The Web Content Strategist's Bible: The Complete Guide To A New And Lucrative Career For Writers Of All Kinds [Paperback]

Richard Sheffield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 4, 2009

Managing the creation and maintenance of the huge volume of Web content requires an understanding of not just Web writing, but of detailed, well-planned, realistic content development processes. Those practicing the new discipline of Web Content Strategy are being called upon to help Web development teams navigate this new editorial ecosystem where content not only has to be written, but also broken up into thousands of pieces that have to be reviewed, approved, re-purposed, edited for search engines, translated, localized, and generated using a new and complex set of tools and techniques. The Web Content Strategist's Bible explains how the practice of Web content strategy can be used to effectively manage the size, scope, and cost of content-heavy Web development projects. Presented in an easy, readable style, the book focuses on asking the right questions and gathering relevant information needed for efficient project planning and development.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Richard Sheffield is currently Managing Editor for a Fortune 50 company's Web site in Atlanta, GA. He specializes in Web site content management system issues, editorial workflow, and content development processes. Prior to this, Richard was a Senior Content Strategist in IBM's Interactive Design Studio where he worked on Web content strategy engagements with a long list of IBM's top-shelf clients Richard has a B.S. in Industrial Management from Georgia Tech and an M.A. in Professional Writing from Kennesaw State University. The Web Content Strategist's Bible is Richard's eighth book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 210 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace; 1 edition (March 4, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1441482628
• ISBN-13: 978-1441482624
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #409,870 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A critical addition to a content strategist's library, September 8, 2009

By 

Moria Campbell "copydiva" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Web Content Strategist's Bible: The Complete Guide To A New And Lucrative Career For Writers Of All Kinds (Paperback)

I am a seasoned copywriter and burgeoning content strategist. My current project is a large scale financial Website. To prepare, I joined some content forums on the Web and sought out the best books available. Three made the cut and The Web Content Strategist's Bible is already a treasured reference. Richard Sheffield gave me absolutely essential ideas for improving my matrices which I can implement immediately. The book also introduces aspects of our discipline that I plan on applying to future projects.

The Web Content Strategist's Bible is well organized and easily digestible - just like good Web content. It is a breezy, but never superficial read. TWCSB gives a complete picture of the expected duties and deliverables for a strategist, so the book is excellent for those just entering the field. However I wouldn't say the book is only for newbies. TWCSB is suitable for anyone who deals with content and has the sense that things are being overlooked or that workflow could be improved. Sheffield clearly outlines the different project phases and associated challenges. Small organizations could use it to help create their content process and make the business case for having a strategist.

Make this part of your required reading and you will automatically be several steps ahead of your competition.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great tactical guidance to manage web content, May 13, 2010

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AC - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Web Content Strategist's Bible: The Complete Guide To A New And Lucrative Career For Writers Of All Kinds (Paperback)

I am a marketing manager tasked with managing the content process for our site redesign. This book has been a LIFE SAVER and helped me understand the exact steps that I needed to go through to manage the content build. I bought three books: Content Management Bible by Bob Boiko which has good information but is overwhelming at this stage in my learning as it is the size of a phone book! And Content Strategy for the Web by Kristina Halvorson, which was easy to read and had good information as well but seemed more theoretical. The Web Content Strategist Bible was extremely easy to read, straightforward, process-oriented and tactical. The book and the online bonus material were exactly what I needed to effectively manage the content in our web redesign.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good overview, but was hoping for more, July 13, 2010

By 

Mandy Schnirel (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Web Content Strategist's Bible: The Complete Guide To A New And Lucrative Career For Writers Of All Kinds (Paperback)

While this book was a good overview, I couldn't help but feel that it was lacking on details. It was a very quick read (read it on the train on the way to work in one day), and I felt that it would be a helpful resource for someone considering a career change to content strategist. However, only a few pages were actually devoted to the nuts and bolts of Web content strategy, SEO, etc. This would be a better book for someone who is entirely unfamiliar with what a Web Content Strategist does and what is involved in the process of a Web site relaunch (or launch). If you are already familiar with these things, this book probably won't bring much to the table.