Content

By now we all know that the web is not a publication — that it’s a living, evolving thing. But a lot of content I see still appears to be ‘published’ once and then left alone.

This talk is about what happens after content is published. We’ll talk about how to:

• decide what to create in the first place (and what the best format is)
• identify which content types need to be left alone, and which need to be looked after
• revive existing content and give it a second wind
• check your content is still working for its readers
• put it to sleep when it is time
• put a process in place so you can do this yourself and with distributed content creators

We’ll also discuss how this varies depending on your industry, size of site and type of content.

Description

I use this spreadsheets for taking content inventories – a task often done toward the beginning of an information architecture project, and essential for any website or intranet content migration project.

The spreadsheet stores information about each ‘page’ on the website. It is a very handy tool as it allows you to get an understanding of all the content on your website, and see it all at a glance.

Before taking a content inventory, think about what you need to get out of it and what you may use it for in your projects. Think about what information you may need to collect, and only collect that – don’t collect more than you might need – it is just a waste of time and effort.

For most of my projects, I like to collect:

• Navigation title, page title and URL for every page
• List of all downloadable files (publications, resources, fact sheets etc)
• Content relationships – usually the site hierarchy

I often also like to collect:

• Date last updated
• Content owner

If you are lucky, your content management system may already have a listing of  file. If you are unlucky, you may have to click through the site page by page.

Files

• Content inventory spreadsheet (.xls) (90KB)
• Content inventory spreadsheet (.xlsx) (27KB)

Notes

The spreadsheet contains instructions for what to include in each column and a set of tips for how to go about filling in the spreadsheet.

The main point to remember is that this is a tool for you to use for your project. You should collect whatever will help you best and represent the information however suits you. The spreadsheet is only a guide.

Screenshots

Resources

Articles on how to take a content inventory:

• Doing a Content Inventory (Or, A Mind-Numbingly Detailed Odyssey Through Your Web Site) – Adaptive Path
• Taking a content inventory – Maadmob
• Conduct a content inventory – Usability.gov
• Content inventory links on del.icio.us

We all know that great content is a core part of the website user experience. So why is it so hard to find content that isn’t dull, lifeless and uninteresting – blah, blah, blah?

Web content can be vibrant, interesting and fun. It can draw you in, fill your head and make you learn without having to think. And it’s not really hard to write. Three simple tricks can turn poor content into a great experience:

• remember that readers care more about themselves than you
• write in real words with authentic voice
• play show and tell

This presentation will discuss these principles, with plenty of funny and not-so-funny examples. You’ll go away with practical steps to make your writing kick-ass. And you won’t even have to think.

This is a talk I gave at Murdoch Uni. I wasn’t sure what to call it, but it basically covers principles of good website work – user research, good IA, great content, setting priorities and maintaining good work.

Workshop description

This workshop provides attendees with a thorough understanding and practical experience in:

• translating offline content to high quality website content
• writing good website content
• general writing skills

Topics included in the workshop are:

• How reading on screen is different to reading on paper
• The writing process
• Structuring your writing – structures and techniques
• Making pages scannable
• Writing in plain English
• Editing your writing
• Use of PDFs
• Writing for accessibility

We all know that great content is a core part of the website user experience. So why is it so hard to find content that isn’t dull, lifeless and uninteresting – blah, blah, blah?

Web content can be vibrant, interesting and fun. It can draw you in, fill your head and make you learn without having to think. And it’s not really hard to write. Three simple tricks can turn poor content into a great experience – remember that readers care more about themselves than you; write in real words with authentic voice; play show and tell.

This presentation will discuss these principles, with plenty of funny and not-so-funny examples. You’ll go away with practical steps to make your writing kick-ass. And you won’t even have to think.