Content strategy

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A content strategy regulates the professional and structured handling of digital media content . In principle, this includes all information that is available on the Internet . The focus is primarily on the content of a website - starting with the navigation names and the web texts to images, podcasts , videos, etc.

This content is offered to the relevant target groups of the company or organization as part of content marketing or content management (planning, implementation, evaluation) . The responsibility for this often lies in marketing , in larger companies under the direction of a chief content officer .

origin

The term content strategy comes from web development and came up in the USA in the late 1990s. With Web 2.0 and the development of social media , any user could publish content on the net. As a result, the number of texts, images and videos increased rapidly. Many companies initially focused on quantity rather than quality. They found out that they could achieve good results in the search engines and generate a lot of page views through texts with a high keyword density and purchased backlinks . However, this was at the expense of legibility and comprehensibility of the content.

It was only when Google repeatedly changed its algorithm towards the end of the 2000s in order to provide users with more substantial content that the industry rethought. Since then, companies have had to deal carefully and cleverly with content in order to be listed in the SERPs . So that they don't get lost in the mass of content, companies are increasingly training content strategists. Their main task is to make the digital content user and search engine friendly, to align it with the corporate goals and to use it effectively. In 2009 the term “content strategy” made its breakthrough. At that time, Kristina Halvorson and Karen McGrane organized the first cross-border content strategy conference in Minneapolis, the Confab. The aim was to discuss the topic with experts and to define the term. The conference has been held annually since then. The trends and innovations in the industry are presented here. Since 2013, the Confab has also been held once a year in Europe at different locations.

Definitions

Kristina Halvorson, author of the standard work “Content Strategy for the Web” defines content strategy as follows: “Content strategy plans for the creation, delivery and governance of useful, usable content.” A content strategy therefore defines how meaningful and useful content is be created, published and controlled for the Internet.

The task of the content strategy is to organize all web content, adapt it to the needs of the user and align it with the company's goals. It clarifies precisely which content belongs on the website and where it should be integrated and published. A content strategy for Richard Sheffield is “the methodical approach to continuously identify and question all content requirements. It's about planning well-thought-out and structured content. ”Rachel Lovinger provides a practical comparison:“ Content strategy is for web text what information architecture is for design. ”It therefore serves as a framework for all web activities and creates clarity Processes, costs and responsibilities.

education

Since autumn 2014, the FH Joanneum Graz has been offering a master’s degree on the subject of "content strategy". The course is the first and only of its kind in Europe and goes back to the initiative of Heinz Wittenbrink. The course comprises 4 semesters and is designed to be part-time. The students of the course organize an open barcamp called Coscamp once a year .

literature

  • Kristina Halvorson, Melissa Rach: Content Strategy for the Web. 2012.
  • Richard Sheffield: The Web Content Strategist's Bible. CLUEfox Publishing, Atlanta, GA, 2009.
  • Margot Bloomstein: Content Strategy at Work. Morgan Kaufman Publ. Inc., Walham, MA, 2012.
  • Klaus Eck , Doris Eichmeier: The content revolution in the company: New perspectives through content marketing and strategy. Haufe-Lexware, 2014.
  • Miriam Löffler: Think Content. Galileo Computing, Bonn 2014.
  • Ann Rockley, Charles Cooper: Managing Enterprise Content. New Riders, Berkeley, CA, 2012.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Sheffield, Richard (2009): The Web Content Strategist's Bible. Atlanta, GA: CLUEfox Publishing, 37-37.
  2. ↑ Löffler, Miriam (2014): Think Content. Bonn: Galileo Computing, page 59f.
  3. ^ Cullinan, Fiona (2013): A brief history of content strategy. Online at: http://firehead.net/2013/06/a-brief-history-of-content-strategy/ (last accessed: April 8, 2014)
  4. ^ Marsh, Hillary (2014): A New Introduction to the Content Strategy Survey. Online at: http://www.hilarymarsh.com/2014/03/30/new-introduction-content-strategy-survey/ (last accessed: April 8, 2014)
  5. ^ Halvorson, Kristina (2008): The Discipline of Content Strategy. Online at http://alistapart.com/article/thedisciplineofcontentstrategy (last accessed April 8, 2014)
  6. ↑ Rockley, Ann cit. n. Bloomstein, Margot (2012): Content Strategy at Work. Walham, MA: Morgan Kaufman Publ. Inc., page 6
  7. ↑ Lovinger, Rachel (2007): Content Strategy: The Philosophy of Data. Online at: http://boxesandarrows.com/content-strategy-the-philosophy-of-data/ (last accessed: April 9, 2014)
  8. ↑ Master's degree in content strategy: proposal for a curriculum - Lost and Found. Retrieved on May 9, 2020 (German).
  9. ↑ Master's degree in content strategy: proposal for a curriculum - Lost and Found. Accessed June 6, 2020 (German).
  10. ^ Heinz Wittenbrink - Google Scholar Citations. Retrieved May 9, 2020 .
  11. ↑ FH JOANNEUM content strategy / content strategy. Retrieved on May 9, 2020 (German).
  12. ↑ CosCamp. Retrieved on May 9, 2020 (German).