Content Design: The Key to User-Centered Content Creation
The term “design” is often associated with art and overall visual aesthetics. That said, when we speak of websites, the term “content design” includes both text and graphic elements on the page. People generally know about content marketing, blog writing service and SEO copywriting. However, the concept of content design is not something most people are familiar with.
WHAT IS CONTENT DESIGN?
Content design is a new process that helps create user-centered and structured content production. It prevents one from copiously typing out 500 words on a specific keyword without thinking about it.
Sarah Richards, founder of Content Design, London was the inimitable brain behind coining the term “content design.” It is an effective way of enhancing the quality of content and aligning it with the requirement of users. Content design is part UX, part accessibility, and part writing. According to Sarah Richards, “Content design is answering a user’s needs in the best possible way for the user to consume it.” It aims at providing users content strategy service in their language, at their required time, and in the format they need. It is not just a technique that helps one create better content, but also a novel way of conceptualizing content.
Having said that, content design can be applied from a macro and micro perspective.
CONTENT DESIGN FROM A MACRO VIEW
Content design from a macro view is implemented by a digital marketing company via grouping website pages to form an information structure. A well-designed content structure helps visitors find the information that they need, both easily and quickly. The entire thing, right from its global navigation labels to the sub-navigations, is strategically taken care of from a visitor’s point of view. Content design for the information architecture of a website defines predefined pathways into the website or choice architecture of the navigation. Prospective clients who visit a site with navigations aligned with their expectations to anticipate the website structure feel understood, leading to a positive user experience. This also leads to greater conversions.
CONTENT DESIGN FROM A MICRO LEVEL
Content design can also be conceptualized from a micro-level through the messaging put across on every page. As the use of Information Architecture to structure page grouping, “strawman” is the procedure used by a website content writer to structure content on a page at a micro-level. A strawman showcases the raw copy used to convey a certain content’s point on a page and the fashion in which elements of that specific page are displayed visually.
A strawman primarily comprises the following elements:
- Headings
- Subheading
- Bullet Points
- Calls-to-Action
THE STRAWMAN STRUCTURE
The main thought of a content strategy service behind using a strawman to structure a page is to help users identify the particulars of a message that can be conveyed instantly. This lets content writers focus their efforts on refining the facts, fundamentals, and takeaways so that readers might read the copy and understand its message instantly. Apart from words on a website page, a website content writer needs to pay special attention to the font size, type, and treatment. A strawman structure lets a writer populate the copy on each website page faster as they focus on facts.
FIGURING THE USER’S WANTS & NEEDS
Content design is every bit about figuring out not just the wants of the user, but also their needs. The client might want to learn about ways of solving a certain problem, but require additional guidance for the purpose. One needs to balance the needs of their business with that of their clients equally. Sometimes, the purpose of content is to provide a simple answer to a problem and understand the underlying need and provide solutions accordingly. The key to a quality content design is to not assume stuff. Data is a writer’s best friend. So it is best to rely completely on it. With the increasing number of content writing services, the best shot at occupying the top spot is to bring about a seamless amalgamation of content and graphics. This is what forms the basis of a good content design. The competitive era of business demands a website content writing service to strategize and offer something unique as compared to the rest.
TAKEAWAY
Content design is an amazing process that lets a website content writing service create and offer content that users need. It can be used for multiple reasons ranging from content marketing blog posts to UX writing. Whenever one has a requirement of transforming the client’s requirement into content, they can utilize content design for the purpose. The best part is that picking and even mastering a few techniques like creating job stories can be extremely useful from a consumer engagement point of view. So, it’s time to give a shot to content design and see the difference.