Content Vs. Conversation

The focus on content versus conversation debate is one that has been raging for many years and will be a point of contention for many more, especially considering how it relates to web traffic.  From the broad perspective of the field of journalism, Joy Mayer of the Missouri School of Journalism states, “To enhance their ability to fairly report the news, journalists needed to stand apart from their community rather than be participants” (2011).  This presents an interesting viewpoint as it sometimes limits an original creator’s input with the community lest they seem biased, and could conceivably result in the stalling of a topic of conversation as a whole.

Yet at the very heart of the content/conversation dilemma, one finds the ultimate goal of viewer engagement and the unending search for the proper way to not only lure in potential readers and commenters, but to keep them engaged in the long-term.  Renowned user interface specialist Ginny Redish views the individual methodologies for attracting viewers as a two-step process beginning with content.  As Redish states in a post through uxmagazine.com, “Site visitors and app users come for the content. Of course, the information architecture (IA) and the site search must make that content easy to find. The design must be attractive and usable. The technology must work” (2012).

Similar to the logic put forward by Redish, Paul Pruneau of socialmediatoday.com has a checklist he recommends for content marketing.  Pruneau portends that the need for the proper usage of content marketing within a website is a byproduct of the shifting landscape in digital marketing and provides ten ways in which the modern marketer can enhance their offering.  These include:

1.     Avoid you, you, you!  The core strategy behind content creation and its usage to spark conversation is that the topic presented needs to be less about the author, more about the reader and provide a call to action for the reader to engage.

2.     Forget the message and logo police.  Content creation requires brushing off the ways of the past whereby a company’s marketing department was in place primarily for pushing messages onto the general public.  Instead, these employees should be generating new content for the business on a non-stop basis to attract customers.

3.     Reach for engagement.  Heralded as the panacea of the business world in how it eventually (supposedly) turns potential consumers into converts, this engagement happens in myriad ways, but companies and personalities interested in conversing with their viewership need to understand that it needs to be about more than general product marketing – there needs to be real content that can be passed around, dissected and discussed.

All totaled, it would appear that instead of adhering to the classic idiom of “content vs. conversation”, a better strategy would be “content AND conversation”.  Using the content of a website to attract visitors via organic or paid search, combined with engaging them once they’ve arrived and making it easy for them to further share your content, would be a winning strategy.

References

Mayer, J. (2011) Engaging Communities: Content and Conversation. Retrieved November 12, 2012 from http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/reports/article/102625/Engaging-Communities-Content-and-Conversation.aspx

Pruneau, P. (2012, November 12) 10 Point Checklist for Content Marketing. Retrieved November 12, 2012 from http://socialmediatoday.com/pruneau/994091/10-point-checklist-content-marketing

Redish, G. (2012, May 4) Content as Conversation. Retrieved November 12, 2012 from http://uxmag.com/articles/content-as-conversation