Building The Ultimate Website Content Map Pt.1

by Scott Ellis on December 10, 2009

in Content Management, For Beginners, WordPress How To

14

All too often when we start to build a site (or rebuild one) the inclination is to start with design. But the content we populate the site with is the true foundation for the site, whether it is purely informational, geared toward selling, entertaining or whatever purpose your site has. The video tutorial below is a high-level overview of the process I walk through with my clients to help them to begin to refine their content, keep their writing inspired and on message  and focused. The video tutorial will also help you to think about the entirety of your content, not merely the pages and posts that most people think of. There is so much more!

Get started organizing your web content….

Make building your website easier by effectively planning the myriad of content that will make up your website and keep things logically organized, consistent and on message.

Upcoming Content Map Tutorials:

To Download the Content Map Mind Map Enter Your Name and E-mail:

Don’t forget to download FreeMind (free) to view the map.

If you are interested in MindJet MindManager (awesome but a little pricey) you can see more on Amazon: Mindjet MindManager 8

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Tagged as: wordpress, wordpress taxonomies

  • I feel you - all too often people begin by loading up a cms with a template they think would be cool - only to run into unforseen issues down the road.

    A little planning now can save a lot of headaches later.
  • "A little planning now can save a lot of headaches later."

    Couldn't have said it better. I've see a lack of planning be a problem on so many projects that I felt compelled to address it. But this tutorial is just the tip of the iceberg.
  • prasoonj
    Very interesting way to get the things right at the start itself. I have been thinking of restructuring my tags and categories for quite sometime now, this would help immensly. Thanks.
  • Prasoonj, getting it right up front is definitely the idea. I'm going to be adding on to this soon, keep your eyes open.
  • Wolftalker
    Dude,
    Brisbane, Australia here. (well, a very small part of it...)
    Thanks for the video, (Build Content Pt 1) it was interesting; e.g I hadn't thought an audio podcast would be suitable for my intended blog, buy you changed my mind on that.
    Always good to experience something by/from someone who tries to be their best.
    Fare Well.
  • Brisbane, Thanks for tuning in and glad you found it useful. Let us know when you launch the audio podcast, would love to hear what you are up to.
  • Wolftalker
    Hey Scott,
    okay, when it's up, I'll let you know how my amateurish/first time effort goes.
    And thank you for your interest.
    Ciao.





    ________________________________
  • Wolftalker
    Dude,
    Brisbane, Australia here. (well, a very small part of it...)
    Thanks for the video. Interesting; e.g, I hadn't thought audio podcasts would be suitable for my intended site, but you changed my mind on that.
    Keep on rockin'.
    Fare well.
  • laneparker
    Great post. I use mindmapping for many things and this is an excellent example.

    One note: you start your entry with "All to often" but it should be "All too often"

    Feel free delete after reading.
  • laneparker
    Great post. Thanks. I love mindmapping and this is a great example.

    One observation: in your first sentence you start with "All to often" but it should be "All too often"

    Feel free to delete my comment.
  • Laurie Gondreau
    Succinct and organized. Thank you.
  • Laurie, you are welcome!
  • Frank C. Tannehill
    This is one of the many reasons why I love using Wordpress. Besides the large variety of free themes and plug-ins, WP allows its users to organize their site before building it so they can keep up with every idea that comes to mind. Thanks for the video.
    __________
    Frank Tannehill - domain
  • Frank. You could use this strategy for any CMS really but it's definitely geared toward WordPress. Glad you enjoyed. You hit it right on, it's very easy to organize content in WordPress with just a little planning.
  • Annabel
    Scott, thanks so much for taking the time to make this video. I'm working on my first website and I strongly believe in the importance of mapping out how the content will be organized before filling the site, and your video has given me an idea of how to best approach this in WordPress.

    Two questions (feel free to ignore them if I'm asking too much, and if that's the case, sorry!):

    1. In what situtations would one use sub-categories? From what I learned in your video, tags sort of serve that function, except that they can sometimes apply across different categories.

    2. I plan to have some more or less static pages on my site (a guitar site) of what I'm calling "helpful stuff" such as how to tune, how to read tab, etc. In a case like that, even though those are "pages", would it be beneficial to create a category called "helpful stuff" and sub-categories for each one?

    Thanks again.
  • Annabel, I'll do my best!

    I don't tend to use subcategories a lot but there are certainly times where they might be. It's hard to say without knowing what your current site map looks like and what your top level categories are. (if you want to email it to me to take a look let me know). Part of the decision might be whether a subcategory is likely to cross over into other categories, or the volume of posts on a category.

    For example: I wouldn't make a sub category for "tuning". There is probably a limited number of posts on that topic you will likely write.

    "Helpful Stuff" to me sounds like a good catch-all category for random things (like tuning) that might not be posted on frequently.

    I would likely implement sub-categories on sites that are very large (in terms of content). That isn't a "rule" so much as a guide line. Ultimately you should do what works best for you and makes the most sense.
  • Thanks for sharing your take on how to approach content mapping. I was working on one myself, but I'm no programmer, so it was going to be manual. I think it will be much easier with a mapping tool!

    Much appreciated
    ~@dvautier
  • Diane, You are more that welcome. It keeps me motivated to know this is helpful to people!
  • tbert
    Great information Scott, Appreciate all the information you have provided to help people succeed online. They are so many that needs that straight forward simple teaching. Keep up the good work. I'll check back often,,,Thanks Tbert
  • Tbert - Thank you for that. It helps me to keep cranking this stuff out when I know it's helping people!
  • Great post.
    Just what I needed.
  • John, Glad you found it helpful! A little organization goes a long way toward having a successful website.
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