Too many people are familiar with Word docs full of content in one big chunk. No structure, just a wall of text you have to decipher, break up and somehow format into meaningful web content. It wastes time trying to make sense of content when it is delivered this way (once you’ve found it amongst your emails or in the shared folder overflowing with different versions of the same document). Word documents weren’t designed for producing website content.

There’s a better way. Using GatherContent you can:

• Add structure to all of your different content types
• Have authors produce consistent content
• Get content ready for your CMS by structuring it in the same way

Let’s look at the benefit of those in more detail.

Add structure to all of your different content types

GatherContent allows you to create templates for your client or team to provide content. Each Item in your project can have its own custom structure with unique fields and specifications, or you can create your own templates to apply across multiple Items. Think of it like colouring-by-numbers for content.Examples of content you might want to create repeatable templates for:

• Staff bios
• Product descriptions
• Store addresses
• Any other content for your website

This results in less back and forth trying to mould content into the format you need.

Get consistent content from your authors

Templates in GatherContent also ensure consistency in the content produced by the authors. This is especially important when writers are spread across the organisation or external and third-party writers are hired for the project. Benefits reach beyond consistency:

• If you involve your subject experts in defining the content templates they will already be engaged and more likely to deliver the right content.
• Designers and developers know early on how content will be structured, allowing them to make informed decisions, creating less back and forth down the line.

If you add specific content guidelines to those fields, you can then guide your authors even more precisely to get the content you need in the way you need it.

Future proof content by ensuring it is delivered in the right format

Having a defined structure for particular content types will ensure that any new content will be delivered in the same way. The existing template can be applied to the new Items. More consistency - win!Thinking about the governance and future proofing of your content during the website redesign project will give you a huge head-start post-launch.

Get content ready for your CMS by structuring it in the same way

Without rules for structure, clients and contributors will email web content in formats of all shapes and sizes. You then spend (lots of) time decoding the content which is completely mismatched from what the CMS is expecting. Use GatherContent to:

• Create content structures that match your CMS - easy to map content (especially if you import content directly to your CMS using our API).
• Structure content in a way that mirrors your site map and information architecture.

Bridging the gap between your content in GatherContent and your CMS will make the migration less painful and more efficient. Every step of the way you are thinking about where the content will end up and that allows you to start creating content in the way that you need it from the minute you kick off your (or your client's) website redesign project.If you want to start structuring your content in one place, you can get started today by signing up to a free trial.