THE ANATOMY OF 5 m
o d e l s t o i n s p i r e y o u r t e a m ’ s s t r u c t u r e

Where Does Content Come From?
Our social feeds are full of new blog posts, curated links, and YouTube clips from not only media outlets, but also brands and creative agencies. How do these organizations create all this content? What do their content teams look like? And more importantly, how can your organization create a sustained production model that will deliver valuable content to your desired audience without overextending your team? NEWS blog

Where Does Content Come From?
In this presentation you'll learn about the five common content production models employed by old media, new media, brands, and agencies so that you can choose a content team structure for your organization based on your business model, content goals, and available resources.

Print may be dying, but
newspapers’ hierarchical editorial model is alive and well.

The Traditional Newspaper Model MANAGING
EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR PUBLISHER NEWS EDITOR STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER CITY HALL EDITOR EDUCATION EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR LIFESTYLE EDITOR EDITOR

The Traditional Newspaper Model MANAGING
EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR NEWS EDITOR STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER STAFF REPORTER STAFF REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER FREELANCE REPORTER CITY HALL EDITOR EDUCATION EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR LIFESTYLE EDITOR PUBLISHER EDITOR This model provides one-stop shopping for readers with a variety of news stories that are "fit to print." All decisions are approved on one level before they can move to the next. The reporters at the bottom cover specific beats.

The Traditional Newspaper Model A
newspaper’s “total coverage” approach to news is too resource-intensive for most companies. That said, several brands stand out for their well-staffed newsrooms and professional coverage of industry news. A newspaper’s “total coverage” approach to news is too resource-intensive for most companies, but several brands stand out for their well-staffed newsrooms and professional coverage of industry news. Cisco’s tech news site The Network features experienced reporters (with backgrounds at BusinessWeek, The Wall Street Journal, and Forbes) producing stories on cloud security and other important tech topics. Dell's Tech Page One assembles both original and curated content relevant to computer users and buyers. Content is organized into three channels (Technology, Business, and Lifestyle), and the quality of the articles is so high that the site is included in Google News search results.

The Traditional Newspaper Model The
Traditional Newspaper Model is right for your organization if ... NEWS New content is a core pillar of your operation. Your content reflects (or leads) your industry's news cycle. Content is critical to establishing or maintaining industry recognition and credibility.

Most new media (read: online
only) have borrowed their Most editorial online structure publications from magazine have borrowed publishing. their editorial A small structure editorial staff—from magazine including a publishing. handful of A staff small writers editorial or reporters—staff—sits including at the a center, handful orbited of staff by writers a constellation or reporters—sits at the center, orbited by a constellation of freelancers, guest contributors, and special of freelancers, guest contributors, and special correspondents. correspondents.

New Media Content Model CONTRIBUTOR
SOCIAL VIDEO PRODUCER PUBLISHER/ EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR 4GUEST CONTRIBUTOR 4FREELANCER FREELANCER5 4SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS 4STAFF CONTRIBUTOR GUEST5 GUEST5 CONTRIBUTOR EDITOR

VIDEO PRODUCER PUBLISHER/ EDITOR MANAGING
EDITOR SOCIAL EDITOR 4GUEST CONTRIBUTOR 4FREELANCER FREELANCER5 4SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS 4STAFF CONTRIBUTOR GUEST5 GUEST5 CONTRIBUTOR CONTRIBUTOR New Media Content Model While the staff at online publications resembles a magazine, the lead time for individual stories (typically several months) does not. Video and social media editors are both common in online publishing, as well as “producers” who create multimedia content. Copy editors and fact checkers are usually missing from the masthead, and editors and writers are often expected to check their work and source or create visual elements themselves.

New Media Content Model What
organizations are using this model? Here are two of many. Contently, a marketplace where brands meet journalists, has a successful website called Strategist that features analysis, video interviews, and in-depth stories about content marketing. Freelancer—a sister site—offers tips to help entrepreneurial writers market themselves. The energy drink market leader publishes its own print magazine, The Red Bulletin. While the publication is clearly tied to the brand, it's far more than a simple marketing tool. The Bulletin's revenue streams works just like most consumer periodicals, with subscription, newsstand, and ad sales.

New Media Content Model The
New Media Content Model is right for your organization if ... You have the full-time personnel necessary to coordinate content submissions and publishings. You can develop a network of regular contributors (inside-or-outside of the organization), especially if you plan on publishing frequently. The goal of content creation is to produce a tangible return-on-investment in the form of ad revenue, increased traffic, or lead generation.

Aggregation is another method of
content “creation.” Rather than contributors pitching ideas and editors assigning stories, writers curate and redistribute content published elsewhere.

The Aggregation Model NEWS AGGREGATOR
SOCIAL AGGREGATOR PUBLISHED CONTENT ^ PUBLISHED CONTENT ^ BLOG POSTS AND LINKS ^ RETWEETS AND SHARES ^ PUBLISHER/ EDITOR

The Aggregation Model NEWS AGGREGATOR
SOCIAL AGGREGATOR PUBLISHED CONTENT ^ PUBLISHED CONTENT ^ BLOG POSTS AND LINKS ^ RETWEETS AND SHARES ^ PUBLISHER/ EDITOR Aggregation allows organizations that lack the resources for original reporting to comprehensively cover a subject. Content is repackaged or simply curated from established media outlets. Some sites also aggregate content from (unpaid) bloggers who trade their content for use of the publishing platform.

The Aggregation Model Pure news-aggregates
include Google News and The Drudge Report. These outlets drive traffic to the sites housing the original stories they distribute. The Huffington Post and The Daily Beast have roots in aggregation, though they also now include original content. Corporations using aggregation include: GE, T-Mobile, United, and Viacom all work with RebelMouse, a social-aggregation platform founded by former HuffPo CTO Paul Berry that allows brands to aggregate their social content—blogs, Tweet, Instagram photos—into frontpage web content.

The Aggregation Model The Aggregation
Model is right for your organization if ... You can identify content relevant to your industry and audience that isn't already widely circulated. You can add value to existing content, either through additional analysis or tasteful curation. Audiences should come to you first rather than seeking out the original source. You can package aggregated content in such a way that it produces real engagement, such as social media comments or retweets.

Brands and SMBs often bring
in creative agencies to create content on their behalf. This content may form the core of their content marketing, or it may be supplemental to other efforts. Although an agency can be tasked with producing day-to-day content, in most cases the agency will focus on one or more large content projects.

The Agency Model FREELANCER ^
DESIGNER ^ STRATEGIST ^ COPYWRITER ^ CLIENT ^ PROJECT MANAGER ^

The Agency Model FREELANCER ^
DESIGNER ^ STRATEGIST ^ COPYWRITER ^ CLIENT ^ PROJECT MANAGER ^ The agency may recruit freelance writers and designers to contribute to the project. In most cases, the client will outline the project goals, and the agency will execute and deliver the final product. Project managers serve as a firewall between an agency's creatives and the brand.

The Agency Model Substitute "publisher"
for client, "editor-in-chief" for account manager, "managing editor" for strategist, and the agency model of content creation looks a lot like a traditional media enterprise. These agencies have really nailed brand publishing: Barbarian thrives at interactive, narrative-based content, such as the healthy living lifestyle portal they developed for Kashi, or the multiplatform content they created for GE that helped humanize the large brand. Razorfish is one the world's largest interactive agencies, and has successfully executed high-profile content campaigns with global brands like Nike and Mercedes-Benz to establish itself as an industry leader in e-commerce and other tech initiatives.

The Agency Model The Agency
Model is right for your organization if ... There’s no one in-house to provide higher-level strategic vision or tactical execution. You don't have the resources or skills on hand to build a team. You need help now and don't have time to build a team. You have the budget (or can find the budget).

Hiring a staff of journalists
and creatives to create content might not be in the budget for many small or medium-sized businesses. Dedicating even one employee to content creation might be a stretch. But small teams can create engaging content using modest

The Small Team Model HEAD
OF TWITTER ^ PRESIDENT OF VINE ^ #1 YOUTUBE FAN ^ BLOGGER ^ CHIEF INSTAGRAM POSTER ^ PROJECT MANAGER ^ COMMUNICATIONS HEAD ^ WEB DESIGNER ^

The Small Team Model HEAD
OF TWITTER ^ PRESIDENT OF VINE ^ #1 YOUTUBE FAN ^ Empower each and every employee to share their expertise on your company blog. BLOGGER ^ CHIEF INSTAGRAM POSTER ^ PROJECT MANAGER ^ COMMUNICATIONS HEAD ^ WEB DESIGNER ^ Put one person in charge internal contributions to your company content engine, but let others volunteer for which marketing "hats" they'd like to wear. Put an employee who's passionate about video in charge of documenting office life and interviewing industry experts on camera.

The Small Team Model There
are many SMBs successfully using this approach: The Dollar Shave Club spent $4,500 on a video that got them 9.5 million views, 23,000 followers on Twitter, 76,000 Facebook fans, and 12,000 new customers within two days. Foiled Cupcakes didn't even have a storefront when their strictly online business launched in 2009, but they did have 2,200 engaged followers on Twitter thanks to six weeks of targeted engagement (read: chatting with anyone and everyone in their target demographic).

The Small Team Model The
Small Team Model is right for your organization if ... Contributing marketing content is considered an opportunity, and your organization is willing to recognize and reward employees for their participation. Wearing multiple hats is your team's only option until more headcount becomes an option. Your organization—collectively—has something interesting to say about your industry.

Demand for digital content has
driven old media to adopt practices from new media, new media outlets to operate more like start-ups, and brands and agencies to become publishing operations. But which content model is right for your organization?

Conclusion Several key factors will
dictate your choice: FACTOR 1: BUSINESS MODEL If your business is newspaper or an agency, you're probably going to implement a variation of the Traditional Newspaper or Agency content model. But if you fall somewhere in between, the content model that best suits the structure of your business will likely end up being a combination of two or more of the five models we discussed. CONTENT

Conclusion Several key factors will
dictate your choice: FACTOR 2: CONTENT GOALS Why are you producing content? Is to draw attention to your brand? To sell ads? To establish yourself as a thought leader within your industry? Your content goals should be reflected in the type and frequency of the content you create and share. These factors will, in turn, determine the content model you adopt to carry out production.

Conclusion Several key factors will
dictate your choice: FACTOR 3: RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS You can handle small-scale production with an in-house team, but as you increase your publishing frequency you may need to reach out to a network of contributors and freelancers from outside of your organization. As your resource needs and hierarchical arrangements shift, so will your content model.

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