A Unified Content Strategy (to quote Ann Rockley) is vital to any business today - but if we content strategists think we can "own" this simply by our special training, we are mistaken. Content Strategy today is the responsibility of everyone in the company, and silos are no longer adapted to 21st century businesses. Presentation for Writers UA West 2014.

1. CONTENT STRATEGY: IT’S UNIFIED,
BUT IT MIGHT NOT BE YOURS!
RAY
GALLON
C U L T U R E C O M
Adapting
to
a
complex
future
TRANSFORMATION
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
THE
SOCIETY

2. Who’s That in Front of You?
Ray Gallon - The Humanist Nerd
Owner/Consultant,
Culturecom
–
specialist
in
usability,
content
strategy,
and
user
assistance
for
software
Research
collaborator
and
principal,
The
Transformation
Society,
a
new
research
and
training
institute
in
Barcelona,
Spain
20
years
in
technical
content
architecture
and
creation
with
major
companies
such
as
G.E.
Healthcare,
Alcatel,
IBM,
etc.
Member,
board
of
directors,
Society
for
Technical
Communication
(STC)
Past
president,
STC
France
Award-­‐winning
radio
producer
and
journalist
–
CBC,
NPR,
France
Culture,
etc.
and
former
programme
manager,
WNYC-­‐FM,
New
York
Public
Radio
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved

3. This
presentation
is
sponsored
by
Adobe
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Thank you

4. WHERE DOES CONTENT COME FROM, MOM?
If
You
Aren’t
Packaging,
Ask
Where
You
Go!
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved

5. WHERE DOES CONTENT COME FROM, MOM?
If
You
Aren’t
Packaging,
Ask
Where
You
Go!
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
WORD PLAY
(NOT
IN
THE
RECYCLING
BIN)

6. WHAT IS THE REAL SOURCE?
What
you
get
to
see
longest
Who
paid
for
it?
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Ecoembalajes
España,
S.A.(Ecoembes)
is
the
non-­‐profit
organisation
that
manages
recovery
and
recycling
of
plastic
packaging,
tins,
and
bricks
(yellow
container)
and
paper/cardboard
packaging
(blue
container)
throughout
Spain.
(from
their
web
site)

7. SO WHAT TYPE OF
INFORMATION IS THIS?
Technical?
(what
to
recycle,
what
not)
Marketing?
(promotes
the
Ecoembes
alliance)
Lobbying?
(seeks
to
avoid
responsibility
for
anything
but
packaging)
Public
Service?
(Has
logo
of
the
Catalan
government)
Duplicitous?
(seems
to
promote
recycling
when
it
does
the
opposite)
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved

8. An Example of Multimedia
Embedded User Assistance
Do
you
think
it’s
possible
to
do
this…
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
…without
participating
in
the
design
of
this?
• How
much
writing?
• How
much
instructional
design?
• How
much
IA?
• How
much
UX?
• How
much
programming?
!
•Who
owns
it?

9. WHO OWNS IT?
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Tech
Pubs
–
after
all,
it’s
User
Assistance,
isn’t
it?
Development
–
it’s
a
coded
application
Interaction
Design
–
it’s
part
of
the
user
interface
Instructional
Design
–
it’s
training,
isn’t
it?
Multimedia
Production
–
it’s
a
video!
Pre
Sales
–
essential
part
of
our
presentation
toolkit
Marketing
–
shows
how
easy
it
is
to
learn
our
complicated
product
Business
Development/
Product
Management
–
Methodology
we
need
to
apply
to
new
products
Must
be
coherent
across
all
product
lines

10. For Years, We Have Talked About Reuse
Reuse
means
structured
–
probably
XML,
probably
DITA Reuse also means Repurposing • Tech
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Pubs
➙
Pre-­‐sale
• Pre-­‐sale
➙
Marketing
• Tech
Pubs
➙
Web
Content
• Marketing
➙
Web
Content
• Web
➙
Tech
Pubs
Are
you
prepared
to
accept
that
others
might
have
something
to
say
about
your
content?

11. Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
The only thing we know about the future
is that it will be different
Peter Drucker
Information changes at a hallucinatory rate.
What is true this morning, might not be this
afternoon.
Content workers need to be more than agile:
we need to understand something about
every aspect of the content life cycle.

12. We Are Entering a Content
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Economy
Even
objects
become
data
Content
Curation
becomes
as
important
as
Content
Creation
Big
Data
is
already
the
new
mantra
Kanban
information
–
just
the
right
amount,
at
the
right
time,
in
the
right
place
–
will
become
primary
Information
is
becoming
more
fluid:
we
need
to
develop
new
methods
for
rapid,
reliable
(verified)
change
management

13. Hallmarks of the Content Economy
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Increasing
complexity:
Compound
messages
Multiple
authors
and
receivers
Multichannel,
mobile
networking
(always
on,
always
with
you)
Diversification
of
communicative
tools
Multimedia
and
multi-­‐discourse
–
blended
content
(not
just
text)
Plurilingualism
in
multicultural
environments
Plurality
of
interaction
(one-­‐to-­‐one,
one-­‐to-­‐many,
many-­‐to-­‐
many,
many-­‐to-­‐one,
simultaneously
or
time
shifted)

14. Hallmarks of the Content Economy
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
New
kinds
of
human
interactivity:
multi-­‐sensorial
networks
(increased
use
of
sound,
teletactility,
teleolfaction)
contextually
embedded
communications
channels
(wearable
interfaces,
implants)
increased
human
connectivity
with
objects
and
mechanisms
(internet
of
things,
robotics)
new
digital
cultural
spaces
leading
to
new
interpretations
of
reality
(augmented
reality,
out-­‐of-­‐body
perception,
avatar
territories,
etc.)

15. WHAT IS CONTENT WHEN…
Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5ywMb6SeGc

16. Content Consulting (Strategy) in a
The customer doesn’t care about the org chart!
Brand
Equity,
regional
markets
&
revenue
channels
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Content Economy
More than words, more than tech
Business
Goals
CONTENT
STRATEGY
Development
efficiency
&
significant
cost
avoidance
Enabling,
Product data &
Technical Content
Persuasive,
Sales & Marketing
Content
Unified Framework for Content
Delivery, Measurement and Improvement
Slide
by
Noz
Urbina

17. “EDIBLE!”
-Guide Michelin
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
What if a Restaurant
Advertised itself like this?
Diners don’t want edible
They want delicious!
Customers don’t want usable
They want a great experience!
WE ARE ALL RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ENTIRE CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE - WHEREVER WE MAY BE IN THE ORG CHART

18. You Think It’s Hard now?
“Companies don’t know what they know...
they don’t have a strategy that focuses
around the customer and the data and
using them in a proactive way.”
-­‐
Bill
Payne,
Vice
President,
CRM
and
industries
http://ibm.co/10UFHHx
Our
job
is
to
help
with
analysis
of
the
task,
then
formulate
and
execute
the
strategy
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved

19. WHAT IS CONTENT WHEN…
…wearable
interfaces
communicate
through
temperature,
physical
compression,
etc.?
…your
eyewear
is
feeding
you
augmented
reality
information
about
where
you
are
on
your
vacation
…your
refrigerator
calls
the
supermarket
to
order
more
milk
…your
smart
windows
decide
when
to
air
out
your
house,
and
when
to
call
the
police
and
alert
them
to
a
break-­‐in,
even
(especially)
in
your
absence?
…your
tablet
is
giving
you
information
about
possible
beaches
for
your
next
holiday,
and
as
you
swipe
its
surface,
you
feel
the
texture
of
the
sand?
…your
doctor’s
medical
software
automatically
orders
the
dosage
of
your
chemotherapy
without
her/his
intervention?
…your
car
automatically
calls
the
emergency
centre
with
your
location
when
you’ve
had
an
accident
–
even
if
all
in
the
car
are
unconscious?
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved

20. THE INTERNET
OF THINGS
Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
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21. Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
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Mobile First?

22. Whose Content Is It When?
Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
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rights
reserved
Content
Server
CCMS
Metadata
Bug
Reporting
CRM
DMS
Web
CMS
Mobile:
embedded,
in-­‐app,
adaptive,
high-­‐touch

23. IN A CONTENT ECONOMY,
EVERYTHING CONNECTS
Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
MARKETING
CRM USER ASSISTANCE
HTTP://WWW.ACREDITACIONFADA.ORG/UPLOADS/IMAGES/INVESTIGACION.JPG
PRODUCT
SME
WIKI
EMBEDDED ONLINE
TECH
COMM
USERS USERS

24. AND ACTIONS ARE THE
VECTORS OF THOSE CONNECTIONS
Presentation
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2013
Ray
Gallon
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rights
reserved
MARKETING
IMPACTS
INFLUENCES
INTERACTS
WITH
CRM USER ASSISTANCE
HTTP://WWW.ACREDITACIONFADA.ORG/UPLOADS/IMAGES/INVESTIGACION.JPG
PRODUCT
SME
WIKI
INTEGRATES
HELPS
EMBEDDED ONLINE
TECH
COMM
USERS USERS
FEED INTO
FACILITATES
FEEDS
INTO
FERTILIZES
ADDS VALUE TO

25. Vectors of a Unified Content
Strategy in a Content Economy
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
Repurpose:
Passive
reuse
not
good
enough
Value
new
content,
think
proactively
how
it
can
be
reused
Include
implied
invitation
to
reuse
in
the
content
itself
Seed
new
purposes
that
may
not
now
be
known
-­‐
increase
product
value
Facilitate
porosity:
The
more
information
circulates,
the
more
value
it
takes
on
The
reuse
strategy
belongs
to
the
network,
not
the
content
creator
The
more
flow
you
let
through,
the
more
valuable
you
are
(e-­‐governance,
transparency,
etc.)

26. EMBRACE UNCERTAINTY!
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
A
unified
content
strategy
is
a
collaborative
effort
carried
out
by
all
-­‐
and
I
do
mean
ALL
-­‐
stakeholders,
including:
• Customers
• Potential
customers
• Former
customers
• Competitors
• Many
unknowns
• As
well
as
your
own
internals
it!
Embrace

27. Portions
Presentation
©
2013
Ray
Gallon
all
rights
reserved
RAY
GALLON
C U L T U R E C O M
Thank
You!
Visit
my
blog:
Rant
of
a
Humanist
Nerd
http://humanistnerd.culturecom.net
Email:
infodesign@culturecom.net
Google
Plus:
+Ray
Gallon
Twitter:
@RayGallon
LinkedIn:
Ray
Gallon
of
this
presentation
based
on
research
by
the
Transformation
Society
Research
group.
Two
white
papers
published
on
Adobe
site:
• Changing Paradigms in Technology and Communication
• Crossing Boundaries: Implications for the Content Industries
Link: http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/entitlement/index.cfm?event=custom&sku=FS0003673&e=tcs_whitepaper
MEMBER, BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Thanks
to
Adobe
for
sponsoring
this
presentation