As a content management specialist, I’ve noticed that getting good text content for a client website can be difficult. Sometimes it seems like all the creative juices available have run out, long before the written content for a site is ready. And although quality photos and graphics, great site design and good solid programming are all necessary to make a site that represents a return on investment, without well-written content, the site isn’t complete.
Of course, there are obstacles to getting good content.
- Writing quality, optimised content can be time-consuming.
- Experts on the subject aren’t always expert writers.
- Professional copy writers may not suit a project with a tight budget.
But I have recently discovered a couple of tricks that might make the content process just a little bit easier.
Content Outlines and Templates
One solution to writer’s block when it comes to client content is to produce a content outline – a template for each major page on the site. If a Site Map has already been worked out, use this to set up your template – and create an outline of each page.
I recently built a content outline that asked the following sorts of questions:
- How would you write your company philosophy in a single line?
- What are the five questions you want your customers to ask about your business? Please give me the five answers, as two sentences each.
- What are two services you offer that you don’t think your customers know about yet?
- Please list ten things your customers need to know about this product. These will be shown as bullet points next to the large photograph.
Don’t forget to include relevant examples in your content template – that makes it even easier for someone who isn’t a writer to see what sort of information you’re looking for. This goes for graphics too – if you are going to use images to enhance the text, explain what sort of images you believe will improve the pages you create.
Design With Text in Mind
Every concept draft gets hit with it. In the place where editable content will go, the designer will plug in a block of “Lorem Ipsum” text, often justified, to show how the text will look on the page.
Why not go further and show the design with content formatting?
Most actual content won’t be justified blocks of difficult-to-scan text. Usability and accessibility experts recommend creating content that can be skimmed through – and highlighting the important points. Even if you’re using Lorem Ipsum to create a placeholder on a concept sheet, there’s no reason not to show that text in the way content might be presented on the live site.
Create headings, use bullet points and show emphasis on your placeholder text. It might just give you some ideas on how to fill that space with real text, too.
