“My content is translated into more than four languages.” “My content problems exponentiate with each language and culture we add.” “My global websites are completely unmanageable.” “I don’t know where to begin or what to do.” If any of these statements describes your situation, then you need a content strategy. But, not just any content strategy. You need a global content strategy. In this fast-paced session, Val Swisher will introduce you to the seven components of creating a global content strategy. You’ll walk away with an understanding of each component, where it fits, and why it is important. If global content is overwhelming you, come learn how to tame it and make it more manageable now and in the future.

1. Taking Your Content
Strategy Global
Val Swisher
Founder & CEO
@contentrulesinc
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. Who Am I?
 Founder and CEO of Content Rules
 25+ years in content arena
 Specialty areas:
 Global content strategy
 Terminology management
 Content quality
 Single-sourcing / XML / DITA
 Finishing third book, “Global Content Strategy,” due out in
2014
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

3. What is Content Rules?
 Professional services firm specializing in:
• Content strategy / Global content strategy
• Content creation
• Content quality / Global readiness
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Based in Silicon Valley
Founded in 1994
Acrolinx Authorized Services Provider
Authorized provider of The Rockley Strategic Method™
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

4. © 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

5. First…A Definition
A global content strategy is a structure for managing all of
your content that is consumed by people who speak or read
languages in addition to the source.
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

6. Why Do You Care?
1.
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Save money localizing and translating content
Improve content quality in all languages
Save time localizing and translating content
Someone told you that you need to figure out this
mess (see 1-3, above)
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

7. Global Content Strategy Components
Understand Goals
Content Lifecycle
Analysis
Content Audit
Gap Analysis
Workflow
Recommendations
Content-Specific
Recommendations
Infrastructure
Recommendations
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

8. Understanding Goals
 Identify business goals for global content strategy
 Identify current issues preventing the achievement of the
goals
 Outline criteria for successful global content management
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

9. Common Goals Of Global Content Strategy
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Increase sales by expanding into additional markets
Lower the cost of translation
Increase the quality of global content in all languages
Lower cost of maintaining global content
Improve time-to-market for global content
Respond to region-specific feedback on global content
© 2013. Content Rules, Inc. All rights reserved.

10. Goal Setting
 Talk to stakeholders
• Product management / Brand management
• International managers / Region representatives
• Content creators
• Localization managers
• Others
 Write it down
• Identify common issues
• Look for consensus for success criteria
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

11. Content Lifecycle Analysis
 Identify issues associated with global content
• Creating source content
• Translating content
• Managing global content
• Delivering global content
 Look at current processes and tools
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

12. Content Lifecycle Common Issues
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Lack of communication between and among groups
Lack of common goals
Lack of consensus on audience
Loss of control over content creation
Loss of control over translation process
Outdated or isolated tools
• CMS, TMS, MT, Terminology Management, others
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

13. Content Audit
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What do you have?
Who created it?
How is it organized?
Are there missed opportunities for reuse?
Is it properly tagged for multilingual search?
Is it global-ready?
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

14. Content Audit (Continued)
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What content is translated? Localized? Transcreated?
Which vendor is translating which content?
How many translation memories do you have?
Where are the TMs?
How are the TMs being used?
Is your pivot language acceptable?
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

15. Gap Analysis
 How far off is the current situation from the goals?
 How does current situation map to industry best
practices?
 Outline each area for improvement
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

16. Recommendations
Usually fall into three areas:
 Tools / infrastructure improvements
 Content global readiness improvements
 Workflow improvements
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

17. Tools / Infrastructure Recommendations
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Content management system
Terminology management
Translation management
Authoring environment
Site-specific infrastructure:
• Country Code Top Level Domain (ccTLD)
• Geolocation
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

18. Content Global-Readiness
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Reduce word count
Increase use of identical sentences
Decrease word variability
Reduce sentence length and complexity
Eliminate word usage errors (idioms, jargon)
Evaluate and change offensive, meaningless imagery
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

19. Workflow Recommendations
Workflow needs to be an end-to-end process that starts
with content creation and ends with worldwide delivery:
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Interaction between people and tasks
Touch points and handoffs between groups
Dependencies
Governance
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

20. Summary Of Seven Components
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Understand goals
Analyze current content lifecycle and workflow
Audit existing content
Analyze the gap
Recommendations for tools and infrastructure
Content global-readiness
Workflow that enhances success
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

21. What You Can Expect To Achieve
Global content that is:
 Easier to manage
 Cheaper to translate
 Easier to find
 Easier to read
 Quicker to market
 Better aligned with sales and product goals
© 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

22. © 2013.
Content Rules, Inc.
All rights reserved.

23. Val Swisher
CEO & Founder
vals@contentrules.com
@contentrulesinc