Writing is writing, right? Not if you want to keep your creative team [Kính màu hoa hồng]

“Time to make donuts.”

This phrase from a 1981 Dunkin' Donuts advertising campaign has become part of our workplace culture. People use it to talk about getting ready to do something repetitive, tiring, or pointless.

But that is a misreading of the original message.

The baker, waking up very early each morning, struggled out of bed and repeated his mantra, “It's time to make donuts.” Towards the end of the ad, Fred greets customers with a big smile, proud of his work.

“Time to make donuts” is not a lament about doing the same bad task day in and day out.

It represents Fred's commitment to creating something special day in and day out.

The tension between creating content that feels special and building useful (but not) content resonates with a lot of content practitioners. Without the right balance between these two factors, content creators can lose interest in their role.

Many #content practitioners get stressed when they want to create something special but need to build mediocre content, said @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent. Click to Tweet

Writing is writing, right?

The other day, I spoke with an extraordinary young writer at a B2B technology company who told me about her career path. hers . She got a job at a company where she wrote amazing articles and blog posts for B2B clients. A few years later, she took a job as a content marketer at this big tech company.

At first, she loved her role, which was to write short-form articles about the company's industry trends. She must do thorough research on the industry and products, interviewing people, and delving into the topic.

However, after a few reorganizations, she found herself acting as the site editor. Her daily work involves editing – not create – content describing product specifications and how.

Three months into her new role, she asked her manager about the possibility of expanding her duties to more diversity. The manager replied, “A writer is a writer. And writing is writing. ”

The first sentence is correct. Second is no.

Some people say that writers are writers, and writing is #writing. The first statement is true. The second is no, @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent said. Click to Tweet

Go the wrong way

I often meet people who have found great joy in their careers as content practitioners. They can be free create valuable content keep the audience entertained and informative. They love to create fun, creative experiences that stretch the imagination.

This is the marketing mission people mean when they say, “Everybody has two jobs – theirs and marketing”. The fire of engaging, idea-rich content creation burns so much that it captivates everyone – from the front desk to the C-suite.

On the other hand, I also run into talented content creators — like my acquaintances at tech companies — who spend their days building the most mundane but business essential content.

These creators often struggle with the pressure of building content that meets business needs while still trying to creative. They often feel frustrated because their hoped-for creative role turns out to be akin to working in a content factory. technical documentation and the expertise or skills required to turn those pieces into compelling material. She doesn't feel like she brings much value in that role.

She doesn't feel like she can really dig through the material because she lacks technical expertise. Her role is simply to make sure that the data and information is well constructed.

She recently left the company. That's a real loss to the business.

I worked with another company to consult on their plan to put together their new content teams. Leaders seem convinced that each group – product, brand, marketing, communications – should work solely on their own content. Product content creators should focus on product ingredients, specifications, and instructions on how to use the product. Brand content creators should work on referral lines and thought leadership. Marketing content creators will work on sales support documents .

I disagree and assume that product content can also be thought leadership . Branded content can be high-level promises and a simple list of ingredients. Marketing content can be ad copy for search engines and funny videos that make us all laugh.

The difference is whether the content is created or built.

Create versus build content

One of my favorite quotes comes from Analysis by GK Chesterton about The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens:

The whole difference between building and creating is this: that a built thing can only be liked after it has been built; but a created thing will be loved before it exists.

Attracting talent and retention may be the most important element of a content marketer's job today. And fostering and retaining content talent depends on balancing the number of people who build versus how much they create.

It's easy to assume that “built content” is boring stuff like navigation, spec sheets, documentation, contracts, and compliance documents, and that “generated content” is as much fun as storytelling. viral stories or videos.

Thinking that is not correct. Almost anything can be built with content, and almost anything can be made with content.

The difference is not in what is made but in why and how it is made, to repeat Chesterton's quote. As he put it, the essence of a work “exists before the book or before the main details or features of the book; the enjoy it and live in it with a kind of prophecy. ”

Of course, not all content deserves or claims that level of enthusiasm.

Elaborated content is important, but it is often something that needs to be created as efficiently as possible. Its value exists only after its completion.

While some may prefer to create 50orders Articles focused on SEO for a single product or 10 compliance documents for a service, the intrinsic value of the creation process will be quite small. Few people love the essence of that conformist article before it was built. The value of that document lies only in its usefulness after it is created.

Generated content gives creators (and those around them) joy before it's done. It is the bright flame that attracts people from around the business. It has intrinsic value before it exists.

Creating #content is the spark that draws people around the business to participate in its creation, @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent said. Click to post a Tweet

My argument to a company that plans to separate their team's content creation is that this approach won't ensure they attract and nurture the best content talent. That requires ensuring a balance between built and generated content.

All writers. But not just writing is writing. I have never met any content creators who were satisfied with building content as their sole activity.

The generated content gets most of us out of bed and making donuts day in and day out. Understand the difference between create and build. Then, balance those tasks across the team. That way, every creator will wake up feeling excited to continue making donuts.

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