Not Just Any Content: Strategies for reaching your actual user

Content is the core of any site. But to be effective, it needs to be useful for your particular audience. How do you know who your actual users are? What's the best way to perform a research phase, and when do you know when you've gathered enough details? How do you show your work for stakeholders once you're done? This session will answer those questions and walk you through tools and tactics for the development of content that arrives right on time for the people who need it most.

Transcript

1. Not Just Any Content: Strategies for reaching your actual user U of I WebCon 2016 Lindsey Gates-Markel Content strategist, Pixo @LGatesMarkel
2. pixotech.com
3. Content: The stuff on your website. How the stuff is organized.
4. Content strategist by day… Podcaster also by day
5. Welcome Main menu Intro Resources Photo
6. To-do for the Podcast Club website: • Evaluate our current content • Identify target audiences • Perform user research • Keep track of/present what we learn • Create new user-centered content
7. User: The person who needs to learn something. The person who needs to complete a task.
8. Anyone …? Listeners, Creators? Creators, 
 Listeners, 
 Producers, 
 Technicians Anyone
9. Can’t my website be for anyone?
11. When you make content for anyone, you make content for no one.
12. Why do user research? • Compelling evidence • Supports goals • Applicable at any stage the content is not for you • I really do like you, but
13. the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you the content is not for you
14. Evaluate our current content
15. Evaluate our current content Ask: • What even is it? • Does it reflect who we are? • Who is it talking to? Does it sound relatable? • What do we need users to do or learn?
16. Evaluate our current content What even is it? Content inventory
17. Evaluate our current content What even is it? Content audit
18. Evaluate our current content Does it reflect who we are now (and want to become)? Messaging card sort Friendly Credible Supportive Empowering Edgy Visionary Practical Timeless Strategic Hands-on
19. Evaluate our current content Does it reflect who we are now (and want to become)? Messaging card sort Friendly Credible Supportive Empowering Edgy Visionary Practical Timeless Strategic Hands-on Who We Are Who We’re Not Who We Want 
 to Be
20. Evaluate our current content Who is it talking to? Is it relatable?
21. Evaluate our current content Who is it talking to? Is it relatable?
22. Evaluate our current content What do we need users to do or learn? The Podcast Club’s established goals are: To share podcast recommendations among members; To facilitate creation of high-quality podcasts; and To spread the fun and informative nature of podcasts to those who have not yet been enlightened.
23. Evaluate our current content What do we need users to do or learn? STRATEGY MAD LIBS Our content should help our users/customers __________________, __________________, and _________________. To do this, our content must be _________________, __________________, and _________________. This content should make users feel ______________ and _________________. We will know we are successful when users ________________ and _________________, which will help us _________________ and __________________. user goal user goal user goal adjective adjective desired action desired action business goal adjective adjective business goal adjective Link user goals… 
 to content… 
 to desired actions… to org/business goals recommend podcasts create podcasts discover new podcasts clear enthusiastic knowledgeable inspired capable join the club rent our equipment grow our community pay our bills
24. Reality check:
25. Who are our target audiences?
26. User: The person who needs to learn something. The person who needs to complete a task.
27. Who are our target audiences? The people we want learning and completing tasks. STRATEGY MAD LIBS Our content should help our users/customers __________________, __________________, and _________________. To do this, our content must be _________________, __________________, and _________________. This content should make users feel ______________ and _________________. We will know we are successful when users ________________ and _________________, which will help us _________________ and user goal user goal user goal adjective adjective desired action desired action business goal adjective adjective adjective recommend podcasts create podcasts discover new podcasts STRATEGY MAD LIBS Our content should help our users/customers __________________, __________________, and _________________. To do this, our content must be _________________, __________________, and _________________. This content should make users feel ______________ and _________________. We will know we are successful when users ________________ and _________________, which will help us _________________ and __________________. WACHTER-BOETTCHER
 Content Strategy Consulting
 814 Tasker Street, Philadelphia, PA 19148 sarawb.com | (541) 517-2870 user goal user goal user goal adjective adjective desired action desired action business goal adjective adjective business goal adjective join the club rent our equipment grow our community pay our bills
28. Who are our target audiences? The people we want learning and completing tasks. • Popular pages* • Behavior Flow • Search terms
29. Find our target audience: Start with a big list. Producers Technicians Creators Potential Creators Listeners Potential Listeners Mentors Donors
30. Find our target audience: List, rank, prioritize. Producers Technicians Creators Potential Creators Listeners Potential Listeners Mentors Donors Primary Secondary Tertiary
31. Great. So what content do my target audiences need?
32. To get to know what users need, get to know users’: Attitudes and beliefs Methods for user research Podcasts are the future of information sharing. I’d need expensive equipment to make a podcast. I listen to This American Life with my dad. I use Stitcher to download podcasts. Podcasts pass the time while I’m driving or doing dishes. Concerns Experiences Behaviors Motivations
33. Methods for user research Interviews
34. Interviews Methods for user research
35. Interviews Methods for user research Never ask anyone what they want. 
 —Erika Hall, Just Enough Research
36. Interviews Methods for user research What do they do? What was the last podcast you listened to? Subscribed to?
37. Interviews Methods for user research Where, when, why, how often, with what? • Walk me through it — where were you, what app/service did you use, what prompted you to listen? • How did you find out about the last podcast you listened to?
38. Interviews Methods for user research What do they want to accomplish or learn? • What are some stories/facts from podcasts that have stayed with you? • Have you ever thought about making your own podcast? What stopped/ encouraged you?
39. Questionnaire Methods for user research Pros • Free/cheap • Can reach a lot of people • Quick for users • Good screeners for interviews Cons • Impersonal • Data may be untrustworthy • Information overload Are you willing to be interviewed further?
40. If all else fails… Methods for user research
41. When am I done? When you see real patterns. When you can visualize change. When the money or time run out.
42. Keeping track and presenting what we learn
43. Keeping track and presenting Findings/Insights Review
44. Keeping track and presenting Voice Chart
45. Personas • Guides content creators • Based on research, not imagination Keeping track and presenting
46. Creating content for our actual users
49. Evaluate our new content Ch-ch-changes Supportive, inspiring voice Easy-to-understand labels Encouragement to learn and complete tasks
50. Now what?
51. Now what? Print out pages from your current site. Gather a group. Hand out personas and Post-Its. Does this content speak to this person? Answer their questions? Use their language? Test with colleagues
52. Now what? Recruit people. Observe them while they use the site. Ask them to perform tasks and think out loud. Test with users
53. Now what? • UX Book Club • Content CU • UX Lunch Club (on campus) Join a community meetup.com/UXchambana/
54. The content is not for you. You’re great. But it’s not for you.
55. Thank you to Suzanne Chapman, Lyndsey Groth, and the UX and Design Team at Pixo. — And to you! tinyurl.com/podcastclub Resources and podcast recommendations