I see it all to often. A new project starts (of any size) and everyone is fired up. The staff is excited, the clients are thrilled to get a new web presence that accurately portrays their business, and everyone is looking towards the future of making the web a central point for terrific ROI. Then it happens...

The designs are approved, functionality is completed, everything is done except for the content....

Content is the glue that holds new web endeavors together and our team wants to make sure you understand how critical this component is to the success of your website. Without newly developed original content, your web presence is bound to be more of the same not taking advantage of the new features and interactivity that's available. I'm offering a couple quick bullet points that help you avoid the pitfalls of having a long delayed project that's waiting on content.

1. Get Ahead of the Timeline: During the design process (at least at Unleashed Technologies) deciding and understanding the general framework of  how the site navigation will be structured is an important step. While it's rarely finalized in the beginning stages of the project, the framework gives you a clear understanding of what pages and corresponding content will be needed. Don't wait on starting the process of building this content. If you choose to generate your own content because you've got a niche industry or you're looking to save a few bucks then don't hesitate and make the appropriate time to start developing content before the project is at a stopping point of "waiting on content". Putting finalized drafts in the hands of your web team is a great idea. It gives us time to make comments and send them back to you for revision or integrate if all best practices are followed!
2. Don't Forget About the Little Things: One of the biggest overlooked items when providing content is the little pieces that surround the core messaging. For instance think about your calls to actions, wording, footer information, newsletter sign-up language, contact forms, etc. These play an important component in the success and "tightness" that your website portrays as visitors move through it. Fast access to information and contact is a must.
3. Organize your Content Well: Listen to how your web firm wants the content delivered to them. This ensures that when you hand the content over it can be quickly and affectively placed within the website. It allows designers/developers/project managers to focus on the impact of the message as oppose to spending 2 hours organizing 20 pages of content trying to figure out on their own where everything goes.
4. When in Doubt Source it Out: I can't tell you how valuable it is for people that aren't in very niche industries to utilize the capabilities of content writers. This completely automates your website delivery process and takes the stress off of you in terms of providing substance. You'll function in an approval capacity checking designs, functionality, copy, and processes as opposed to working on the grind. If you have the extra money this is a no brainer. There are many different types of content writers and depending on what you're looking for a good web firm can refer a strong content writer with a variety of different pricing models such as cost per page, hourly, or firm fixed price (project based).
5. Be Fair to your Web Firm: Projects that are built to highlight your proprietary non-profit or commercial business are subject to deadline changes on late delivery of content. Good web firms always buffer a week or so for late delivery. If you are running two weeks or more behind schedule on delivering content it's important to understand that once received the web firm will need to assess what's been sent over and figure out a timeline for getting it implemented.

Expect to see a follow up post from me about selecting the right content partner and pitfalls to avoid during negotiations. I'm also planning on including best practices for setting expectations and getting the most out of your deliverables from content writers. Happy Father's Day to everyone!!