Слайд 1CASH
Content
&
Photo: © 1984 Betty Weinaug
Melissa Rach
@melissarach
DialogStudios.com
Слайд 2I am two people.
Johnny is the nice one.
Cash causes
all the trouble. —Johnny Cash
Слайд 3Business expectations
To make an investment, funders expect:
To know exactly
what content will do for the organization
Proof of competency/quality
Exactly how much it will cost
Provable value and ROI
Hard numbers. Right now.
Слайд 5We can do it
We know content work is valuable
We know
content is a benefit (necessity) for businesses
And the organizations are catching on, too
Слайд 6Today
Selling and scoping
Estimating value/ROI
Measurement
Слайд 7But first…
some anger management
Слайд 81.It’s not (always) about disrespect
or even money.
©2014 Abbey Hambright
Etsy.com/shop/abbeychristine
Слайд 9Economics is making the best out of life.
—Gary Becker
Слайд 10Decision making is scary
Investing in content:
Means NOT investing in other things
Might result in loss of:
Money
Time
Other opportunities
Professional reputation
Emotional anguish
Слайд 11And hard…
People:
Are limited by what they know
Latch on to
things that are familiar
Choose the safest option
And then immediately start worrying that they’ve made the wrong decision
Слайд 122. Content is a harder decision than most
Photo: ©1980 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 13Content breaks all the economic rules
Things of value are usually
Exclusive
Transparent
Hard to replicate
Endless supply AND endless demand
Слайд 14Content work is a service
“New” industry
Very diverse
No obvious accreditation
Doesn’t fit nicely into a traditional business
Слайд 153.Numbers don’t need to be exact.
Photo: ©1980 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 16As far as the laws of mathematics refer to reality, they
are not certain; and as far as they are certain, they do not refer to reality.
—Albert Einstein
Слайд 17Measurement is…
A set of observations that reduce uncertainty where the results
are expressed as a quantity.
Слайд 18Numbers are a communication tool
Numbers reduce uncertainty:
Approximate values
Shortcuts
for the brain
Common vocabulary
Слайд 19Selling and scoping
(building a relationship)
Photo: © 1978 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 20The goal:
Make a confident decision that’s beneficial to everyone.
Слайд 211. Define the need
What is the need? What are you
offering?
New or updated content
Cleaned up content/fixed mistakes
More efficient, happier workplace
Unifying strategy
Ongoing service
How does this work benefit the business? How do (will you) you know?
Слайд 222. Understand the process
Get all the information you can, find
out:
What is the decision?
What impacts that decision?
Who impacts the decision?
What experience do stakeholders have with content work?
Is there a budget?
Слайд 233. Make connections
Photo: © 1980 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 244. Understand all benefits and costs
Слайд 255. Tell a hopeful story
Create a story that highlights key benefits,
such as:
We can serve users better
We can be more efficient
We can beat the competitors
We can be more accurate
Слайд 266. Eliminate fear
Discuss the details
Answer questions
Address concerns
Start
small or do some proof of concept work
Provide references (services) or samples (goods)
Be patient
Слайд 27Estimating value and ROI
(the magic formula)
Photo: © 1980 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 31Content as product
What is the content product worth?
Benefit: Profit from
the sale of the product
Cost: Cost to create the product
Слайд 34Content as influence
What is the piece of content worth?
Benefit: Increased profit
as the result of an end-user behavior change
Cost: Cost to create the content
Слайд 35Estimates, not exacts
Figure out what you know; fill in the
blanks with assumptions
The average Johnny Cash t-shirt costs $20
Analytics show that 50 people start the process of purchasing a t-shirt online every day, but only 10 finish the process
User research shows that the instructions on the purchase pages are very confusing
We assume 5-10 people leave the purchasing process because of something unrelated to the site, and 5-10 leave the process when they see the shipping costs
We assume the remaining 20-30 people would complete the purchasing process if the instructions were more helpful
Therefore, the value of the instructional content is likely around $144,000-216,000 per year ($20 x 20-30 people x 30 days X12)
The cost of fixing the content is approximately $5,000
Слайд 36Intermission
Photo: © 1982 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 38Efficiency tool
What is the tool worth?
Benefit: Cost savings as the
result of employee behavior change (or happiness)
Cost: Cost to create/maintain the tool and train people to use it
Слайд 40Strategy (or service)
What is the strategy worth?
Benefit: Combination of:
Savings/profit
from:
Content as product
Content as influence
Tools
Sub-services
Value of non-monetary benefits
Cost: Cost to create/implement the strategy
Слайд 41
Estimating results
BEFORE
work starts
Слайд 42
Max Gain x % Success = Risk if denied
Max Loss
x % Failure = Risk if approved
Слайд 43Estimating probable results
Basic project information:
Maximum gain: $216,000
Maximum loss: $5,000
Chance for
success: 70%
Expected opportunity loss:
Risk of approved: $5,000 X 30% = $1,500
Risk if rejected: $216,000 X 70% = $151,200
Слайд 44Pricing basics
Look for comparables
Give ballpark estimates early
Estimate on time,
price on value
Aim for a consumer surplus
Always provide numbers in person
Слайд 45Price is like setting a screw. A little resistance is a
good sign.
—Harry Beckwith
Слайд 46There are a lot of good economists, but there is only
one Roger Clemens.
— Robert Solow
(1987 Nobel laureate)
Слайд 47Measurement
(being well-rounded)
Photo: © 1977 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 48Our friend, Johnny…
Stats
50+ million albums sold
Created:
96 studio albums
63 compilation
albums
153 singles
Honors
17 Grammy Awards
9 CMA Awards
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rockabilly Hall of Fame
Songwriters Hall of Fame
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
Country Music Hall of Fame
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
Kennedy Center Honors
National Medal of Arts
Hollywood Walk of Fame
Слайд 49Variety of measurements
Analytics
Qualitative assessments
User research and usability
External expert review
Internal expert review
Efficiency measurements
Слайд 50Measure often, expect long-term results
Establish a baseline
Measure consistently over
time
Use different timelines for different types of content
Слайд 51Score!
Section score:
88 out of 100
↑ 15% since April
Слайд 53©2014 Abbey Hambright
Etsy.com/shop/abbeychristine
Слайд 54It’s about
decisions
not
disrespect
Слайд 55It’s NOT
us-against-them
it’s about
building relationships
Слайд 56It’s about
reaching understanding
and
reducing uncertainty
Слайд 58It’s not
traditional
but it’s
achievable
Слайд 59
Go prove it.
Your work is valuable.
Слайд 60Thanks!
SLIDES: bit.ly/CIDMCash
@melissarach
melissa@dialogstudios.com
www.dialogstudios.com
Photo: © 1981 Betty Weinaug
Слайд 61Want to know more?
Content Strategy for the Web (second edition)
Check out chapter 10
By Kristina Halvorson and Melissa Rach
How to Measure Anything
by Douglas W. Hubbard
Marketing Professional Services
by Philip Kotler, Thomas Hayes, Paul N. Bloom
Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science
by Charles Wheelan