Research Guides: MSU Libraries Web Content Standards: Content strategy

Content Strategy

Why It Matters

Information goes stale quickly. While we are a library and thus have a vested interest in keeping and preserving information about just about everything, older information should not be positioned such that it obscures or is easily mistaken for up-to-date information. Also, all of our content should serve a purpose, and that purpose should be obvious to the user - otherwise, the website becomes difficult to use and to navigate.

Principles

All of our web content should serve a purpose.
And as content creators, we should know what that purpose is. It should be specific, targeted, and attainable.
All of our web content needs a caretaker.
And one person cannot take care of all of our website content. Each page should have an associated party (or group) that assumes responsibility for keeping the content accurate and accessible.
Every content creator has a responsibility to understand how to create accessible, usable content.
Writing for the web is a very specific skillset, different from writing academic articles, audio/video scripts, or other types of content. It requires specific knowledge, which everyone who creates content should actively seek out and maintain.
Content addition and editing should be data- and user-driven whenever possible.
Usability tests, Google Analytics and other statistics tools, and qualitative data from chats and research transactions can all drive the addition, deletion, or changing of content.
We will not create web content we can not or do not intend to maintain.
Even archival content requires periodic touch-ups and link checking. No piece of content should ever be published and never reviewed again.

Roles and Responsibilities

Requestor
When you put in a ticket to have changes made to a website, or ask a LibGuides author, digital exhibit conservator, DPAU staff, or other MSU Libraries content creator to update their content, you are a Requestor.
Provider
When you send new or edited content to Web Technologies or another MSU Libraries content creator for publication on the website, you are a content Provider.
Requestors can also be Providers - you can put in a ticket to have an update made, and include new or edited text.
Reviewer
Web Technologies staff act as Reviewers, making sure MSU Libraries web content adheres to the standards laid out in this document. But anyone can be a Reviewer, and in fact, we recommend that you have your content reviewed for accuracy by a colleague before sending it to us - some departments may even require it. Also, Requestors and Providers often act as Reviewers, since they provided the content to be added or changed.
Publisher
Web Technologies staff, LibGuide authors, and anyone else with direct edit/publish access to a MSU Library website are all Publishers.
Manager
The Coordinator of Web Technologies, assisted by DIWS staff, acts as the content Manager, maintaining and improving the MSU Libraries content strategy and lifecycle.
Sponsor
A project's Sponsor is usually an administrator, someone who approves the project's budget and resource allocations, and who approves the final product. In our case, this would usually mean the Dean of Libraries, Associate Deans, or the appropriate Director.
Communicator
Content Communicators tell others about any changes in web content. Web Technologies staff try to communicate any major changes, but other library faculty and staff may also need to act as Communicators (to liaison departments, or as part of a workshop, for example).
Stakeholder
A Stakeholder is anyone who is personally affected by a piece of web content. Our Stakeholders are usually Libraries faculty and staff, but depending on the project, could include academic faculty and staff, librarians and educators throughout Mississippi, or members of the general public.

Workflows

Creating a webpage

Requestor requests a page via ticket. CC Provider and any needed Reviewer, if not same as Requestor.
Provider creates content and attaches to ticket.
Manager or Publisher creates page on development server.
Reviewer approves page.
Publisher publishes page.
Communicator communicates change with library faculty and staff and any necessary external users.

Editing a webpage

Requestor requests edit via ticket. CC Provider and any needed Reviewer, if not the same as Requestor.
Provider attaches edited text to ticket.
Publisher makes any needed changes on development server.
Reviewer approves changes.
Publisher publishes changes.
Communicator communicates change with library faculty and staff and any necessary external users.

Unpublishing a webpage

Requestor requests via ticket that a page be taken down, OR Manager determines that the page is at the end of its useful life.
Manager identifies and communicates with relevant stakeholders to determine if the page is still needed and, if not, where the page's link should point users.
Publisher unpublishes the page and updates all necessary internal links.
Communicator communicates change to library faculty and staff and any necessary external users.

Content Lifecycle

Web Technologies staff will review website content every July for accuracy, accessibility, and timeliness. If we discover issues, we will consult with the content's stakeholders to get it updated. No content will be unpublished without thorough review and consultation with stakeholders.

News articles
News articles will remain on the live website for 5 years. News articles older than 5 years will be saved to PDF and deposited into Scholars Junction.
LibGuides
LibGuides that have not been updated in the past 3 years will be referred to the guides' owners for update or archival.
Other web content
Other webpages (for example, departmental information or descriptions of materials) may not need to be updated frequently. For this content, Web Technologies will simply check with stakeholders that it's still accurate and update it if it's not.

Library update: Recent database changes

MSU Libraries Web Content Standards