Content Strategy is a critical component of User-Centered, Digital Design. For the last two decades, I’ve been helping to define and refine content strategy, and its role throughout the design process.
From a digital perspective, content and it’s consumption is why the web exists. It’s the information we want to communicate to others — all the words on a page, all the images, the audio files, the documents, and animated gifs. It’s even the behind-the-scenes pieces of data (metadata) that organize the content you consume, and help you find the things you like the most.
Why Content Strategy is Important
At a very high level, the content strategist has to understand the user so they can help the user understand the content. This is why it is important to involve content at the beginning of the discovery process. Only after understanding the user can they roll up their sleeves and start digging in to the existing content associated with a project.
A good content strategist should be able to look at any digital property and determine content challenges and gaps, and then offer solutions. Additionally, Content Strategists need to be able to communicate with other functional specialties to help them understand how these roles impact each other. The content strategist is able to do this by coming equipped with varied tools to handle any job.
The Many Tools of the Content Strategist
A well-rounded content strategist should take on multiple roles throughout the course of a project. They should be able to understand the stakeholder, the user, the technical platforms built to house the content, and the goals of the product or project itself. A good content strategist wears many hats and serves a number of needs across a digital property. Read more about some of the important roles of a content strategist.