Getting buy-in from content ops stakeholders

Before you start a content ops project, be sure you know the key players, how they like to communicate, and what their roles are. The Content Strategy Experts podcast breaks down the stakeholders on content ops projects and offers advice on how to get their buy-in to ensure success. 

Executives

Before a project can even begin, you have to get funding. Executives may not be involved in the day-to-day of a content ops project, but they are the essential stakeholder when it comes to keeping the project funded and moving forward.

“When you are trying to get executive buy-in on something as a content creator, don’t focus on the tools and the nitty gritty of the tech. That is not the way to get the attention of executives. ”

Information technology and tech stack developers 

The Information Technology department is in charge of managing your tools and processes. They don’t directly create content, but they have an important stake in the project and need to be involved in the decision making process. 

“The IT department can be such a great ally on a content ops project. IT folks are generally very good at spotting redundancies and inefficiencies. They’re going to be the ones to help whittle that redundancy down.”

While IT is in charge of making sure all of the systems involved in the content lifecycle work together with the rest of the company’s technology, tech stack developers and managers dive deeper into the weeds of the publishing system.

“Without a gatekeeper, things can go awry very quickly. Other groups can take ownership of a particular piece of the tech stack and then you start to have some issues.”

Localization managers

Do you translate content? Then you’re going to have localization project managers. Anything a content author or an information architect does impacts the localization process.

“A lot of times these stakeholders are left holding the stake, so to speak. They receive stuff that may not be in the best format or that may not be written well. And they may be given next to zero time to turn it around. So they have a lot of concerns.”

Risk management

No matter what product or service your company produces, there is always some type of risk involved. However, the risk involved in making inherently dangerous products if used incorrectly is much higher. Risk management is responsible for addressing regulatory requirements and ensuring the company avoids unnecessary problems. 

“Your regulatory environment for a single product could actually be different depending on where you’re selling it. You have to do things a certain way in Europe. You have to do things a certain way in the US.”

Tech support 

Tech support is unique in that they may contribute to content while also consuming content.

“If you are delivering multi-hundred page PDFs to your tech support people, then I can assure you that your tech support people hate you. Opening a 600 page document and then having to search through it while you’re on the phone under all this pressure is not the experience that you want.”

Content consumers and creators

One of the primary goals of any content ops project is to meet the needs of those consuming your content. If your company produces products and/or services, one of the most obvious content consumers is your customers.

“If you look up a restaurant on your phone and go to view the menu, most of the time, that menu is going to be a PDF. And you are sitting there, zooming in, scrolling around, and pinching, and trying to read this menu that really should have just been a responsive HTML page.”

Your content ops project wouldn’t be possible without content creators. Full-time content producers or writers create the bulk of content that a company puts out. They are also the ones that often spot inefficiencies in the workflow, but they may lack the support or decision-making power to bring about change. 

“Content creators are the ones that recognize the flaws. Yet sometimes, they cannot articulate the business case to get those things fixed.”

Need help wrangling your content ops stakeholders? Contact us.