Tech Company Proof of Concept Project
Situation
In this real-world simulation, Content Rule, a content strategy firm, subcontracted our team to create a proof-of-concept project for Tech Company. Tech Company sells an enterprise-class server called the Zen4. We were tasked with creating a single-source solution for their hardware and software guide content.
Tech Company’s Goals
Tech Company needed unstructured FrameMaker book files reconfigured in a single-source solution that would allow
- A searchable, online knowledge base
- Flexible print products for various customers and products
- Consistency across content
- Single-source updating capabilities
Our Challenge
The challenge of this project was the large volume of content, the inconsistencies across articles, and lack of meaningful cross-references. The articles contained multiple types of content (reference, task, and concept). The htm files only contained a few cross-references each (if any), making a usable knowledge base difficult.
Our Approach
01
Content Audit
We classified each article as a task, reference, or concept, separating articles into multiple content modules where appropriate.
02
Templates
We created three htm templates for tasks, references, and concepts, allowing standardization across content.
03
Metadata
As we combed through the content, we created targeted keywords and metadata to increase efficiency in the knowledge base.
Content Audit
The screen capture above shows an example of each htm file categorized as a reference, task, or concept. This required our team to divide the articles and read through each one to determine if it could be simply classified or if it needed to be broken up into multiple files.
The above screen capture shows a file that was later broken up into two files: concept and task. The title indicated that it should be a task, but the content contained both concept and task information.
Templates
Task
Reference
Concept
Metadata
We combed through each article to determine the best metadata and keywords to ensure an efficient and user-friendly knowledge base.
Results
As a result of our content audit, templates, and metadata we were able to deliver standardized modular content to Tech Company. They now have the ability to create print on online help guides tailored to client needs.
Final Product
+ Single sourcing allows Tech Company to update content once across all formats.
+ Modular content allows customers to receive personalized versions of the content they need.
+ Standardized templates let employees focus on their writing rather than their formatting.
+ Content and formatting remain consistent across print and digital mediums.
+ Improved keyword and metadata inclusion to the content’s knowledge base allows customers to search for content online easily.
+A thoughtfully designed information architecture allows users to easily answer questions and learn more about the Zen4 Server System.