Content Strategy at Work: Real-world Stories to Strengthen Every Interactive Project [Paperback]

At a time when information architecture, content strategy and storytelling are more important than ever, Margot Bloomstein shows the reader how to create a unique, clear and distinctive online voice and visual language. Content Strategy at Work is more than a must read, it is a also a necessary and compelling one.

When I became efficiency expert for a Fortune 100 company several years ago, the teams I joined often joked about all the "undertime" we were working that week. That is, time spent barely treading water, fixing things the direct result of either poor planning or poor communication. It was an apt term: largely for that unmistakable feeling of struggling to get your head above water, but never quite being able to.

That's why I value this book. When I joined a Health Care startup recently, I knew that our "undertime" could realistically be the difference between us making it... or not. And with so many stakeholders- watchful investors, outside consultants, and our internal teams of IT, marketing, & operations- how would we stay on the same page while developing a consistent brand for the most important people: our customers?

That's why I love this book. First, it is readable: our president enjoyed it, our IT loved it, our marketing embraced it. Margot Bloomstein doesn't just say "get early buy in from your stakeholders," she shows you how- laying out plans for productive group sessions, showing how to uncover common priorities in a room full of opposing ideas, etc. She doesn't just say "good content has this, bad content has that", she blows you over with examples across diverse industries & content, from Health Care to Education to Jam Makers. She provides useful checklists to track whether you're doing things right, developing solid content & consistent branding. This isn't a book simply floating in theory- it's feet are planted firmly on the ground.

Now further into our launch, we've discovered a bonus: as reality challenges our initial brand assumptions, Content Strategy is the grease that lubricates change. It used to be IT doing this, marketing doing that, the president & investors pushing for that, each of them spinning off well-intentioned ideas while our customers are greeted by a smorgasbord of noncohesive content- a bad dream! Now I say: "Considering how our customers are interacting with our social media, I think our communication priorities may have to change. Also, we may need to tweak our message architecture to accommodate this, & make things easier for them to find." To which multi-discipline teams now respond: "You're right. Let's address X, Y, and Z now, and be consistent about it."

IT, Marketing, Management, & others all speaking the same language of change?? If you know of another approach that doesn't just keep your team on the same page- but helps them stay on a turning page!- I'd like to hear about it. For my money though (literally), I'll stick with Content Strategy at Work.

Thank you to Mrs Bloomstein for giving us a resource that helps real people build modern businesses in modern times. And for helping me personally get rid of that "sinking feeling" at work.

Christopher Brockway
Licensed Nurse, PMI-trained Project Manager I

I picked up a copy of Content Strategy at Work at the Confab 2012, and it turned out to be one of the most valuable take-aways of the event for me. Bloomstein's insights into how to generate and maintain content apply not only to websites, but to many types of marketing communications. She covers the subject both comprehensively, so you understand the whole picture, and with great detail so you learn how to use content strategy techniques in your own work. In her presentation of case studies, she walks you through the process, giving special emphasis to the steps the reader would take to achieve the same outcomes. Her conversational style is entertaining and she makes it interesting with lots of insights from other content pros. I've already put into practice a number of the techniques she discussed, and the results were terrific. Loved, loved, loved this book.