A BEAUTIFUL THING.
Mr. Trick
DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH

20. @CLAMHEAD
THIS IS ALL ABOUT ME!
ME, ME, ME!
Cordelia Chase
DEFINE YOUR HELLMOUTH

21. 1. Define your hellmouth
2.Find your people
3. Put their skills to work
4. Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

23. THE WATCHER.
Rupert Giles

24. THE WATCHER.
Manager
Mentor

25. THE WICCAN.
Willow Rosenberg

26. THE WICCAN.
Information architects
Designers
Researchers
Brand strategists
Editors
Copywriters
Taxonomists

27. THE ONE WHO
SEES THINGS.
Xander Harris

28. THE ONE WHO
SEES THINGS.
Literally anyone

29. PEOPLE WHO AREN’T
OBVIOUS ADVOCATES BUT
IT TURNS OUT THEY ARE.
Angel, Anya Jenkins, Cordelia Chase

30. PEOPLE WHO AREN’T
OBVIOUS ADVOCATES BUT
IT TURNS OUT THEY ARE.
Product managers
Legal/compliance
Developers

31. OTHER SLAYERS.
Kendra Young, Faith Lehane

32. OTHER SLAYERS.
Content strategists

33. THE POTENTIALS.
1000+ girls all over the world

34. Those who speak up
about content

35. Those who approach you
for content advice

36. Those doing the writing

37. Play Words with Friends
Have an opinion about the Oxford comma
Make bad puns

38. 1. Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3.Put them to work
4. Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

39. @CLAMHEAD
IT’S SHOWTIME.
Sweet
PUT THEM TO WORK

40. PUT THEM TO WORK
• Where/how content is being used
• Good/bad examples
• Inconsistencies

42. @CLAMHEAD
I AM THE PLAN.
Buffy Summers
PUT THEM TO WORK

43. PUT THEM TO WORK
• Have an answer ready to go
• Be specific
• Name names (if it’s cool with them)

44. @CLAMHEAD
GET YOUR BOOKS!
LOOK STUFF UP!
Xander Harris
PUT THEM TO WORK

45. PUT THEM TO WORK
• Ask about documents/tools
• Bring them together
• Update, rework, delete

46. 1. Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3. Put them to work
4.Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

47. @CLAMHEAD
MY GOAL IS TO HELP EVERYONE WHO
WORKS WITH CONTENT CREATE AND
RECOGNIZE GOOD, CLEAR CONTENT.
Keri Maijala
TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS

48. @CLAMHEAD
MY GOAL IS TO HELP EVERYONE WHO
WORKS WITH CONTENT CREATE AND
RECOGNIZE GOOD, CLEAR CONTENT
Keri Maijala
TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS

49. @CLAMHEAD
MY GOAL IS TO HELP EVERYONE WHO
WORKS WITH CONTENT CREATE AND
RECOGNIZE GOOD, CLEAR CONTENT
Keri Maijala
TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS

50. ONE SLAYER

51. TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS
• Partner with research
• Work with UX, product managers, marketing,
and sales
• Develop personas, narratives, and stories
• Create voice and tone guides and style guides
• Lead writing workshops/labs
• WRITE WRITE WRITE

52. TWO SLAYERS

53. TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS
• Partner with research
• Work with UX, product managers,
marketing, and sales
• Develop personas, narratives, and
stories
• Create voice and tone guides and
style guides
• Lead writing workshops/labs
• WRITE WRITE WRITE
• Partner with generalist
• Work with owners in specific channel
• Interpret general guidelines for
specific audiences
• Inform creating of voice and tone
guidelines and style guides
• Advocate channel point of view
• WRITE WRITE WRITE
GENERALIST SPECIALIST

54. THREE SLAYERS

55. TAKE YOUR BATTLE POSITIONS
• Work with UX, product
managers, marketing,
sales, and research
• Develop personas,
narratives, and stories
• Create voice and tone
guides and style guides
• Lead writing
workshops/labs
• WRITE WRITE WRITE
GENERALIST
• Work with generalist
• Work with channel owners
• Interpret general guidelines
for specific audiences
• Inform ongoing creation of
voice and tone guidelines
and style guides
• Advocate channel
point of view
• WRITE WRITE WRITE
SPECIALIST GOVERNOR
• Communicate with content
strategists, researchers,
product owners, etc.
• Develop systems
• Audit; develop taxonomy
• Keep track of results,
changes in materials
• Inform content team of
new developments
• WRITE WRITE WRITE…?

56. STRATEGISTS
Initiate
Lead

57. SPECIALISTS/
GOVERNORS
Interpret
Apply

58. ALL Y’ALL
Execute
Inform
Govern
Advocate

59. 1. Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3. Put them to work
4. Take your battle positions
5.Keep the vamps out

60. @CLAMHEAD
BIG BAD’S BACK AND HE’S LOOKING
FOR A LITTLE DEATH.
Spike
KEEP THE VAMPS OUT

61. KEEP THE VAMPS OUT
• Don’t get distracted
• Pick your battles
• Concede

62. @CLAMHEAD
WHAT CAN'T WE FACE IF
WE'RE TOGETHER? ♪
Buffy Summers
KEEP THE VAMPS OUT

63. KEEP THE VAMPS OUT
• Develop an official (or unofficial) team
• Create a sense of belonging
• Make resources available

65. @CLAMHEAD
I'M HERE FOR YOU.
I'M SUPPORTO GAL.
Buffy Summers
KEEP THE VAMPS OUT

66. KEEP THE VAMPS OUT
• Again with the listening
• Understand how they use their skills
• Be their advocate

67. @CLAMHEAD
I CALL IT… MR. POINTY.
Kendra Young
KEEP THE VAMPS OUT

68. KEEP THE VAMPS OUT
• Try new things
• Adapt
• Being here is good

70. WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT TODAY
1. Define your hellmouth
2. Find your people
3. Put them to work
4. Take your battle positions
5. Keep the vamps out

71. THE CHOSEN ONE.
A few words.

72. @CLAMHEAD
BEING A SLAYER DOESN’T
AUTOMATICALLY MAKE YOU BOSS.
Willow Rosenberg

73. @CLAMHEAD
SLAYERS, EVERY ONE OF US. MAKE
YOUR CHOICE. ARE YOU READY TO BE
STRONG?
Buffy Summers

74. #SLAY

75. THANK YOU.Keri Maijala @clamhead #teamspike

76. All celebrity images are used under Fair Use guidelines.
Any other images my own.
Special thanks to:
http://www.buffyguide.com
http://www.buffyquotes.co.uk
http://buffy.wikia.com/
http://www.buffyworld.com