Joe Gollner: A Multi-layered Definition of "Content"
Nov 19, 2024
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Joe Gollner, Managing Director at Gnostics Research and an expert in content strategy, shares his extensive knowledge on the evolution of 'content'. He introduces a seven-layer definition that captures its complexity, highlighting the distinctions between content and information. Gollner discusses how AI-enabled text analytics and headless systems impact content management. He emphasizes content's role as an organizational asset and the challenges professionals face in aligning diverse stakeholder perspectives, offering insights into effective governance and content structure.
The evolution of content from tangible to digital formats necessitated a distinct management approach, separating content from its delivery channels.
Joe Gollner's comprehensive seven-layer definition contextualizes content as both an organizational asset and a reflection of collective knowledge and intent.
Deep dives
The Evolution of Content
The concept of content has evolved significantly over the decades, transitioning from tangible formats like books and manuals to digital mediums such as CD-ROMs and the web. This shift necessitated a new understanding of what content is, separating it from its delivery channels. Joe Golnar highlights how this evolution led to the emergence of content management practices, underscoring the need to manage content distinctly from the media in which it is displayed. This redefinition of content enables organizations to better strategize and leverage their knowledge and information across multiple platforms.
Layers of Content Understanding
Joe Golnar presents a comprehensive seven-layer definition of content to clarify its various dimensions, ranging from terminological to organizational perspectives. At the foundational level, content is defined as that which is contained, leading to the understanding of content as potential information within an informational context. Each layer builds on the previous one, ultimately highlighting the significance of content as an asset within organizations. This layered approach allows professionals to grasp the complexities of content better and guides them in ensuring effective management and utilization.
Organizational Value of Content
Content serves as an organizational expression of knowledge and intent, reflecting collective agreement on various topics within a company. Properly managed content transforms into an enterprise asset that has the potential to deliver future returns. Golnar emphasizes that for content to be recognized as an asset, it must be cultivated through a structured process that acknowledges its potential and implications within an organization. This perspective encourages content professionals to advocate for the recognition and value of content in driving business strategies and achieving organizational goals.
As recently as 40 years ago, we didn't have much need for the word "content."
But as soon as we started delivering the same information via multiple channels, we needed a way to identify the essential elements of content assemblies and to work with them independent of their various manifestations in information products. So the concept of "content" was born.
Joe Gollner has worked with content from its earliest days and has crafted a multi-layered definition to account for its many aspects.
https://ellessmedia.com/csi/joe-gollner/
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