Nimble, and Real, Loops

Three months after publication, item no. 11 of the Content Therapy Manifesto is still my favorite. It encompasses an important part of the content process that involves both the content created and the [mindset of] the people involved:

Only if published content feeds back into the creators’ personalities, impasses in content creation, curation and governance can become highways.

A typical impasse in content creation: People run out of ideas for fresh content and start resorting to “proven” – but potentially boring – tactics. If use of those tactics goes on unnoticed for too long, they can become ingrained in the overall content strategy, snuggling into workflows and thus hindering governance.

Keeping feedback loops small and nimble helps a lot, but it’s important to make them as real as possible as well. Note the usasge of published in the quote above: Content that has been published is a different beast than content frolicking in your drafts folders. Published content is real; drafts, ideas, and even staged content (finished but not yet published) are not. To improve your team’s potential, make sure to feed real input into the feedback loops, and keep them tidy and nimble.