Preparing Your Content

Good content is at the heart of any web or interactive media project. It is essential for giving your audience a worthwhile experience, correctly conveying your messages and brand, and encouraging repeat visits to your web site or other product. It will also have a huge influence on the design and technology used for your product, so it needs to be planned carefully, before development work starts.

There are many things to think about. As well as the usual considerations of key messages, editorial style, tone of voice and the overall 'personality', there are also issues specific to the web and interactive media.

So how do you ensure your content is up to scratch? Here are some things to consider.

Write for the medium

Don't just rehash your existing print brochure. Think about what the product is for and the messages it needs to deliver. Use the content to help guide your visitors through it. Who are you? Why am I visiting your site? What will I find here? How do I get to it? Which page should I go to next? Why should I stay here?

Remember that in a non-linear medium, your content is unlikely to be read from beginning to end, in that order. Users can start anywhere, finish anywhere, and go anywhere in between. And they may not read everything. Don't assume, for example, that every visitor to your web site will have arrived via the home page. Try to plan each page so that it still makes sense if it is the first or only thing the user has read.

Also remember that your content has a huge influence on your search engine positioning. 'Search engine optimisation' is a complex subject and a skill in its own right, but one thing to think about is keyword density. Consider the key words or phrases that you want to associate with pages on your site. Try to include these several times within the copy and ideally also within headings, links and the page title. Don't overdo it though – remember your page still has to be readable by your visitors!

Use a site map

While you are writing your copy, you'll also need to be thinking about how it will be structured and what navigation you will provide for visitors to reach it. Take an organised approach – start by sketching out an initial site map. This will help you remember the topics you need to cover, though it will almost certainly change as you write. Some pages end up merging together while others need to be broken up. Whole sections might become redundant, while new ones need to be added elsewhere.

Don't let the site map constrain you – it should remain flexible while you are developing your content, and may well evolve further after the site is launched. However, always keep the user in mind. Try to make the site map intuitive for them to navigate. Try to avoid having your site map reflect your own organisation's structure and terminology unless you can be sure that your visitors will understand it. What makes sense internally might not be clear to the outside world!

Use a template

Content and page design will strongly influence each other and are likely to evolve together as the content is prepared.

Think about the different content elements you might have on each page or screen. For example, you might have a headline, introduction, body copy and an image. The design will need to specify how these are displayed. Might you also have a caption for your image, perhaps a by-line or a date, maybe a sub-headline? The design will need to allow for these. Will some of these elements appear only on certain pages? The design will need to be flexible. Conversely, if the design specifies that every page will have a side-box, you'll need to have some content to go in it.

In your word processor, set up a template with fields for the various elements you will need and use this when you write your copy. This will help to ensure your pages are structurally and visually consistent.

Don't forget functionality

Planning your content is about much more than just writing the words. The most effective web sites tend to be applications, rather than brochures. They contain tools or functionality, either for the benefit of your visitors, or to help you manage your on-line activities.

You will need to consider what sort of tools your visitors might find useful, and what kind of functionality your site will need to have. These in turn will influence your content. Your copy should reference them and push visitors towards their use. Also, never assume a visitor knows how to use your site, so provide instructions where necessary.

If you have an 'advanced search' page, for example, explain how it works. If you have web-to-email forms, state what information you are expecting and what will happen after the form is sent. Remember to provide copy for two response messages – one for when the form is successfully sent, and another for when the user fails to correctly complete it.

Think about ongoing maintenance

Unless you're developing a 'fire and forget' product that will never be updated after launch, you will need to plan your future content and maintenance programme from the outset.

If you will be significantly expanding the content later on, try to scope the likely additions in advance so that you can allow for them in the design and avoid costly revisions later. If you will be making frequent regular updates, you may want to consider a technical solution to make it as easy as possible. There are many options, but you'll need to carefully anticipate your future needs if you want to avoid further costs later on.

If you have a very large amount of content, you will also need to make it as easy as possible to manage. You may need a 'metadata schema'. This is a way of classifying content and, properly applied, is what makes the difference between, for example, an organised library and a pile of books on the floor. Metadata schemas can be quite simple, or extremely complex. Either way, your schema should be developed as part of the content planning but as with the site map, may well evolve as you actually create the content.

Don't underestimate the task

Planning and preparing content for the web, or any interactive media, is often complex and time-consuming but it is perhaps the most important part of your project. You should expect it to account for a very large part of your project schedule. Don't leave it until the last minute, and be prepared to allocate human resource on an ongoing basis after launch.

Bear in mind that writing and structuring content in a way that works well in a non-linear medium on a computer screen is a specialised skill. Even if you have in-house copywriters, or a public relations agency working for you, don't assume they will be able to do it.

Get help if you need it

To find out how HirschWorks can help you plan and prepare your content, follow the link below.

Content And Architecture