Challenge: Turn a product vision into a working platform
While I was at Code and Theory, a high-end jewelry company hired us to build a publishing platform for their global sales team.
They hoped the content running through this platform would align, inspire and activate the team, improving the company’s agility, relevancy and innovation globally.
Their ideal solution would be easy for content teams to manage at local, regional and global levels.
Early in the client partnership, my teammates created a product vision prototype. When I joined the project as a content strategy lead, we needed to turn this vision into reality.
My challenge — architect the content blueprints needed to bring this vision to life.
Solution: Map the technical home, content and operations
After discussing my challenge with the project lead, I anticipated delivering three blueprints — a content model, ecosystem map and content governance plan. To build these effectively would require research, independent designing and collaborative ideating.
Discovery: Understand the state of content, systems and resources
I spent my first few weeks on the project learning as much as possible about the client’s content. I combed through 50+ client documents to understand the world of the sales team. I immersed myself in product, boutique and educational content.
Analyzing these documents helped me understand the user’s domain as well as the technical side of the client's content. I saw how they structured their content and where it existed. I wondered how we could bring it seamlessly into the publishing platform.
Conducting stakeholder interviews and client workshops, independently and collaboratively, helped me complete a real picture of the content I had to work with to deliver on the product vision.
Ideation: See how to use understanding to effect the product vision
Ecosystem mapping: Find the right home within a digital universe
In parallel to modeling content, I partnered with my tech teammates to find the right technical home for the platform within the client's digital ecosystem. We aimed to streamline the ecosystem and make easy content management possible.
I led an ecosystem mapping exercise to help us determine where API handshakes might exist as well as where the platform might complement or nullify existing content channels. Together, we uncovered and mapped about 50 channels and systems. Our efforts helped the client understand and broker the best home for the publishing platform.
Content modeling: Define and structure information to offer inspiring stories
By looking at the content reality in relation to our vision, I distilled 10 content types to power the platform in partnership with my team. These entities would work together to connect, inspire and activate the sales team. To illustrate these systematic relationships, I drew a user-centered content model. This model would guide and bridge UX and content management system design.
Content governance planning: Answer how content gets created and published
To further aid platform management, we developed a model for publishing operations. I worked closely with my UX design and tech teammates on this piece.
First, we defined the platform’s needed content team. We detailed team members’ responsibilities, positions in the global management structure and CMS permissions. Second, we outlined a process for achieving consistent content creation and distribution. This process accounted for backend content managers and frontend content contributors. Third, we authored annotations to support governance and workflows and guide the development team.
Path to the solution: Teams, activities and tools
Client team engaged
Retail Experience Director International
International Learning and Development Manager
Retail Experience Manager
Product Information Management and Prototypes Manager
Digital Asset Management Project Manager
Editor in Chief, Internal Communications
Code and Theory teams engaged
Experience Strategy
Interaction Design
Design
Creative Strategy
Production
Technology
Data, Analytics, Research, and Testing
Activities executed
55: Analyzed 55 client documents filled with product, editorial and marketing data.
50: Mapped 50 entities existing in the client’s digital ecosystem.
10: Distilled 10 content types to drive platform design.
4: Planned and facilitated four virtual stakeholder interviews.
3: Planned and facilitated three virtual client workshops.
Tools used
Keynote
Miro
Google Docs and Sheets
Microsoft Excel
Figma
Confluence
Zoom
Result: Use blueprints to guide design and development
As my time on the project ended, my content blueprints moved into design and development. I worked with my UX design and tech teammates to ensure these blueprints guided their sprints. I jumped in to advise on UI designs as well as component and CMS annotations for development.
This project reinforced my belief that content strategy, UX design and tech must collaborate closely from Day One. Together, the disciplines create a mighty checks-and-balances system. When we craft big ideas together, we figure out the logic in lockstep. This coordination allows us to deliver innovative (and possible) solutions efficiently.