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NSPE
Content Strategy Report to Board of Directors, January 2014
Item 9.3 Attachment
NSPE Content Strategy
Introduction 2
NSPE Content
Strategy Report to Board of Directors, January 2014
Introduction In 2012, as part of NSPE’s Race for Relevance initiative, the Delivery
Systems, Communications, and Technology Task Force was formed
to review NSPE’s communications programs and make
recommendations. Among the task force’s final recommendations
was the following:
Resolve to develop an integrated communications approach by the end of
2013 utilizing all available communication platforms, including but not
limited to e-mails, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, PE magazine, and the
NSPE Web site that 1) promotes the mission of NSPE, 2) clarifies and
brands NSPE, 3) improves member engagement using an active rather
than passive approach, 4) clearly promotes the personal and professional
benefits of membership, and 5) increases advertising opportunities.
This emphasis on integrated communication was later included
among the strategic plan goals set by NSPE Executive Director
Mark Golden for the period of August–December 2013. The goal
states:
Consistent with the Race for Relevance Delivery Systems,
Communications, and Technology Task Force recommendations, integrate
and expand all levels of communication on NSPE activities and volunteer
accomplishments.
To address NSPE’s approach to integrated communications, an
interdepartmental task team was formed to develop a content
strategy that will, among other things, help NSPE establish a
unified, coordinated, and targeted content management and
communications program.
The NSPE
Mission
NSPE, in partnership
with the State Societies,
is the organization of
licensed Professional
Engineers (PEs) and
Engineer Interns (EIs).
Through education,
licensure advocacy,
leadership training,
multi-disciplinary
networking, and
outreach, NSPE
enhances the image of its
members and their
ability to ethically and
professionally practice
engineering.
NSPE Content Strategy
Overview of Content and Content Strategy 3
Overview of Content and Content Strategy
Content
Simply put, content is a new term for information. It includes all kinds of things that associations churn
out: the information in magazines, Web sites, blog posts, newsletters, tweets and other social media
posts, direct mail, white papers, and many others.
But content is more than just information. It’s a business asset. More and more companies are
publishing their own content because it allows them to have a visible role in the “conversation” that
usually takes place in social channels. John Deere recognized this back in 1895 (and before Twitter),
when the company began publishing The Furrow magazine. “Having a visible role in that conversation
is the way brands persist in our consciousness.” (The Content Marketing Manifesto, www.bussolati.com)
To be effective, content needs to be
Appropriate for your audience;
Useful;
User-centered;
Clear, consistent, concise; and
Supported (that is, it needs to be managed once it’s produced).
(Elements of Content Strategy, Erin Kissane)
Content Strategy
“Content strategy plans for the creation, publication, and governance of useful, usable content.”
—Kristina Halvorson, content strategy author and advocate
As the number of ways that associations can communicate with their members and the public has
grown significantly, it has become crucial to have a game plan. Establishing this game plan is the goal
of content strategy. One recent association survey (“Associations and Content,” bussolati.com) posed
this statement: “Our team has and follows an organization-wide content strategy.” Only 27%
responded “completely true” or “mostly true.”
In brief, content strategy can help associations improve
Consistency of their messages;
Coordination of their messages;
Planning; and
The perception of their organization.
NSPE Content Strategy
NSPE’s Role as a Content Provider 4
NSPE’s Role as a Content Provider
For NSPE, like all associations, much of the value it offers to members comes in the form of content.
When NSPE was founded in 1934, one of the first decisions made by the organization’s leaders was to
publish The American Engineer as a way to keep the public and profession informed about nontechnical
news of the profession and the Society.
Today, NSPE specializes in many content subject areas and has many ways of providing that content to
members and the public. Here is a sampling of some of those areas.
Examples of NSPE’s Content Subject Areas
Licensure
Ethics
Legislation/regulations/advocacy
Outreach to the public
Professional leadership
Volunteer leadership
Liability/risk management
Contracts
Awards and recognition
Continuing education
STEM
Interest group content: construction,
higher education, government, industry,
private practice
Image of the engineer/value of license
News of the Society, its programs, and
activities
Court decisions
Engineer employment
History of the Society and profession
Global practice issues
Examples of NSPE’s Major Content Distribution Channels
PE magazine Engineering Press
Review
Executive Director’s
Board Update
Young Engineer Blog
Web site Twitter (@NSPE) Young PE Quarterly Licensure/Ethics
Hotline
NSPE Update Facebook Job Update newsletter YouTube
PEPP Talk LinkedIn Press releases Printed collateral
PEC Reporter Leader Brief Education e-blasts Education sessions
PEI e-News SSEC List Student E-news Partnering
agreements
PEG e-News SSL List Dedicated e-mail
blasts
NSPE Blog
Daily Designs Talking Points Licensing Blog State Web sites
Twitter (@PEmag)
NSPE Content Strategy
Content Strategy Goals 5
Content Strategy Goals As the content strategy task team members began discussing the communications and content issues
the organization faced, it quickly became apparent that NSPE is doing many things well. But it was
also clear that there were areas for improvement, such as better leveraging the content NSPE produces
and making members more aware of what’s available to them.
Task team members also recognized that NSPE’s content strategy needs to support the overall goals of
the organization—specifically delivering value that not only helps retain members, but also brings in
new members.
NSPE’s Content Strategy Goals:
To contribute to member recruitment, retention, and state society engagement, NSPE
will:
1. Establish a unified, coordinated, and targeted communications program;
2. Provide accessible, compelling, usable, and quality content to all NSPE
audiences;
3. Position NSPE as a subject-matter expert; and
4. Actively manage content throughout its life cycle to maximize its benefit to all
users and build awareness of NSPE as a trusted content provider.
NSPE Content Strategy
The Content Strategy Process and Next Steps 6
The Content Strategy Process and Next Steps Content strategy has many proponents, and they all have recommendations for how content strategy
should work. While these recommendations were often helpful in guiding the development of NSPE’s
content strategy, it was clear that NSPE staff needed to create a process that worked for them—one that
could be easily managed on a day-to-day basis while supporting the overall goals.
NSPE’s content strategy has three parts:
1. Shared calendar: Staff will use a shared calendar to schedule the vast majority of NSPE
communications. This will help all NSPE content producers to coordinate their messages and
reduce the possibility of sending the same audience multiple messages on the same day.
NSPE Content Strategy
The Content Strategy Process and Next Steps 7
2. Content spreadsheet: This document, which will be shared by all content producers, ensures
that all messages have a staff lead, a defined audience, and a distribution plan using all
channels that are appropriate for the particular message. (Note: The complete spreadsheet does not
appear in the image below.)
3. Content Strategy Task Force: This standing task force will be made up of staff involved in all
areas of content delivery. It will meet regularly to assess results against goals, discuss
challenges, and refine strategies. The task force will report to the executive director.
NSPE Content Strategy
The Content Strategy Process and Next Steps 8
Next Steps It is important to remember that this report is just the first step in NSPE’s content strategy. It will need
to evolve to ensure that it meets the organization’s needs.
Transition current staff content strategy task force from exploratory posture to an active content
management capacity and begin regular meetings. (Complete by February 2014)
Establish next short-term goals in SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound)
format, with initial focus on fully leveraging current and newly generated content. (Begin by February
2014)
Establish content liaisons to:
o State societies;
o EWeek;
o MATHCOUNTS; and
o NICET. (Complete by February 2014)
Encourage a new way of thinking about content and its role in NSPE. (Ongoing)
The staff task force will actively track activity and analyze performance of the content management
system, with regular reports to appropriate volunteer leadership. Once the executive director
determines that NSPE performance in this area (the active management and circulation of new
content) is being performed at a satisfactory level, the task force will expand its scope of activity to
address the issue of curating the accumulated body of content to ensure it is accessible, apparent,
and usable by members and leadership.
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 9
Appendix
Meeting Notes
Content Strategy Kick-Off Meeting
9/10/13
What’s This All About?
Recommendation #2 of the Delivery Systems, Communications and Technology Task Force:
1. Resolve to develop an integrated communications approach by the end of 2013 utilizing all available
communication platforms, including but not limited to emails, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, PE
Magazine and the NSPE website that 1) promotes the mission of NSPE, 2) clarifies and brands NSPE, 3)
improves member engagement using an active rather than passive approach, 4) clearly promotes the
personal and professional benefits of membership and 5)
increases advertising opportunities.
2. Request that staff provide a detailed implementation plan by the 2013 Summer Board Meeting
describing the necessary steps to achieve the priorities as stated in the preceding paragraph.
▼ Mark’s Goals: Aug-Dec 2013
Strategic Plan Goal 3: Membership Growth
Communications/Engagement
Consistent with the R4R Membership Delivery Systems, Communications & Technology Task Force
recommendations, integrate and expand ALL levels of communication on NSPE activities and
volunteer accomplishments.
▼
Content Strategy =A New Way of Thinking
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 10
Why Am I On This Team?
You are all key contributors in NSPE’s world of content, either as providers, editors, archivists, or
maybe some of them all.
What Are We Going to Do?
The first order of business is creating a report for the board of directors that details NSPE’s content
strategy. We will need to deliver a progress report for the October 12 board of directors meeting. A
presentation showing the progress made will be delivered at the January 2014 board meeting.
This is a BIG topic that we will have to reduce to finite proportions. We can’t eat it all in one sitting.
Currently, we are doing a good job creating value, but we need to do a better job leveraging the
knowledge we have and making members aware of what’s available to them.
What Are NSPE’s Current Content Delivery Problems, Issues?
Golden shared a handout from “CEO Growth Strategy Forum”
Difference between knowledge contributors and knowledge consumers
Career Lifecycle (How does your content strategy apply to the various segments of your
membership?)
o Different engagement style and media
o Different content requirements as well
Examples
How do we manage our information assets and handle out-of-date info?
Tim Schaffer’s OSPE newsletter columns covering parts of Engineering Your Way to Success
Belinda Rasmussen’s PowerPoint on membership marketing
Aug/Sept PE cover story on NAE’s Messaging for Engineering report: What’s NSPE doing in its own
communications to put NAE’s recommendations into action?
We do a lot well, but need to ensure things are happening automatically; how do we use content in a
way to increase members’ sense that NSPE is in the know
Questions, Observations, and Sentence Fragments
1. Do we have an inventory of state communications? No.
2. Does NSPE need to do a content audit?
3. Many state web sites have out-of-date information.
4. We first need to determine our business goals for the next 30-60 days.
5. What about shared content calendars that we all can access?
6. Participation of state societies in the organization’s content efforts is necessary.
7. Does our content strategy need to be part of a larger integrated communications strategy?
8. Advantage of being NSPE: We’re not a big bureaucracy. We’re quick and nimble, like those parkour
guys.
9. We need to consider branding issues as part of our strategy.
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 11
10. It’s not about just providing more info. It’s about better info delivered to the right people at the right
time.
11. How do we make it easy for members and the public to find info when they need it … and then
remember that NSPE delivered it to them!
12. What are the communication channels here in 1420 King Street?
13. Focus on specific, near-term objectives. Our business objective is retaining members and increasing
membership. How can our content strategy contribute to retaining the members we have, gaining
more members, and assisting state societies?
14. How will our content strategy account for the diversity of member interests?
15. It’s about making body of info available to members.
16. There won’t be a single content strategy solution. It’s going to be a bunch of solutions that develop
and evolve.
17. Maybe we need a “Staff Content Strategy Commitment” that says what we believe.
18. What are our tactics to recognize individuals and state societies?
Let’s meet weekly. Siegel will send appointments.
In attendance:
Golden, Boykin, Cassidy, Eiser, Ober, Granados, Parker, Schwartz, Siegel
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 12
Content Strategy Meeting
10/7/13
Our Schedule:
We have 7 weeks from today to produce our report.
Need to complete report by December 5.
Calendar is saved in G:\Content Strategy
NSPE Content Strategy Goals:
In today’s meeting we focused on possible goals for NSPE’s content strategy. The consensus was that
we should aim for 3-5 goals. The following are the suggestions discussed:
Unified communications strategy
Targeted, coordinated messages
Member engagement: give members a reason to make a deeper connection to NSPE; make sure
members recognize NSPE has the info that meets their wants/needs.
Member recruitment, retention, state society engagement.
Review member surveys to see what kind of content they’re looking for.
Position NSPE as an expert.
Create compelling content: identify the core content areas and identify constituents based on
members’ career stage.
Content calendar: what are we doing, when? All newsletters, web info, and other communications.
Research online PM tools, like Redmine, that can help us manage our content.
Quality of content: in-depth, accurate content
Member testimonials: how members benefit from NSPE; blogs, Member Spotlight
Show diversity of membership and diversity in sources of content (Puerto Rico Society YouTube
videos)
Dispelling myths
Annual or semiannual reporting of defined metrics
Use SMART goal formatting: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based
Dave will refine and send out goals for review
Next, the group began a discussion on defining “content,” both in terms of subject areas and
distribution channels.
Content Subject Areas
Licensure
Ethics
Legislation
Professional leadership
Volunteer leadership
Liability/risk management
Contracts
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 13
Awards and recognition
Continuing education
STEM
Outreach to the public
Interest group content: construction, education, government, industry, private practice
PE “exceptionalism”
Content Distribution Channels
Here’s a first shot at assembling this. (Yes, it eventually should list audience, timing, etc. for each.)
PE magazine Eng Press Review Mark’s Board Update Young Engineer Blog
Web site Twitter Young PE newsletter Lic./Ethics Hotline
NSPE Update Facebook Job Update newsletter YouTube
PEPP Talk Linked In Press releases Printed collateral
PEC e-News Leader Brief Education e-blasts WHAT ELSE ????
PEI SSEC List Student E-news
PEG SSL List A lot of one-off blasts
Daily Designs Talking Points Licensing Blog
In attendance:
Golden, Boykin, Cassidy, Eiser, Ober, Granados, Parker, Schwartz, Siegel
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 14
Content Strategy Meeting
10/15/13
Review/Approve Goals
To contribute to member recruitment, retention, and state society engagement:
5. Establish a unified, coordinated, and targeted communications program.
6. Provide accessible, compelling, usable, and quality content to all NSPE audiences.
7. Position NSPE as a subject-matter expert.
8. Actively manage content throughout its life cycle to maximize its benefit to all users and build
awareness of NSPE as a trusted content provider.
Content vs. communications
Show content based on who you are???
Review/Approve Subject Areas
Licensure
Ethics
Legislation/regulations
Professional leadership
Volunteer leadership
Liability/risk management
Contracts
Awards and recognition
Continuing education
STEM
Outreach to the public
Interest group content: construction, education, government, industry, private practice
Image of the engineer/Value of license
ADDED: News of the Society, its programs, and activities
ADDED: Court decisions
ADDED: Engineer employment
History of Society and profession
Global practice issues
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 15
Review/Approve Content Distribution Channels
PE magazine Eng Press Review Mark’s Board Update Young Engineer Blog
Web site Twitter (NSPE) Young PE newsletter Lic./Ethics Hotline
NSPE Update Facebook Job Update newsletter YouTube
PEPP Talk Linked In Press releases Printed collateral
PEC e-News Leader Brief Education e-blasts Ed session content
PEI SSEC List Student E-news Partnering agreements
PEG SSL List A lot of one-off blasts NSPE blog
Daily Designs Talking Points Licensing Blog State web sites
Twitter (PE Mag)
State/chapter communications
Partner communications
International society communications
Member-to-member communications
Define Content Audiences/Customer Segments
Member: leadership level, mailboxers, engagement level, committee/TF participants,
Nonmember: students, teachers, counselors, advertisers/sponsors, stumblers, international engineers,
customers, “friends of NSPE,” general public, legislators, regulators, media, lawyers, insurers, HR
Roundtable
Former members
Point in career cycle
Industry segment/practice area/discipline
What’s Next?
Review of past surveys
Process
Share report with DCTF just before going to board; e-mail chair to update on progress
In attendance:
Golden, Boykin, Cassidy, Eiser, Ober, Parker, Schwartz, Siegel
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 16
Content Strategy Meeting
10/22/13
Finalize Goals:
To contribute to member recruitment, retention, and state society engagement:
9. Establish a unified, coordinated, and targeted communications program.
10. Provide accessible, compelling, usable, and quality content to all NSPE audiences.
11. Position NSPE as a subject-matter expert.
12. Actively manage content throughout its life cycle to maximize its benefit to all users and build their
awareness of NSPE as a trusted content provider.
The Process
1. Groupwise Shared Calendar
2. Content Spreadsheet
What is “content”?
Set up shared groupwise list
Leader for each “event”
Metrics – how do we measure, record?
Where do we draw the line on content?
Are there other ways of distributing content to reach more people?
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 17
Content Strategy Meeting
10/31/13
1. How’s the content strategy process working so far?
Any changes necessary?
Inform the content producers on your teams of this new process.
NICET, Eweek, MC liaisons
Mem serv staff? Make them aware, spread the word
Maximize content as it’s created
Set up GW mail list
2. Content Strategy Report Outline
Task team discussed the proposed content strategy report outline
Siegel will draft report and send to task team for review
NSPE Content Strategy
Appendix 18
Resources
The Elements of Content Strategy, Erin Kissane,
http://www.abookapart.com/products/the-elements-of-content-strategy
The Content Marketing Manifesto, Bussolati, http://bussolati.com/
“Associations and Content: An Evolution in Progress,” Bussolati, http://bussolati.com/
“Degree of Difficulty,” Signature, September/October 2013, Association Media & Publishing,
http://associationmediaandpublishing.org/
“Map Out Your Content Strategy,” August 2011, Associations Now, ASAE, http://www.asaecenter.org/
The Essentials of a Documented Content Marketing Strategy: 36 Questions to Answer, Content Marketing
Institute, http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/