MANAGING THE
CONTENT PROCESS
sara wachter-boettcher
@sara_ann_marie
Digital Project Management Summit
con·tent
/ˈkäntent/
a seven-letter word that you
say like it’s a four-letter word
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we already have
all the content
we need!
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we’ll just need to
run this by a few
stakeholders!
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the CEO has a
few comments.
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we’ll definitely
have our content
ready by launch!
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project
management?
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project
management?
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project
management?
There is another way.
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give content a
parallel process.
Work
content into
the design
process.
Consider
success
beyond your
project.
Create Revise
Publish
Review
Revise
Retire
BETTER CONTENT,

LESS PAIN
without losing our minds
our goal:
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1 Put content at the core.
Content strategy
defines a purpose
and a realistic
plan for content.
It connects
business strategy
with day-to-day
publishing.
How could content help us
get closer to that goal?
What’s our organization
trying to accomplish?
What will it take to make
that vision possible?
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Content strategy
helps us focus.
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We do this best
together.
Make it easy to
focus on core
decisions.
Include:
•Core audience
•Audience goal(s)
•Organizational goal(s)
•How content will help reach them
•What that content looks/feels like
Mad libs take us
from hand-wavey
to specific and
audience-centric.
Create simple
reminders.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
‘‘Content Vision
Deliver accurate, relatable content
about all facets of college life—helping
overwhelmed students find college
matches that make them feel prepared
and excited.
Content Principles
Keep it simple

Students have a lot going on: courses, clubs, jobs,
and sports. Make life easier, not more stressful.
Go beyond the books

Cover every aspect of college life—from majors to
school spirit to social life.
Empower, don’t advise

Provide clear, complete information that helps
students make their own choices.
content starts with

COMMON GROUND
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2 Find what’s realistic.
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big ideas
are great.
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reality…not
so much.
What are the
implications of our
decisions?
‘‘You’ll have to rewrite all
your content for this new
responsive design.
‘‘All product descriptions
are too long; they need to be
cut in half to fit the design.
‘‘Each of those 5,389 PDFs
need to be transformed to
structured content.
Avoid the
overwhelm.
Agree on what’s
achievable now.
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Get help
prioritizing.
Scale back if your
content can’t keep
up with features.
not perfect, but
ACHIEVABLE
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3 Set people up for success.
‘‘Okay, here’s the new content
guideline! Get writing!
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Go beyond
training.
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Build habits,
not just rules.
Does not support
the core content or
align with the
brand.
Serves our core
content needs or
aligns with the
brand.
Redundant/
wasted space!
I’ve already
clicked “Buy
a Home.”
Confusing—
simpler and
less similar
labels needed.
Clear CTA
options and
nicely
prioritized on
the page.
Labels for
loans,
calculators,
etc. are easy to
understand.
Why are so
many
headlines Qs?
Doesn’t inspire
confidence.
Create simple tools
to lend structure.
Partnership Profile
SUMMARY
2-3 sentences that provide a brief introductory summary of the partnership and the partner organization. These should be
around 40 words.
DESCRIPTION
The complete partnership content. Do not repeat the content from the summary. Explain the programs underway, what the
partnership looks like, how is collaboration happening, when the partnership started, etc.
Overview (2-3 sentences)
About the partner (3-4 sentences)
About our partnership (3-4 sentences)
O R G A N I Z A T I O N
Structured Content
Writing Practice
N A M E
ANATOMY OF PRODUCT CONTENT
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PRODUCT NAME
POSITIONING STATEMENT
MARKETING HEADLINE
ALT HEADLINE
MARKETING PARAGRAPH 1: INTRO
MARKETING PARAGRAPH 2: PROFILE
BULLET POINTS
A widget that adapts to fit you.
REQUIRED. Always include the model
number, if one exists.
100 CHAR // REQUIRED. The “elevator pitch”—a
single line that tells us what the point of
the product is. Be translatable and
approachable, not awkward.
50 CHAR // OPTIONAL. Be short, punchy, and
creative, but focus on the customer. Used
in marketing material (e.g. advertising).
180 CHAR // REQUIRED. Answer the question,
“Why would I buy this product?” Be
conversational, translatable, and benefits-
focused. Use search keywords. Must be
able to stand alone, while also naturally
leading into the marketing profile.
180 CHAR // REQUIRED. Describe who and what
the product is good for, focusing on the
user experience. Make sure this flows after
the marketing intro.
50 CHAR // OPTIONAL. If you include a
headline, you must include an alt version
for markets that can’t use creative copy.
This should be engaging, but
straightforward and literal.
80 CHAR/BULLET // REQUIRED. Use minimum of
2 bullets for simple products, up to 8 for
more complex items. Describe a single
feature or essential spec per bullet.
Use active voice and simple language to
make each bullet as short as possible. Be
translatable and conversational.
A quick guide to producing on-brand, CMS-ready content.
practice leads to
PROGRESS
4 Clarify the path.
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‘‘And you’ll find ‘content
delivery’ right there in week
37 of our Gantt chart.
Focus on one
bite at a time.
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Content
workshop
Content 

batch 1
Internal 

review CMS entry
ONTENT
ANAGERS
Batch 1 

revisions
Content 

batch 2
Internal 

review
Batch 2 

revisions
QA
Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar.PROJECT
TEAM
Backend development
High-level IA
Content
modeling Editorial &
CMS guide
Front-end development
Style tiles
Prototyping Prototyping
Content
principles
QASample content
Content
workshop
Content 

batch 1
Internal 

review CMS entry
CONTENT
MANAGERS
Batch 1 

revisions
Content 

batch 2
Internal 

review
Batch 2 

revisions
QA
Content 

batch 3
Internal 

review
Batch 3 

revisions
Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar.
PROJECT
TEAM
Backend development
High-level IA
Content
modeling Editorial &
CMS guide
Front-end development
Style tiles
Prototyping Prototyping
Content
principles
QASample content
Content
workshop
Content 

batch 1
Internal 

review CMS entry
CONTENT
MANAGERS
Batch 1 

revisions
Content 

batch 2
Internal 

review
Batch 2 

revisions
QA
Content 

batch 3
Internal 

review
Batch 3 

revisions
PROJECT
TEAM
Backend development
High-level IA
Content
modeling Editorial &
CMS guide
Front-end development
Style tiles
Prototyping Prototyping
Content
principles
QASample content
Get a sample you
can work with in
design.
Test the workflow
with a small set of
content.
Work in batches so
you can track
progress.
Cross-check content
with the design and
the CMS as you go.
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Find a content
champion.
Kickstart the
writing process.
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Pair
up.
• Align around goals and standards
• Partner across groups or roles
• Trade off writing
• Ask questions of each other’s work
• Share with the whole room
• Gather feedback from other teams
keep teams moving
TOGETHER
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Content is
chaotic.
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But you can bring
more harmony.
Flickr images used via Creative Commons Attribution license unless otherwise noted.
@sara_ann_marie
sarawb.com
Thank you.

Managing the Content Process