Now on Video from In/Visible Talks 2020: Kristen House + Joscelin Cooper on “Content Strategy”
Content Strategy Lead Kristen House and writer Joscelin Cooper—both from Google—discussed how their process for determining purpose for their work has an impact beyond the office.
Before diving into their discussion on the main stage at the In/Visible Talks conference in January 2020, Kristen House and Joscelin Cooper first defined “content” for us: everything that is read, viewed, and consumed. In digital media, it’s the words plus the imagery that goes with those words.
As Content Strategy Lead (Kristen) and UX Writer and Designer (Joscelin) for Google, they are tasked not only with creating the content, but determining if it will be effective. Questions they ask include “Is this copy essential? Can I shorten or eliminate it? Are the words serving our purpose?” Discernible purpose is key here, as it serves as a filter for what to leave in and what to leave out.
That discernment, they said, can apply to other aspects of work, such as identifying whether or not a meeting has a purpose, versus having a meeting just for a meeting’s sake. But what Kristen and Joscelin emphasized in their talk was that this process can go beyond work and impact our personal lives. The full title of their talk is “A Content Strategy: A Transformational Lens”, and the women encouraged us to ask “Where do we need to direct our attention? What matters to us?” They encouraged us to cultivate attention, to allow space and allow for surprises.
Take a deeper dive into their ideas and philosophy through the video of their talk below or on Vimeo here.