This document summarizes a presentation on designing content across platforms. It discusses the importance of prioritizing clear, necessary content and creating user personas to understand audience needs. It also covers conducting a content audit to understand what content exists and who owns it. Additionally, the presentation discusses some key aspects of responsive design like using fluid grids and media queries. It emphasizes the importance of wayfinding, brevity, and linking content together for responsive-ready content.

1. Hello.

2. THE CRITICAL ROLE OF CONTENT STRATEGY
DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS

3. SOME THINGS I HOPE YOU’LL TAKE AWAY
Current situation and what responsive design is all about
Why prioritization is key, especially in the two-year college environment
A look at creating user personas
A look at creating a content audit and assessment
Debunking the myth of expensive content
A look into the importance of a good, public style guide

4. HOW DID I GET HERE?
AND YOU MAY ASK YOURSELF, WELL...

5. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
“WHEN THINGS SETTLE DOWN”

6. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
“WHEN THINGS SETTLE DOWN” is a fantasy.

15. WE TALK ABOUT MOBILE
WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN

16. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
“Mobile was the final front in the access
revolution. It has erased the digital divide.
A mobile device is the internet for many
people.”
— Susannah Fox, Pew Research Center

17. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
AS OF JANUARY, 2014
90% of American adults have a cell phone
58% of American adults have a smartphone
32% of American adults own an e-reader
42% of American adults own a tablet computer
— Pew Internet Project, 2014
http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/mobile-technology-fact-sheet/

18. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
YOU DON’T HAVE A CHOICE :)

19. RESPONSIVE DESIGN
THE NEW NORMAL

20. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
SO. MANY. SCREENS.
Source: http://datenform.de/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/graphic-arrays-6-2000.jpg

21. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
“Fluid grids, flexible images, and media
queries are the three technical ingredients
for responsive web design...”
— Ethan Marcotte in his seminal essay “Responsive
Web Design” in A List Apart
http://alistapart.com/article/responsive-web-design

22. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
The advent of responsive design impels us to create content that is
CLEAR, NECESSARY AND PRIORITIZED

23. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
Source: http://bntp-production.imgix.net/uploads/photos/file/1765/justin-bieber-and-miley-cyrus.jpg

24. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
#PRETTYISNOTENOUGH

25. YOUR FRIEND
CONTENT STRATEGY IS

26. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
“While organizations have struggled for
decades — centuries even — to make sense
of their content, they were always able to
keep the chaos (and the consequences) to
themselves. Then came websites, which
created the perfect content strategy storm.
Suddenly, organizations had to put all of
their content in one place. For the first time.
For the world to see. And, it hurt.”
— Kristina Halvorson from the introduction to her
book Content Strategy for the Web

27. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS

28. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
WHO NEEDS WHAT, AND WHEN?
THE ART OF USER PERSONAS

29. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
NEED STATE
PERSONA NAME
AGE, LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, PRIMARY MODES OF USE (e.g. DESKTOP, RESEARCH)
Paragraph describing this persona and some contextual information that will help
shed light into why and how she will use the college website.
CONTEXT
EMOTIONAL TRIGGERS
SATISFACTION

30. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
NEED STATE
PERSONA NAME
AGE, LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, PRIMARY MODES OF USE (e.g. DESKTOP, RESEARCH)
Paragraph describing this persona and some contextual information that will help
shed light into why and how she will use the college website.
CONTEXT
EMOTIONAL TRIGGERS
SATISFACTION
Look up the core classes needed to complete
prerequisites prior to transferring.
Compare two instructors. Look up detailed campus information
and find public transportation routes.

31. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
NEED STATE
PERSONA NAME
AGE, LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, PRIMARY MODES OF USE (e.g. DESKTOP, RESEARCH)
Paragraph describing this persona and some contextual information that will help
shed light into why and how she will use the college website.
CONTEXT
EMOTIONAL TRIGGERS
SATISFACTION
Look up the core classes needed to complete
prerequisites prior to transferring.
Enrollment deadlines are coming up and she
wants to make decisions while options are still
open. Her transfer window is coming up.
Juggling work and school is difficult, and
scheduling is a complicated, potentially
stressful process.
Easily search by course number and compare
class times from within a single page view.
Compare two instructors.
Choosing between two different class offerings.
Has had much more success with experienced,
long-tenured instructors and feels more
comfortable in the classroom given that
experience.
Can link to instructor bio pages from the
class offering pages.
Look up detailed campus information
and find public transportation routes.
Deciding between similar classes at two
different campus locations.
Can’t always rely on her own car and needs
to fit travel into her busy schedule.
Finds individual pages for each campus and
links to the bus lines that service them.

32. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
KNOW WHAT LIVES ON YOUR SITE,
AND WHO OWNS IT.

33. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
Adapted from: http://www.brightercollective.com/content-strategy/discovery-content-audit-inventory-stakeholder-interviews/
AUDIT, ASSESS, EDIT

34. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
AUDIT, ASSESS, EDIT
Qualitative Audit Factors
FINDABILITY
USABILITY
ACTIONABILITY
AUDIENCE
ACCURACY
Paragraph length, subheadings, understandable language,
quantity of text links, clear graphics and images that support
the text.
How easy is it to find this content? Is it in the navigation? Does
it appear in search results?
Can the user take action after comprehending the content? How
clear is the call to action? Can you share, respond to or take further
action from this page?
With user personas as your guide, list the primary (and secondary,
if useful) audience for this content.
Is this content still accurate, or has it fallen out of date?
COMPLETENESS
CLARITY
VOICE AND STYLE
If the purpose of the content is clear, does this version contain
everything it needs (and nothing more)?
Is there additional or unnecessary content? Could a user confuse
this content for something that is better represented elsewhere?
Does the copy adhere to brand style, sentence structure and
point of view?

35. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
Adapted from: http://www.brightercollective.com/content-strategy/discovery-content-audit-inventory-stakeholder-interviews/
AUDIT, ASSESS, EDIT

36. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS

37. BY ALL MEANS AND WHENEVER POSSIBLE,
CREATE CONTENT BEFORE BUILDING THE CONTAINER.

39. CICERO EXCUSES HIMSELF FOR
HAVING WRITTEN A LONG LETTER,
BY SAYING HE HAD NO TIME
TO MAKE IT SHORTER

40. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
THREE ESSENTIALS OF
RESPONSIVE-READY CONTENT
WAYFINDING: “WHERE AM I?”
BREVITY: CUT, CUT, CUT—THINK LIKE A READER
AUGMENTATION: LINK CONTENT TOGETHER

41. CONTENT IS EXPENSIVE

42. CONTENT IS EXPENSIVE
DOESN’T HAVE TO BE

43. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
WHERE ARE YOU RICH?
ANALYST
INTERNS
Data gathering
and quantitative
assessment.
Provide
tools and
desired
outcomes.
STUDENT
CREATORS
Photographers,
writers, editors,
videographers.
Win-win.
Provide
guidelines
to ensure
success.
EVENTS
Plan events
with an
eye toward
content.
Know what
you want out
of events,
and be open
to surprise.
Create and
capture
news-worthy
moments
in your
community.
Collaborate
with like-
minded
businesses
and orgs.
RELATIONSHIPS

44. NCMPR 2015 CONFERENCE | DESIGNING ACROSS PLATFORMS
CLEAR, CONSISTENT GUIDELINES
AND SINGULAR FOCUS ARE
ESSENTIAL TO PUTTING YOUR
RICHES TO WORK.

45. Thomas King | Digital Creative Director
thomas.king@rallygroup.com
@thomas_king
THANK YOU