Content Development samples
The many facets of content development coincide with what I do and how I work best.
PLANNING From communications plans to audience- and goal-specific deliverables
BRAINSTORMING Best done with a collective
WRITING Respect for readers and subjects is shown through excellence
EDITING Advocating for both the reader and the writer
DESIGN How design and content work together
RELATIONSHIP-BUILDING with
iSTRATEGIZE. iCREATE. iPROJECT MANAGE. When it comes to encapsulating the pillars that support the juggling act called "content development," the i's have it.
Illumination Every step in the development process illuminates final goals
Innovation Finding new angles and mechanisms or breathing new life into old ones
Integration Across media, messages, teams, departments, and internal and external audiences
Interaction Among team members as well as between the reader and fresh, engaging, accessible content
Irradiation The intended messaging infuses content with a particular brand, culture or message: the secret sauce
PLANNING From communications plans to audience- and goal-specific deliverables
BRAINSTORMING Best done with a collective
WRITING Respect for readers and subjects is shown through excellence
EDITING Advocating for both the reader and the writer
DESIGN How design and content work together
RELATIONSHIP-BUILDING with
- The audience
- The team (writers, copy editors, designers, production)
- Management
- Other departments
- External clients and vendors
iSTRATEGIZE. iCREATE. iPROJECT MANAGE. When it comes to encapsulating the pillars that support the juggling act called "content development," the i's have it.
Illumination Every step in the development process illuminates final goals
Innovation Finding new angles and mechanisms or breathing new life into old ones
Integration Across media, messages, teams, departments, and internal and external audiences
Interaction Among team members as well as between the reader and fresh, engaging, accessible content
Irradiation The intended messaging infuses content with a particular brand, culture or message: the secret sauce
Before and After
"The refinements we make to content and design are incremental enough to escape notice year to year, but if you look back five years, the improvements are clear."
-- Frank Cubillos, graphic designer in Los Angeles
-- Frank Cubillos, graphic designer in Los Angeles
Capital People was an orphan newsletter I inherited when I joined Capital. As far as Internal Publications management was con- cerned, it was a dinosaur of Rodney Dangerfield proportions, an arcane carryover from the days when the company was so small, all employees actually knew each other. Its purpose was to track personnel changes so if Biff Knickerbocker was promoted, transferred or left the company, Judy Jump-Up would waste no time calling Biff's now-empty chair. After nearly two decades in print, I was the first person with editorial experience to touch it.
Several fortunate circumstances collided to elevate the orphan to ugly stepchild: The administrative assistant who punted Capital People to me on her way up the corporate ladder saw its potential to promote Capital's giving-back programs. Being bereft herself of writing or editing experience, her eyes gleamed when she discovered I was eager to write well beyond the parameters of my job description. Once ensconsed in her new role in a fledgling Associate Contributions department, she and I began to collaborate up her chain of command with senior management and founding partners to educate a rapidly expanding employee base about Capital's benefits. The deeper purpose behind our effort was to attract and increase participation in the programs while nurturing a culture of giving back to the community that was part of Capital's ethos. Among these managing partners, the man who "would be CEO if Capital had one" took special interest in our efforts and included me in closed-door planning sessions so my reporting network grew exponentially in a very short time.
As you can see, the January 2000 issue on the left -- printed several months before I was hired -- is devoid of articles or photos (other than headshots) as was characteristic until my tenure. (To be fair, single-paragraph "articles" that announced upcoming office events occurred in approximately 4 out of 12 monthly issues.) The issue on the right, printed 4 years later, serves as a random sampling to compare against this baseline 2000 issue.
(You can see that the graphic designer and I were likewise busy during those 4 years re-designing the newsletters to conform with an internal and external re-branding campaign. I was pleased to shift the emphasis to the people over the organization in the masthead as well as in the content.)
January 2000 issue
Please see page 3
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January 2004 issue
Please see pages 4-9
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Innovations
This next batch of samples highlights two successful employee communication strategies that relied on giving sustained attention to a unified topic through a series of articles. The Yosemite campaign on the left occurred over 3 years time; the adopted school series to the right, over 3 months.
Yosemite
Introducing an extended series about Capital's long-standing financial and volunteer relationship with Yosemite was an editorial no-brainer. It served many purposes: It showed an
arc of commitment to environmental causes stretching back to the firm's founder. It strove to instill in associates a similar appreciation for this stellar national park. It gave employees a reason to feel good about the company. And it spotlighted a large number of individual employees, underscoring the value of each to the organization. Contents
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Adopted schools
In addition to the glaringly obvious reasons for it (i.e., recog-nizing employee involvement while underscoring Capital's commitment to education and giving back), this adopted
school series fulfilled an ulterior motive. Service center associates comprised more than half our employee base, yet our internal news mechanisms were dominated by the investment offices -- where the money was made and therefore where the glamor was. (If such could truly be said about *yawn* Fund Accounting) In 2002, this series was a way to balance our coverage and spotlight the organization's human capital as well as its stock market standings. Contents
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A SAR IS BORN: One article, from inception to delivery
This sample gives an unusual glimpse into an article's development process that's usually much less scripted. Because it was requested by veteran senior management at Capital's largest service center, the development process was more formalized to include them in a process that's normally short-handed among trained communicators. The good news is, it shows a before-and-after vantage and gives some indication into how I develop visual elements to wed with content.
YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE The printed article on the right is a good example of basic print practices that capitalize on writing and design fundamentals:
YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE The printed article on the right is a good example of basic print practices that capitalize on writing and design fundamentals:
- Provide multiple points-of-entry for readers, including a prominent lead paragraph, pull-quotes, subheads, and original captions (Never pirate article copy for captions!)
- Photos are a must
- Accommodate differing learning styles with in-depth copy for some, and for others, summaries, lists and sidebars
- Don't be afraid of white space
- Design across spreads
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Initiative
A closing thought: Developing content to the extent I did in the Capital People newsletter was not among my primary job functions. Fortunately, the senior editor permitted me to collaborate with the Contributions team and our office reporter network "as long as it didn't interfere with my other responsibilities." Just imagine what I do when given free rein and more creative license ...