Of course not. And no one would blame you. It’s not a cracking of the chestnut of judging a book by its cover—rather, it’s judging a book for what it contains. Judging it by its content. And if the content isn’t solid, no reader will stick around.

I recently stumbled upon an article on the website A List Apart, and it contains one of the most intriguing, smartest articles I have read about content strategy and web content creation. In her piece “The Discipline of Content Strategy,” Kristina Halvorson writes:

“Until we commit to treating content as a critical asset worthy of strategic planning and meaningful investment, we’ll continue to churn out worthless content in reaction to unmeasured requests. We’ll keep trying to fit words, audio, graphics, and video into page templates that weren’t truly designed with our business’s real-world content requirements in mind. Our customers still won’t find what they’re looking for. And we’ll keep failing to publish useful, usable content that people actually care about.

“Stop pretending content is somebody else’s problem. Take up the torch for content strategy. Learn it. Practice it. Promote it. It’s time to make content matter.”

This is expressed so eloquently, and describes a real-world problem in accurate, easily digestible yet profound terms. So much of the content on the web is, simply stated, not good. Much of it runs the range from forgettable and ineffective to appallingly bad. Some web sites that offer merely mediocre content seem to shine in comparison, simply because the content isn’t awful.

I think we can do better. The world is full of eager writers—smart people who can turn a phrase artfully and draw a reader in. Regrettably, many writers still view the web as an enemy, a passing phase or an irritant. I would urge those writers to keep an open mind. Every day, my appreciation and passion for interactive communication grows. There are so many unique benefits to communicating online; the ability to immediately interact with audiences, the capability to reach a wider group of readers and the leisure of unlimited space are all siren songs that this writer can’t resist.

I’m all about taking up the torch for content strategy. To me, the flame is exciting, challenging, rewarding—and fun.

How do you feel about web content—creating it, consuming it, judging it? Comment below.

All of these facets of website design and development are interrelated, and each of them interacts and influences content decisions.

The examples are limitless. If the design of a website calls for teeny tiny text, in a funky font color on a busy background, that is going to influence how people receive your content. You could feature the most moving and powerful prose the Internet has ever seen, but if readers can’t read it, it’s irrelevant.

Proper web content isn’t simply engaging, informative and well written (although it should be all of these things.) Great web content works for you in more ways than just communicating with your reader—it’s enriched by strategic key word placement, it’s influenced by matters of organic search engine optimization (SEO). Great content can bring people to the site by working with current technology, and then it can entice readers to stay longer, because of the value of the information.

The fascinating field of usability is quite intricately interwoven with content creation and management. From the elementary to the advanced, usability (how a visitor uses a website) should be taken into consideration in every aspect of a web site.

From macro to micro, usability and content strategy are symbiotic arrows in the same quiver, employed for accomplishing the same bulls eye hit. Even seemingly smaller choices, such as whether or not to use ‘click here’ in links*, have huge ramifications in the efficacy of the content and the website at large.

Usability, content strategy, web design and interactive marketing are constantly changing and developing. It’s not enough to read a book on the topic of the web and consider yourself an expert. In order to understand the web, you must immerse yourself in it, daily, and develop a first-hand perspective and informed opinion.

The best and most talented web folk I know are voracious learners who are inspired by the constant evolution of their medium. They feel challenged and intrigued by the daily innovations and newness of the field. They find it exciting. And the best web teams have an innate sense of how important each element is. They work together in the most genuine sense of the word. And together, they create.

*I’ve recently been examining and exploring this topic. It seems logical that in most cases, “Click Here” isn’t a great way to label links. Especially if there’s no further information, simply stating “click here” offers no value or clear direction to a reader. But, if it’s coupled with info, great action words and clarity, is “Click Here” sometimes OK?  This informative article says no (and the comments offer a vigorous debate.) I’d love to hear what you think—comment below.

This great blog entry on Ektron’s website brought the topic to my mind. Matthew Sullivan blogs, “It’s not just upcoming events, customer lists, or press releases you need to author, but you also need to consider the “freshness” of everything else. Product pages can easily stagnate after a launch or campaign. With a good content management strategy in place, you can continually update your product descriptions, and change page layouts.”

While initially this might seem like a daunting obstacle to overcome, it can actually be a huge asset and opportunity when viewed in the right light. When you’re creating a sculpture or a painting, at some point, it’s done. You step away and frame or exhibit or sell the work. But web content is never “finished.” Even when you have published a new blog or a web page, you can always go back and refine and update the text.

Have you ever created a print brochure or other collateral material, and ordered a large print run? It makes sound economic sense, but sometimes within a few months, the information is unexpectedly dated. Maybe it’s not necessarily  “wrong” but it isn’t exactly “right” anymore. Or perhaps, with new developments or initiatives at your company, the copy could be an even more accurate and engaging representation of your product or your company. But you’re stuck. You either continue working with the already printed material, or craft new copy and go through the entire printing expense again.

That’s the great thing about the web. It costs virtually nothing to revisit and optimize web copy that was already written. You can easily, as one of my favorite journalism professors liked to say, “Make good better.”

Fresh, current and engaging content not only satisfies the ever-evolving needs of the bots. New content keeps your readers, and your clients, coming back to your site as a trusted outlet where they can find the relevant information that the need.  And more readers and clients mean more business—well worth the investment of time to keep your content up-to-date and fresh.

One could say, at a most basic level:

Content strategists employ content strategy to strategically optimize their web content. And that would be accurate, albeit repetitive and pedantic. But it doesn’t represent the nuances of content strategy.

I’ve been on a quest to create my own working definition for content strategy. Every day I discover interesting blog posts, insightful articles and helpful tweets that are contributing to my definition’s evolution. Today’s particularly thought-provoking definition comes courtesy of this post on the blog I’d Rather be Writing.

Tom Johnson writes, “Content strategy can seem like a fuzzy concept because it encompasses so much. But this all-encompassing quality is part of the definition of content strategy — the content strategist looks at all content, not just a slice of the pie. It easily includes metadata, taxonomy, search engine optimization, information architecture, user interface, multimedia, company presence, social media, web copy, product announcements, semantics, wireframes, and more.”

I love this definition. I’m both intrigued and challenged by the ephemeral nature of content strategy, but here this “fuzziness” is presented as an inherent part of the definition, rather than something to be overcome in seeking the definition. Continuing this way of thinking, the very fact that countless articles and posts and tweets are devoted to defining content strategy is in itself part of the definition of content strategy.

So in seeking the definition, and in writing about it, I also become part of the evolving definition.

Become part of the definition—leave a comment below.

This reality has revolutionized the way that humans communicate with each other. Never in our history has communication and information been so omnipresent, available to so many in such egalitarian fashion.

One facet of this ever-changing information ocean is that finding correct and relevant information can be a challenge. With so many sites and so much information, both user-generated and professionally issued, it can be difficult for companies and individuals to get their message out to the public in a way that is useful and easy-to-find.

This is where content strategy plays a pivotal role in information organization and distribution. This knol offers and excellent round up of sites and definitions which explore the meaning of content strategy. It’s fascinating to explore the myriad ways a good content strategist can make the most of your web presence.

The site quotes:

“According to Richard Sheffield, author of The Web Content Strategist’s Bible, content strategy is “a repeatable system that defines the entire editorial content development process for a website development project[.]”

There are many definitions that cover a wide breadth of what content strategy is—I’m working on crafting my own statement. What do you think? And if you’re part of a business, what are some of your needs or goals that could be achieved with the help of a content strategist?

Companies are growing to understand how essential their content is to a successful web site. In this great blog entry, 15 Key Elements All Top Web Sites Should Have, ‘Meaningful Content’ comes in as element #5.

“You might have a pretty web site which will catch someone’s eye, but if the content is no good, you can be willing to bet that they aren’t going to stick around.”

The article lists ‘A Solid About Us’ page as #6, which also ties in well to the concept of great content being central to an effective website. Visitors to websites want information. They want pertinent details, and they want them swiftly and logically. The web can be a sucking vortex of time, when information is hard to find, and today’s web users are more savvy and more demanding. They want the information they seek to be easily accessible, and useful once found.

A web writer plays such an integral part in creating a winning website. We can help companies develop an overarching, strategic content plan and then research, develop and create this content. A great web writer makes great content, and great content is a key element to success.

And this passion is necessary if a career based on content is to be maintained. As anyone who’s opened a newspaper (or more likely, a browser window) lately knows, content producers and editors are being called upon to reinvent themselves, and their careers, to remain competitive. Going to journalism school no longer even remotely guarantees a job as a journalist.

So what’s a writer, a lover of words to do? Explore new horizons. Pioneer new fields. Continue to push the boundaries of how content is delivered—remember that once upon a time, printing newspapers on movable type was a revolutionary technology.

And best of all, this is fun. Writing for the web is a challenge, but it also contains opportunities for interactivity and dialogue that were impossible prior to the web.  This great blog entry, at the content strategy noob, explores how content strategy is an act of love.

“Content strategists love content. We love both its form and its substance. We love crafting and refining it. We love running our hands around its shapes and tasting its rich and subtle flavors. We love delving into meanings and relationships. We love finding new ways to say things—and finding new things to say.”

In this age, writing is about more than perching at Walden Pond and thinking deep thoughts (although find me a writer who wouldn’t jump for the change to spend a week writing at a lake!) It’s about becoming involved in new media, learning and exploring, expanding and growing what the written word can accomplish, and how it can change the world.

That sounds like something to love.

Content strategy involves more than just pretty writing. This burgeoning field, whose very nature is continuing to evolve and define itself, contains professionals who can not only write compelling copy for you, but assist you in crafting a strategic communication plan.

This spot-on blog entry discusses what five attributes a business seeking a content strategist should look for in potential candidates: a passion for content, editorial capabilities, familiarity and comfort with the principals of content management and databases, understanding of logic and communication skills.

I would add just one more concept into the mix. The best content strategists keenly understand and appreciate the challenges and possibilities inherent in web writing. A great producer of print content isn’t necessarily a great producer of web content. But if a writer has experience and training, along with an inquisitive nature and a willingness to learn and explore, they can create custom content for you that will surprise and delight you, and your readers.

A great writer can help you strategize so your content works for you.

If you have a product or service that you want to sell, compelling copywriting is a must for your website. It’s what makes your site professional and polished, and if your site seems professional and polished, so do you. And by extension, so do your products. Think about some of your favorite websites—odds are, the copy is concise, specific and colorful.

This great article on a website for women entrepreneurs explores the various benefits to hiring a professional copywriter for your website.

“No matter how brilliant the product or service or how powerful the graphic elements are–winning words make it all work,” the article says. “If you’re running a business, you want to get robust returns from every marketing penny. So allocate part of that penny to a copywriting professional. The pro’s job is all about wordsmithing that rocks.”

The article goes on to talk about the various benefits that a talented, experienced copywriter will bring to your project. They can take your site from Mickey Mouse to Walt Disney World caliber. Well-crafted copy is nuanced and purposeful, and conveys your message to your audience in an appealing fashion. It can also subtly address any concerns your audience might have, and influence them to the point of being ready to purchase your product. And on commercial web sites, isn’t that what it’s all about?

This great article on Web Designer Depot talks about things that clients should know when beginning to work with a web firm. Number 5 in this posting is “Content is King.”

From the entry:

“Most clients fully accept that content is king, yet few are willing to spend money on ensuring its quality…

“In my experience, clients underestimate the time involved in producing copy for the web and resort to copying and pasting from a wide variety of offline printed material. This leads to Frankenstein copy, using a mix of styles that are often entirely inappropriate for the web.”

This insight is spot-on. Well-written web copy is not the same as well-written copy for print brochures or a letter campaign. Web writing has specific needs and specific opportunities inherent to the medium. An experienced web writer will understand these intricacies and create web copy that enhances a website and makes it work better.

If the copy on a web page is ho-hum, not only is the copy not working hard for the owner, it may even be a deterrent. The web is full of other pages, and any site will lose a visitor pretty quickly if all the pieces of the puzzle aren’t in place.

The site has to work properly, and be easily navigable. It has to be visually attractive, and interactive. And it has to be written in a way that informs and entertains readers, and keeps them from clicking away.

So hire an experienced, web-savvy writer to create your content for you—just as you would hire someone to design and program your site. Don’t neglect your content.