Presented by Jeff Eaton at the Now What? Conference on April 24, 2014. Communicating your organization’s messages effectively can be an overwhelming challenge in an age of mobile browsing, social sharing, and endlessly multiplying “engagement” tools. By moving beyond the “one post, one page” view of your content, you can make better use of your organization’s resources, simplify your own work, and plan more effectively for the future. We’ll look at three companies (some large, some small) who’ve taken this step and help you discover, document, and develop your company’s unique “content language.

1. Planning Beyond
the Page
Creating content that survives your next redesign
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@eaton at #nowwhat14
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2. Hi. I’m @eaton!
I’m with Lullabot.
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Strategy, Design, and Development

3. Pages aren’t content
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4. Pages aren’t content
They’re where it lives
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5. Two web
developers
walk into a bar…
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6. That’s a lot
of pages!
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Disney’s American Legends: John Henry (http://movies.disney.com/disneys-american-legends)

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Disney’s American Legends: John Henry (http://movies.disney.com/disneys-american-legends)

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15. 9
Web

16. 10
Web Apps

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Search Social
Email
APIs
Print
FeedsWeb
Apps

18. Page : Content
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19. Page : Content
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21. “The way we publish on the web is mostly derived
from what we know about putting ink on paper.
The future is content in smaller, discrete objects
that can be assembled into new containers.
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Karen McGrane, Harvard Businss Review

22. “The way we publish on the web is mostly derived
from what we know about putting ink on paper.
The future is content in smaller, discrete objects
that can be assembled into new containers.
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Karen McGrane, Harvard Businss Review

23. on the web is mostly derived
about putting ink on paper.
t in smaller, discrete objects
ed into new containers.
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Karen McGrane, Harvard Businss Review

24. Pulling apart
your pages
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25. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
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26. 18
ArticleTopicBioAdReviewProductGalleryService

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Article
Topic
Bio
Ad
Review
Product
Service
Gallery

28. TitleAuthorTaglinePull quotePhotoDatelineSummaryPhotoBody
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Article
Topic
Bio
Ad
Review
Product
Service
Gallery

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Article Title
Author
Tagline
Pull quote
Photo
Dateline
SummaryPhoto
Body

30. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
‣ Identify reusable chunks
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$ $ $

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35. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
‣ Identify reusable chunks
‣ Define audience needs, messages
25

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?
$

39. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
‣ Identify reusable chunks
27

40. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
‣ Identify reusable chunks
‣ Define audience needs, messages
27

41. ‣ Describe services, products, etc.
‣ Identify reusable chunks
‣ Define audience needs, messages
‣ Set clear business goals
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42. What we used to call
‘the page’ has become
a unit of business intent.
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Michael Keara, @useradvocate

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Page
An assembly of
content that serves
a specific goal

44. For example…
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45. The Lark Cookbook
Turning big ideas into small, reusable pieces
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48. 34
MediaMediaMediaPlate
Recipe
Step
Ingredient
Technique
Media
Season
Varietal

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50. The NAMM Foundation
Prioritizing critical messages and audiences
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52. Testimonial Article
Audience
Factoid
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Project Award Resource
Parents
Teachers
Donors

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NAMM Foundation Site
NAMM Foundation Blog
Your Community
Best Communities Data†
Survey Promotion
Music Teacher Finder†
Music Merchandiser Finder†
Why Music Matters
Resources for EducatorsRecruitment and Retention
Tips for Success
Downloadable Teaching Tools
Blog posts for Educators What We Do
Get Involved
Webcasts
Sign up
Action Kits and Downloadables
Advocacy Blog Posts
Donation
Partner Orgs and other Resources*

54. The Tech Guy
Organizing around user needs
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Episode Question
Guest
Story
Station
Topic

58. BBC “DataPics”
Identifying new patterns in your content
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60. “It was clear that a pattern was beginning to
develop…What was initially a bespoke one-off
feature became a regularly commissioned
standard.
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Chris Ashton, Responsive News

61. Data Pic
Title
Text
Image
Icon
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62. Data Pic
Title
Text
Image
Icon
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63. Small, meaningful pieces
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64. Small, meaningful pieces
Think about those pieces
before the pages
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65. Isn’t this
someone
else’s job?
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66. Isn’t this
someone
else’s job?
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67. Are you in a small
business (or team)?
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68. Are you in a small
business (or team)?
You’re going to wear lots of hats.
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69. Are you bringing in
consultants?
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70. Are you bringing in
consultants?
They’ll ask you these questions, too.
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71. Are you “just” the
webmaster?
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72. Are you “just” the
webmaster?
Writers, developers, and designers
need the big picture, too.
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73. Content is meaning
and communication
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74. Content is meaning
and communication
Plan the pieces
before the pages
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