"Small CS: A Shoestring Approach to Content Strategy," a talk about making content strategy smaller, more accessible, and easier for small teams. Given by Corey Vilhauer at Confab Higher Ed 2015 in New Orleans, LA.

1. SMALL CS
COREY VILHAUER
@mrvilhauer
AAF North Dakota
A SHOESTRING APPROACH TO CONTENT STRATEGY

2. COREY VILHAUER
User Experience Strategist, Blend Interactive

4. NowWhatConference.com

5. HOORAY!

7. The Can-Am Connection vs. Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco
Billy Jack Haynes vs. Hercules
Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid, and Little Beaver vs. King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo, and Lord LIttlebrook
Harley Race vs. Junkyard Dog
The Dream Team vs. The Rougeau Brothers
Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis
The Hart Foundation and Dangerous Danny Davis vs. The British Bulldogs and Tito Santana
Butch Reed vs. Koko B. Ware
Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage
The Honky Tonk Man vs. Jake Roberts
The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs. The Killer Bees
Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant

8. The Can-Am Connection vs. Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco
Billy Jack Haynes vs. Hercules
Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid, and Little Beaver vs. King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo, and Lord LIttlebrook
Harley Race vs. Junkyard Dog
The Dream Team vs. The Rougeau Brothers
Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis
The Hart Foundation and Dangerous Danny Davis vs. The British Bulldogs and Tito Santana
Butch Reed vs. Koko B. Ware
Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage
The Honky Tonk Man vs. Jake Roberts
The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs. The Killer Bees
Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant

11. The Can-Am Connection vs. Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco
Billy Jack Haynes vs. Hercules
Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid, and Little Beaver vs. King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo, and Lord LIttlebrook
Harley Race vs. Junkyard Dog
The Dream Team vs. The Rougeau Brothers
Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis
The Hart Foundation and Dangerous Danny Davis vs. The British Bulldogs and Tito Santana
Butch Reed vs. Koko B. Ware
Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage
The Honky Tonk Man vs. Jake Roberts
The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs. The Killer Bees
Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant
Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage

13. BEING SMALL
DOESN’T HAVE TO BE
A DISADVANTAGE
the moral:

14. CONTENT STRATEGY
A Short History Of

15. BIG BUDGETS
Big Names

16. A Content Strategy™

17. CONTENT STRATEGY IS NOT
A THING.
IT IS A PROCESS.

18. So what’s stopping us?

19. THE BUDGET

20. TIME
So. How much…
MONEY
…do we have budgeted?
PRIORITY

21. WORKING WITHIN RESTRICTIONS
Working Small Means

22. PROJECT SCOPEHOW WE DETERMINE WHERE TO START

23. “ALL THE THINGS” SLIDE
Obligatory

24. Gathering Requirements
Interviewing Site Visitors
Quantitative Content Inventory
Qualitative Content Audit
Card Sorting
Site Map
Content Modeling
Annotated Wireframes
Message Architecture
Web Style Guide
Site User Testing
Content Creation
Editorial Calendar

25. Gathering Requirements
Interviewing Site Visitors
Quantitative Content Inventory
Qualitative Content Audit
Card Sorting
Site Map
Content Modeling
Annotated Wireframes
Message Architecture
Web Style Guide
Site User Testing
Content Creation
Editorial Calendar
CREATING
TESTIMONIALS

26. Gathering Requirements
Interviewing Site Visitors
Quantitative Content Inventory
Qualitative Content Audit
Card Sorting
Site Map
Content Modeling
Annotated Wireframes
Message Architecture
Web Style Guide
Site User Testing
Content Creation
Editorial Calendar
IMPROVING
SEARCH

27. Gathering Requirements
Interviewing Site Visitors
Quantitative Content Inventory
Qualitative Content Audit
Card Sorting
Site Map
Content Modeling
Annotated Wireframes
Message Architecture
Web Style Guide
Site User Testing
Content Creation
Editorial Calendar
CREATING A
NEW SITE

28. FOREVER
The Timeframe is
ENDLESS
The Scope is

29. “GOOD DESIGN TODAY IS
BETTER THAN GREAT
DESIGN TOMORROW.”
Cennydd Bowles and James Box
Undercover User Experience Design

30. MINIMUM VIABLE STRATEGY?
What is our

31. RESEARCHINTERVIEWS, RESEARCH, AND DISCOVERY

32. IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE
Research

33. QUICK GUT CHECKS
1.
Get Curious
Find an Audience
Ask Quality Questions
Choose a Direction

34. QUICK GUT CHECKS
1.
Given [A TASK], what is your first impression?
Is this clear enough?
What do you think is the intended action
What would your next step be?

35. LEAD DIRECTION
Gut Checks

36. EXISTING RESEARCH
2.

37. GUESS WHAT?
But…

38. EXISTING AUDIENCES
3.

39. “Were you able to find everything easily on the site today?”
“No. I searched for Biology
twice and it never showed
up. I finally found it listed as
Life Science.”“Why does clicking on the
map give me a PDF that I
can barely see on my
phone?”
“Yup! Everything is perfect!
Carry on!”
“Yup! Everything is perfect!
Carry on!”

40. LEARN WHEN TO STOP

41. “… LISTEN FOR THE
SATISFYING CLICK. THAT’S
THE SOUND OF THE PIECES
FALLING INTO PLACE …”
Erika Hall
Just Enough Research

42. MAKING THINGSCREATING, EDITING, AND MAINTAINING CONTENT

43. BREAK IT APART
1.

44. Dictate Updates
PRIORITIES

45. “We need to spread our budget over two
years, so we’re going to do a basic mobile
site now and go responsive next year.”
“We need to focus first and foremost on
admissions content, because that’s where
our money comes from.”
“We have a big fundraising campaign, and
key source of our donors depend on our
annual report.”

46. “THERE’S NOTHING
INHERENTLY WRONG WITH
TAKING A LITTLE DETOUR ON
YOUR WAY TO THE END
GOAL.”
Karen McGrane
Content Strategy for Mobile

47. KEEP A WISH LIST
2.

48. FIND SOME HELP
3.

49. FIND AN INTERN

50. FIND SITE USERS

52. FIND OTHER DEPARTMENTS

53. EFFECTIVE GOVERNANCE
REQUIRES A DEMOCRACY,
NOT A DICTATORSHIP

54. THE ROLLING AUDIT
EXAMPLE:

55. Academics
Admissions
Campus Life
Majors
Alumni

56. Academics
Admissions
Campus Life
Majors
Alumni
April
June
September
November
2015
URL
Title
Updates
2016
Future
2017
InitiativesContent

57. Academics
Admissions
Campus Life
Majors
Alumni
April
June
September
November
2015
URL
Title
Updates
2016
Future
2017
InitiativesContent
Academics April
Admissions June
Campus Life
Alumni
September
November

58. THE PEP TALKEMBRACE RESTRAINTS. IGNORE YOUR WEIGHT CLASS.

60. CHAMPIONS
BECAME
SMALLER

61. WEIGHT CLASS
Ignore Your

62. FOR BETTER RESULTS
Make Smart Bets

63. YOU CAN DO THISI AM VERY SERIOUS ABOUT THIS HEADLINE. YOU CAN.

64. THANK YOU
@mrvilhauer
www.eatingelephant.com/aafnd
ME? I’M STILL COREY VILHAUER.