Download pdf - What’s the Matrix? The Content Matrix Deconstructed

What’s the Matrix? The Content Matrix Deconstructed Intelligent Content 2012 24 February 2012 Sarah Beckley @sarahbeckley

SARAH BECKLEY

• Senior Content Strategist, Razorfish, Chicago

• 6 years in CS, 10+ years tech writer/print editor

• Specialize in the financial services industry

• @contentstrategy – accepting contributors

Page 2 © 2012 Razorfish. All rights reserved.

THE RABBIT HOLE

• Brass tacks

• Recipes

• Resources

• Conclusion


BRASS TACKS


WHAT IS A CONTENT MATRIX?

• Definitions vary widely


WHEN DO YOU USE A CONTENT MATRIX?

• Whenever you need a: • Content inventory or audit/assessment

• Gap analysis

• ROT analysis

• Migration plan

• Content development plan

• Site map

• Any time capturing content and/or data about the content supports the project goals

• “A superficial understanding of content isn’t going to cut it anymore.” -Rachel Lovinger


WHERE DO YOU USE A CONTENT MATRIX?

• Discovery: inventory, audit, audience

• Design: crude digital asset management

• Develop: templates

• Deploy: migration plans

• Govern: metadata


WHY DO I NEED A CONTENT MATRIX?


MOST OF US ARE IN THE MATRIX


HOW? THE MATRIX RECIPE

• Identify goals/needs • E.g., track, audit, build

• Define your audience(s) • E.g., execs, tech, content owners

• Add inputs • E.g., owner, disposition, metadata

• Build your matrix • Implement macros

• Morph the matrix through project phases


SAMPLE MATRIX INGREDIENTS

• Content itself • Text, video, audio, user comments, etc.

• Information about content • Metadata, owner, status, url, content type

• CMS data for input

• Accessibility metadata

• Disposition • Toss, edit, archive

• Status • Edited, approved, in legal review


RECIPES


PROBLEM: MANUAL INVENTORY

• Spider inventory needs to be validated

• Small to medium-sized project

• Sample-size inventory of larger site


RECIPE: PARSE URLS MACRO


RECIPE: PARSE URLS MACRO

• Copy live urls from a website

• Create a macro to separate those urls from their page name

• Create a second macro to reformat names and paste them into the spreadsheet

• As in the example on the previous page


PROBLEM: MULTIPLE AUDIENCES

• One document, many audiences • Content owners, technology, legal, etc.

• Very different needs

• Large matrix


RECIPE: AUDIENCE MACRO

• Macros let you hide or show sets of data


PROBLEM: CONTENT VARIANCE

• Content in the matrix

• One product, 50 variations


RECIPE: VARIENCE MACRO


PROBLEM: EXECUTIVE AUDIENCE

• Executives are a special challenge

• Don’t want to see unnecessary information

• Want lots of context

• Need lots of direction • How to read

• How to give feedback


RECIPES: SIMPLE MATRICES

• AVOID giving executives a matrix

• Create a new, simpler matrix

• Strip/hide extra content from existing matrix

• Format matrix to be easier to read

• Copy content into Word

• Add wireframe or comp images to doc


RECIPE: PROGRESSIVE FORMATTING


PROBLEM: CONTENT DELIVERY

• Content editing and delivery must be in a matrix

• Long and short content blocks

• Must map to other deliverables


RECIPE: REVIEWER COLUMNS


RECIPE: MAP TO OTHER DELIVERABLES


RECIPE: GET GRANULAR


Bank Bank

Bank

Bank Bank

Bank

Bank

Bank Bank

SIMPLIFY NUMBERING: NOT LIKE THIS


Bank

Bank

Bank

Bank Bank

RECIPE: EMBED WORD FILES


Chose to “Display file as icon” to get this result.

RESOURCES


Resources

• Templates

• KPN: kevinpnichols.com

• Intentional Design • http://intentionaldesign.ca/2011/04/19/transactional-content-matrix/

• Google Knoll • http://knol.google.com/k/content-strategy#Content_Strategy(3A)_Deliverables

• Web Content Strategist’s Bible • http://www.contentstrategyweblog.com/2008/09/content-matrix-master-

template.html

• CMS Consultants • http://www.cmsconsultants.org/resources/website/contentMatrix.html

• LinkedIn Content Strategy group


http://intentionaldesign.ca/2011/04/19/transactional-content-matrix/

http://knol.google.com/k/content-strategy

http://www.contentstrategyweblog.com/2008/09/content-matrix-master-template.html

http://www.contentstrategyweblog.com/2008/09/content-matrix-master-template.html

http://www.cmsconsultants.org/resources/website/contentMatrix.html



Resources

• Excel guidance

• Excel Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips and Tools by David E. Hawley, O’Reilly

• Excel Annoyances: How to Fix the Most Annoying Things about Your Favorite Spreadsheet by Curtis Frye, O’Reilly

• General help: Chandoo.org: Become awesome in Excel

• Count formulas: Contextures.com/xlfunctions04.html

• Learn VBA: ozgrid.com/VBA


CONCLUSION


THE MATRIX RECIPE

• Nail down the ingredients

• Add macros to make it cook faster

• Use formulas to slice and dice

• Adapt the recipe throughout project phases

• Enjoy!


Thank you!

• Questions?

• Contact options: • [email protected]

• @sarahbeckley

• @contentstrategy

• LinkedIn.com/in/sarahbeckley
