IBM Ecosystem Guide Content Governance and Communication Plan Date: October 16, 2014 (version 4.0)Project: IBM Ecosystem Guide (aka “Project BlueDot)

Table of ContentSIntroduction...................................................................................................................................2

Content Strategy...........................................................................................................................2Site Content Goals.......................................................................................................................2

What differentiates Ecosystem Guide Content?..........................................................................3Audiences / Personas..................................................................................................................3

Audience / Persona Stories.........................................................................................................6What is an Ecosystem Guide?.....................................................................................................6

Content / Guide elements and hierarchy.....................................................................................7Guide Identification and Acceptance Criteria..........................................................................10

Is there a need for a Guide?......................................................................................................10Can the content be written as a Guide?....................................................................................10

Editorial and Design Style Guides.............................................................................................11Editorial Style Guide..................................................................................................................11

Design Style Guide....................................................................................................................14Content Management Toolkit.....................................................................................................20

Content review and approval tracking.......................................................................................20Content readiness......................................................................................................................21

Content matrix...........................................................................................................................22Content Management System (CMS) User Manual..................................................................23

The Editor overview...................................................................................................................23Permissions...............................................................................................................................23

Log in.........................................................................................................................................23Online help.................................................................................................................................23

Create a new persona...............................................................................................................24Create a new Guide...................................................................................................................25

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Add and edit new Guide content...............................................................................................26Edit existing Guide content........................................................................................................27

Add or edit glossary content......................................................................................................28Manage attached files................................................................................................................28

Quick reference.........................................................................................................................29Content Maintenance Plan and Editorial Calendar..................................................................31

Feedback Management Plan......................................................................................................31Usage, Branding and Communication Plan.............................................................................32

Email communications...............................................................................................................34Facebook sharing......................................................................................................................34

Twitter........................................................................................................................................35LinkedIn.....................................................................................................................................37

Measuring Effectiveness............................................................................................................39Consumption..............................................................................................................................39

Engagement..............................................................................................................................40Conversion.................................................................................................................................40

Cost Estimation...........................................................................................................................40

Introduction

This document provides an overarching look at the content governance and communication plan for the new IBM Ecosystem Guide site. Here you will find:

The overarching goals and strategy for the new site Tactical guidelines for planning and writing site copy, including acceptance criteria

as well as editorial and design style guides A content management toolkit that supports content review and approval tracking Guidelines for content maintenance Details of how to provide feedback and who to contact about creating a new guide How and where to feature Guide content on ibm.com Where to find details about estimating costs for creating different types of guide

content

Content Strategy

Site Content Goals

The new IBM Ecosystem Guide (“Guide”) website supports the following MVP:

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The IBM Ecosystem Guide digitally enables Business Development Managers and Developers at ISVs to understand the steps to building a marketable solution on enterprise-grade IBM technology.

What differentiates Ecosystem Guide Content?

It’s... Step-by-step (“guided”) Informative Practical Simple and concise Curated (“the right content”) Cross-IBM Audience focused Visual, multi-media Immersive Active, hands-on learning

Audiences / Personas

Guide visitors have specific content needs and tasks they want to accomplish. Developing personas and understanding our core audiences creates opportunities to:

Develop content that meets business goals and objectives Improve the user experience Attract potential customers and partners Raise awareness of key services and increase brand loyalty

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About:

Has a basic understanding of technology and major players in her industry Has a sales, strategy or M&A background Understands cost-benefit analysis, sizing of development efforts Wants to understand how IBM offerings can move her agenda forward and make her

company money Wants to know what’s coming, but doesn’t feel like IBM thinks she’s important enough to

keep her in the loop Prefers high-level summaries with the ability to share/reuse content She’ll reach out to Sandy Carter for more info if I have to

Context:

Needs to find new markets and sales avenues for her company Not yet 100% committed to IBM ISV is in Tier 3 of IBM coverage model (uncovered) Uses her mobile device to get information and learn about new offerings

Implications:

Types of content:o Informative, useful, direct and clear (not technical)o Covers business topics (strategy, competitive research)o Case studies, testimonials, demos, datao High-level overviews with “how to get started” shareable, takeaways and demoso Show how and where to get visibility, sell stuff (events, catalogs, marketing

ideas, etc.) Wants access to IBM clients or IBM Install base

Beth the Business Development Manager (aka: Alliance Manager) at an ISV

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Wants easy access to content, doesn’t always want to register, unless the benefit is clear

Believes she is worthy of IBMs executive-level attention

About:

Builds things, agnostic of technology Has a favorite technology that he’s loyal to, but also want to know about the latest and

new technology I just want to be the developer, not the marketer or salesperson I want content I can trust, but also want to have influence on the content I like simplicity in services Don’t waste my time with cumbersome tech or unintuitive interfaces

Context:

I’m on a team where I’m responsible for building a new product or improving an existing one

I’m the team’s technical lead and need to understand the breadth of technologies needed for a solution and what it will take to use them

Implications:

I want a solution, not technology I prefer to use things I’m familiar with, but I’ll try new things Keep it simple and respect my time I need to be able to trust, influence and share content I want to see the breadth of the solution so I can feel comfortable with all aspects (no

“gotchas”)

Dan the Developer (aka: Coder/Engineer) at an ISV

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About:

I have front-end development skills that I use when necessary I work with content authors to get final edits Sometimes I need to respond quickly to editorial changes I work primarily from my laptop, connected via wifi My work is aligned to a growth initiative or subject

Context:

I’ve been asked to make new Guides available to mobile developers through IBM Ecosystem Guide

I need to maintain the quality and timeliness of content on the IBM Ecosystem Guide site I need to promote new content via social channels

Implications:

I would like a WYSiWYG (“What you see is what you get”) + HTML (for all editors) tool with the ability to update page templates (for selected admins)

Ability to preview (staging) and publish to production immediately No need for responsive design or offline mode Need to filter by “my stuff” and track changes

Audience / Persona Stories

The following stories help us further refine and identify specific content needs and tasks our core audiences need to accomplish. Persona stories also help inform and develop our content strategy, governance and the communication plan needed to develop and manage Guide content:

I, Beth the Business Development Manager need…

Materials to help me get ideas approved with C-level execs Information to help me develop a cost/benefits analysis of different solutions

Chris the Content Editor (IBMer who edits or manages Guide content)

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The latest information and updates to keep me up to date on developments in my industry

Clear, easy to use and understand information about IBM’s broad range of solutions Information that’s easy to access and use on my mobile devices

I, Dan the Developer need…

To be able to try new technology or services at no or minimal cost To quickly learn how to use and implement solutions To get support from peers or technical experts when I get stuck (quick answers)

I, Chris the Content Editor need…

Some guidance to put together the right content To understand the voice and tone of a Guide and how it differs for each audience To understand the review and approval process To know what Guide content should look like. What type of content should be included? To understand style and design guide elements: For example, what is the limit of

progression steps? To know how to publish and manage content

What is an Ecosystem Guide?

A Guide is a linear, guided experience that helps our core audiences better understand an end-to-end (E2E) process through a series of steps. Each step is designed to help the consumer solve a particular problem and/or get the information they need to become more valuable, in partnership with IBM.

Guide characteristics:

Clear title, description and purpose Speaks to a single audience/persona Addresses one to three of our Guide objectives listed above Solves a problem statement Drives users to an existing platform for more information Leads to conversion

Guide objectives:

Users of Guide content will be able to:

Build a proof of concept Complete an IBM process Convince peers to use an IBM solution Articulate IBMs offering and/or process Understand what to do to make money with IBM

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Simplifies and curates existing content Gives users free content:

o Trial accountso White label slideso Descriptions and definitions

Speaks at a higher level than solutions and services Has follow-on progressions or actions Has a community of SMEs to support and evangelize

Content / Guide elements and hierarchy

The overarching Guide content hierarchy, structure and approach is:

1. Audience/Persona-based: From the homepage, audiences are presented with clear options that create quick and easy self-selection based on needs and two types of personas:

a. Business and sellingb. Development

2. Step-by-step: Guides provide a linear storyline, but are also written in a way that a reader who is somewhat familiar with the content can easily move around, skip steps or proceed with “Next” button and text links.

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3. Tactical, hands-on and self-enabled: From the Guide titles and steps to specific calls to action and takeaways, the goal is to get audiences started and drive traffic to IBM solutions.

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4. Visual: The nature of these guides is instructional and therefore tends to be text heavy. As a result, we look for opportunities to “visualize” and enhance content with infographics and diagrams whenever appropriate and useful.

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Guide Identification and Acceptance Criteria

This section should be used a worksheet to determine whether the content you’re considering is appropriate and can be developed and supported as a Guide on the site.

Is there a need for a Guide?

You should be able to answer no to the following questions:

1. Is the product or service already simple, easy to understand and use? 2. Is the need for a Guide only about generating awareness and visibility?

You should be able to answer yes to the following questions:

1. Can the audience (ISVs) use the service or solution now?2. Can you articulate the value of the progression to the end user?

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Can the content be written as a Guide?

Once the need for a Guide is identified, the following factors help determine if the content can be developed and supported:

Does the topic have an owner? Is there a SME or team of SMEs that can validate content and answer

questions? Is there someone to write, manage and maintain the content? Can the progression be accomplished in 4-8 steps? And in less than 30 minutes

without waiting for an IBM response? Does it fulfill 1-3 of the Guide objectives? Is there a place to go to:

o Ask questionso Read and learn moreo Take action

PLEASE COMPLETE THE ATTACHED “GUIDE QUESTIONNAIRE” FOR HELP IDENTIFYING THE NEED FOR A GUIDE.

[THE GUIDE NEED WORKSHEET WILL ALSO BE SETUP AS AN IBM DOC (URL TO COME).]

Editorial and Design Style Guides

Editorial Style Guide

Overview

Homepage content is audience/persona-focused, is descriptive and it answers the question “why am I here.” In other words, in addition to allowing users to identify immediately with content, it explains what the site is about.

Elements of the editorial style guide include:

Voice and tone of content by audience Use of links Length and density of sentences, steps, etc. Guide structure and content types

Voice and tone

Guide content has a unique voice that supports the messaging of a variety of brands, services and products. The Guide voice should also support the IBM corporate voice

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when appropriate. Specific word choices and tone of voice supports our messaging and helps differentiate us in the marketplace.

MANY WRITERS. MANY BRANDS. ONE VOICE. With responsibilities shared between many different writers, in different places, these guidelines help keep our overall voice consistent. Consistency is memorable. As we aim to attract key audiences around the world, providing a consistent and relevant experience helps us make the right connection and build loyalty. Say no to corporate blah. Large amounts of content falls into the category of mind numbing corporate speak. It dull, cold and uninspiring. At it’s worst, meaningless and cliché; simplicity is avoided and jargon reigns. Voice and tone guidelines can help establish friendly professionalism without drifting into corporate blah.

Our voice is partnership based (more “we” less “me” and “IBM”)

Write like this… Not like this… Why?In this guide we'll show you how you and your developers can quickly and effectively evaluate technology and services as well as build, test, deploy and market your mobile app in the cloud.

When you work with an IBM business development representative, you’ll learn how to quickly and effectively evaluate technology and services as well as build, test, deploy and market your mobile app in the cloud.

Demonstrating a collaborative, team-focused culture through the use of the right words and tone of voice shows how much we value customers and partnerships. It also embodies the values we’re trying to express.

Our voice is informative and helpful (not technical and boring)

Write like this… Not like this… Why?Software as a Service (SaaS) is a way of delivering applications over the internet – as a service. Sometimes referred to as “on-demand software,” SaaS offers the potential to reduce IT costs by outsourcing hardware and software support to the SaaS provider.

SaaS provides network-based access to commercially available software. Characteristics include: SLAs, UI powered by “thin client” applications, cloud components, communication via APIs, stateless, loosely coupled, modular, semantic interoperability.

Even people that have deep knowledge and understanding of specific technology and topics don’t want to be bored by content that’s trying to sound smart. This type of writing turns into “corporate blah” that turns away potential customers.

Our voice is direct and clear (not corporate jargon and buzzwords)

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Write like this… Not like this… Why?IBM Cloud marketplace is a service that connects your company with customers.

IBM Cloud marketplace is a platform that delivers IBM as a service and unites your company with customers and each other.

Many of our core audiences are not familiar with and will instantly distrust corporate jargon. Concepts and phrases such as “IBM as a service” may make sense to us, but not to the outside world.

Our voice is friendly and conversational (not salesy or boastful)

Write like this… Not like this… Why?Where is your company in the mobile application development journey? Do you have a well-defined strategy? Can you measure ROI? We can help you answer these questions.

Transform your value chain to drive growth and ROI by putting IBM’s experience helping thousands of companies become mobile enterprises.

It can be a delicate balance when trying to sound confident and successful, yet not boastful. Ask yourself, what would I want to hear as a client? Balancing corporate capabilities with customer-focused benefits in a conversational, friendly way is usually a good start.

Content complexity and density

The table below compares the high-level editorial guide elements with the steps needed to accomplish these tasks:

Persona / Guide Selection Pages

Detail / Steps Pages

Client Focus Business and/or Developer Business and/or DeveloperMessaging Level

Strategic, high-level, client focused.

Instructional, step-by-step details, but concise. Not meant to replace in-depth information of IBM solution sites, but to enhance and support.

Content Complexity

Concise, straightforward, persona/audience-centric. Content is not complex or technical. The goal is to inform

Business and selling content is not technical or complex. Business Developer audience has some technical knowledge, but focus is

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and inspire audiences about what they get from the IBM Ecosystem Guide and how it benefits them at a high-level.

on takeaways and content that helps the business person progress their agenda.

Developer content is more complex and technical but only from the standpoint of providing just enough information to help them understand and get developers started using IBM technology and/or services.

Content Types Text, infographics Text, infographics, visuals/charts, video, PPT slides, PDFs

This structure should be apparent throughout the site. While both high-level and detail level content includes nuanced and benefit-oriented concepts that can add complexity to content development, the ideas are not complex.

Concepts are concise and clear, not technical, dense or complex for the sake of trying to impress. The goal is to support and enhance IBM solution content, not duplicate.

For all other editorial style topics from abbreviations and capitalization to trademarks, please reference the IBM Style Guide. To access the Guide you’ll need an IBM intranet id and password.

Design Style Guide

To support our position enabling Business Development Managers and Developers at ISVs to understand the steps to building a solution on enterprise-grade IBM technology, our visual style support simplicity and ease of use. While the site and content management system (CMS) applies styling, these guidelines are provided for reference.

Homepage, navigation, page headline and background guidelines

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1. ECOSYSTEM GUIDE LOGOBackground: #ffffff

2. SECONDARY NAV BARBackground: #00649d

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Opacity: 1Gradient: Color [0]: #003f69 Color[1]: #003f69Border-radius: 0

3. SECONDARY NAV LINKSFont-Family: HelvNeueBoldforIBMFont-Size: 13 pxColor: #ffffffHover: #82d1f5Font-Style: normalText-Align: centerLine-Height: 12 px

4. LEAD SPACE BACKGROUND IMAGEB&W image tinted with primary color of progression category*Landing page uses #008abfHeight can vary from 120-300px based on text*No breadcrumb on Landing pageLeft and right sides should blend to 100% solid color

5. PERSONA DESCRIPTION BOXBackground: #ffffffBorder: 2 px, #eeeeeeOpacity: 1Border-radius: 8

6. PERSONA ICONMain color for each persona typeBusiness and Selling: #17af4bDevelopement: #dd731cGeneral: #00b0daOpacity: 1

7. PERSONA HEADLINE TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 36 pxColor: #00b0daFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 40 pxHeadline may be 1 or 2 lines

8. PERSONA BODY TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 20 pxColor: #333333Font-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 28 px

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9. PERSONA ARROW BUTTONColor: #00b0daHover: #82d1f5

10. SOCIAL SHARE TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueRomanforIBMFont-Size: 13 pxColor: #666666Font-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 24 px

11. SOCIAL SHARE ICONSColor: #00b0daHover: #82d1f5

12. LEAD SPACE HEADLINE TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 48 pxColor: #ffffffFont-Style: normalText-Align: centerLine-Height: 50 px

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Guide and step design guidelines

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1. PERSONA ICONMain color for each persona typeBusiness and Selling: #17af4bDevelopement: #dd731cGeneral: #00b0daOpacity: 1

2. LEAD SPACE BACKGROUND IMAGEB&W image tinted with primary color of persona category*Steps pages uses #17af4bHeight can vary from 120-300px based on text*Steps pages use breadcrumbalong topLeft and right sides should blend to 100% solid color

3. BREADCRUMB LINKSFont-Family: HelvNeueRomanforIBM•acitve link uses HelvNeueBoldforIBMFont-Size: 11 pxColor: #ffffffFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 18 px

4. LEAD SPACE HEADLINE TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 37 pxColor: #ffffffFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 37 px

5. LEAD SPACE BODY TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueRomanforIBMFont-Size: 16 pxColor: #ffffffFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 18 px

6. STEP NUMBER TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueBoldforIBMFont-Size: 14 pxColor: #00b0daFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 16.8 px

7. STEP NUMBER HEADLINE TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 30 px

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Color: #00b0daFont-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 36 px

8. SHOW/HIDE INDICATOR BUTTONColor: #00b0daHover: #82d1f5

9. STEP DETAILS HEADER TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueBoldforIBMFont-Size: 19 pxColor: #333333Font-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 26 px

10. STEP DETAILS BODY TEXTFont-Family: HelvNeueLightforIBMFont-Size: 16 pxColor: #333333Font-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 22 px

11. STEP DETAILS IN-LINE LINKFont-Family: HelvNeueMediumforIBMFont-Size: 16 pxColor: #00b0daHover: #82d1f5Font-Style: normalText-Align: leftLine-Height: 22 px

12. DASHED RULEColor: #ccccccStroke: 1 pxOpacity: 1Border-radius: 0

Content Management Toolkit

The following tools and resources support the content review and approval process, content readiness as well as the ongoing management and governance of content.

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Content review and approval tracking

We’ve created an IBM Doc to manage the content development, review and approval process.

Once guide development is identified, approved and an editor is assigned, please email us at: ibmguide@us.ibm.com for access to the Guide Copy Review document. Editors will be given access to view and edit the IBM Doc with the new guide review and approval information.

As the screen shot below shows, we’ve established three rounds of copy development Draft 1 (D1), Draft 2 (D2) and Draft Final and review to prepare Guide content for publishing. Typically, there are several subject matter experts (SMEs) for each guide that should be added to the sheet for each round of review.

Content readiness

Guide content is considered ready when it meets the IBM Ecosystem Guide “definition of done” or content readiness. In other words, once all Guide/content elements and acceptance criteria

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outlined are met and incorporated into the draft it’s considered ready to be entered into the CMS.

In addition to review and approval by SMEs and other team members identified by the Guide Editor/Owner, the IBM Ecosystem Guide program manager and/or Guide Editors ensure that writers have all the information and details they need to start and complete a draft that meets our definition of done. This includes ensuring that the guide meets our submission and acceptance criteria.

Ideally, this is an ongoing and consultative process with the IBM Ecosystem Guide team that occurs before, during and after content development and publishing.

Content matrix

The IBM Ecosystem Guide content matrix is a central repository for all Guide content. This IBM Document (that will need to be shared with you by the document owner) provides a central location to track and manage every content type associated with a particular guide.

While drafts and the review process are typically managed as Word files, once final drafts are approved, it’s helpful to capture all existing and potential content elements in a central location. Each Guide, step and page element is assigned a unique id that corresponds with specific pages on the site.

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Additionally, the current content management system (CMS) doesn’t have the ability to capture different versions of a draft, source materials or notes for future reference. The content matrix provides the necessary fields and sharing features to manage this information.

To receive access to this document, please email us at: ibmguide@us.ibm.com.

Content Management System (CMS) User Manual

The CMS User Guide contains all the information editors and writers need to access and this custom-built CMS. It describes the features and options available, shows users how to add personas, build new Guides and steps, edit existing Guides, and manage files.

The Editor overview

The Editor is a customized, lightweight rich-text editor that is WYSIWYG (“What You See Is What You Get”). The text edited in the Editor looks as similar as possible to the results end users will see after the document is published. It brings popular editing features found in common desktop word processors such as Microsoft Word and Apache OpenOffice Writer and is simple to use.

Permissions

Different users will have different types of access to the site. Some users will receive page- or guide-specific access via URLs, while others, such as site editors and administrators, will have access to the entire site. When users log in with their user names and passwords, which are provided via email along with a specific URL by the administrator or editor, they have access only to what has been assigned.

Log in

Users log into the CMS by clicking “Log in” in the blue bar at the top of the page. A window opens when the user can input their username (IBM id required) and password. Clicking “Submit” opens the screen to which they have been given access. To request access to the CMS contact Nathan Bybee at nbybee@us.ibm.com [Once the final Ecosystem Guide URL / Contact link is available you can update here]

Once you’ve received a confirmation email that you’re authorized to access the CMS, log in at: https://tadev.somerslab.ibm.com/ibm/bd-cms/cms3/

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Online help

You can access a version of the CMS Help Guide as well as this entire document by clicking the “?” button in the top nav bar.

Create a new persona

Generally, administrators or editors will be the only users who can create a new persona or create a new Guide.

1. Log in with user name and

password.2. Click on “add” button across from the word “personas”.3. A window opens up below the last persona window.4. Create the title in the new window. This automatically creates the slug (a lower case version of

title with hyphens inserted between each word) in the field below. This is the system's identifier for a persona, guide or step and appears in the URL. Note: If you change the persona title, you will need to manually change the slug to reflect the new title.

5. Write the overview that describes the types of guides that will be found under this persona.6. Click “save” in the blue bar at the top of the page. Save more frequently, if preferred

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(recommended).7. When ready, click “publish to preview” in the blue bar to view results as end users will see them.8. When ready, click “publish to production” in the blue bar to publish to production.9. NOTE: Click the “up” and “down” arrow buttons to move your persona to a different position on

the published page. Click “X” to delete it. Only those with administrative access can move a persona.

Create a new Guide

1. Log in with user name and password.2. Click on the arrow next to the word “personas”.3. Click on the arrow next to “guides”.4. Click on “add” button across from “guides”. A new guide called “New Guide” will appear at the

end of the list, and a URL is automatically created for it. A message is also created that says, “Saved index data”. Click “ok”.

5. Click on “edit” to work on the new guide. This takes you to the “New Guide” page. 6. Either start writing, or assign the work to someone else by copying and pasting the URL from the

browser window into an email that is sent to the writer. Provide a copy of the CMS User Guide, or a link to this document, along with a user name and password and your explanation of what the writer needs to do. As part of the assignment, the writer will then write a new title, which automatically creates a slug in the field below it. The slug is a lower case version of the title with hyphens inserted between each work and is the system's identifier for a guide or step and appears in the URL.

7. Add new guide copy. It is recommended that copy be written first in a desktop editor and then copied and pasted into the CMS.

NOTE: Click the “up” and “down” arrow buttons to move the guide to a different position on the

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published page. Click “X” to delete it. Only those with administrative access can move a guide.

Add and edit new Guide content

Some users will be starting new guides, while others will simply be adding or editing content in existing guides. The features are the same for both, but the processes are different.

1. Click on or paste the URL provided by the administrator into a browser.2. Log in with the user name and password provided by the administrator [ANCHOR LINK]>(See

Permissions/Log in). User-specific log in gives access only to what the user needs to work on. For this demo, users will be opening a new guide framework and adding copy to two steps.

3. If you do not want the new guide to appear in the index yet, “X” the box at the top of the page called “Hide Guide”. It is likely you will want to check this box.

4. Replace the words “New Guide” title with a new title. A new slug will automatically be created in the next field (lower case version of title with hyphens inserted between each word). The slug is the system's identifier for a guide or step and appears in the URL.

5. Add the overview statement that explains what end users will learn from this guide.6. Add as many step fields as needed by clicking the “add” button across from the word “steps”.7. Fill in the title of each step, which automatically creates a slug (see above). 8. Add copy to the “body” fields of each step. 9. Any copy pasted into the CMS from another text editing file will keep the styling created in the

original. Use the editing toolbar, which will pop up automatically, to style the copy if needed.

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See the [ANCHOR LINK]>Quick reference, below, for how the editing features work.10. When the guide copy is complete, click “save” at the top of the page. Save more frequently, if

preferred (recommended).11. When ready to see what the guide looks like, click “publish to preview”, which allows the user to

review the content as it will appear when published. Note: The content is not yet published. Only the administrator can publish to production.

12. Follow these steps to go back into the guide at any time to clean up, change and otherwise edit the copy.

NOTE: Click the “up” and “down” arrow buttons to move your guide to a different position on the published page. Click “X” to delete it. Only those with administrative access can move a guide.

Edit existing Guide content

1. Click on or paste URL provided by the administrator into your browser.2. Log in with the user name and password provided by the administrator. User-specific log in gives

access only to what the user needs to work on. 3. Edit the title, overview or step fields as needed by clicking in the individual text fields. The

editing toolbar will automatically appear when the user clicks in a text field (See below for button definitions).

4. Fill in the title of each step, which automatically creates the slug in the next field (lower case version of title with hyphens inserted between each word). The slug is the system's identifier for a guide or step and appears in the URL.

5. Add/edit copy in the “body” field.6. When the guide copy is complete, click “save” at the top of the page. Save more frequently, if

preferred (recommended).7. When ready to see what the guide looks like, click “publish to preview”, which allows the user to

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review the content as it will appear when published. Note: The content is not yet published. Only the administrator can publish to production.

NOTE: Click the “up” and “down” arrow buttons to move the guide to a different position on the published page. Click “X” to delete it. Only those with administrative access can move a guide.

Add or edit glossary content

1. Open the additional content window and start adding or deleting text within the window using the editing toolbar.

2. When the copy is complete, click “save” at the top of the page. Save more frequently, if preferred (recommended).

3. When ready to see what the copy looks like, click “publish to preview”, which allows the user to review the content as it will appear when published. Note: The content is not yet published. Only the administrator can publish to production.

Manage attached files

Attached files are documents in formats such as PowerPoint or Adobe PDF that can be downloaded from the Ecosystem Guide website.

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To create a file link:1. Enter your guide and navigate to the bottom of the guide page to the section labeled “file

attachments.”2. Click the “Browse” button and choose your file.

3. Click “Upload.” The CMS will automatically generate a URL for the file.4. Copy the URL and create the link to the file in the usual way using the editing toolbar.5. Save guide.6. Publish to preview.

To delete a file link:1. Simply remove the link from the copy using the “Unlink” button in the editing toolbar.

If the file content absolutely, positively must be deleted:1. Create a file of the same type and exact name2. Add file within the guide and save over the old file. The blank file will override the old file.

Quick reference

Below is a visual dictionary of editing buttons, which shows what they look like and what they do.

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CutCut the selected text to the clipboardCopyCopy the selected text to the clipboard

PastePaste the selected text to the clipboardPaste as plain textUse to remove all formatting from text copied in from another editorPaste from WordUse when pasting content copied from Microsoft Word or similar applications. This feature will maintain most of the original formatting while removing erroneous code.UndoUndo the most recent action performedRedoUndo the most recent action performedCheck spellingCheck spelling of the document text or turn on Spell Check As You Type (SCAYT) featureLinkCreate a hyperlink for text or imageUnlinkRemove the hyperlink for text or imageAnchorInsert a link anchor to a “jump” to a specific location on the pageImageInsert and upload image for your document

TableCreate a table within the nextInsert horizontal lineInsert a horizontal line in the textInsert special characterInsert a special character or symbol in the textSourceView or edit the HTML source code of the document (for advanced users)BoldApply bold formatting to the textItalic Apply italic formatting to the text

StrikethoughApply strikethrough formatting to the textRemove formatRemove formatting to the textInsert/remove numbered listCreate or remove a numbered listInsert/remove bulleted listCreate or remove a bulleted listDecrease indentDecrease text indentationIncrease indentIncrease text indentationBlock quotesFormat a block of text as indented quotationStyles

Content Maintenance Plan and Editorial Calendar

Once the long-term content plan and team is in place for the IBM Ecosystem Guide a formalized content maintenance plan and editorial calendar can be developed. Both documents will allow interested parties to collaboratively plan content development, publishing schedules and management of existing and new content.

Once planning is complete and an editorial calendar established, regular review and maintenance of existing content becomes part of this process.

As the content and process matures, we envision a support structure that includes specialized editors for each persona, guide and potentially even ownership of specific steps within a guide.

At the moment, there are five guides that are managed by the Ecosystem Guide Program Manager. A maintenance plan and editorial calendar are under development in consultation with several interested teams.

Feedback Management Plan

If you have any feedback or questions about the IBM Ecosystem Guide or would like to submit a request for a new guide, please email us at: ibmguide@us.ibm.com.

Feedback and questions will be responded to promptly or forwarded to the appropriate parties for response. A central database for storage and review of feedback will also be created so that appropriate action and follow up can be taken to improve Guide content and the overall experience.

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Usage, Branding and Communication Plan

Placement of Ecosystem Guide “quick-links” or modules on various IBM.com sites is determined by a number of strategic considerations and objectives:

1. Enhance related and relevant page content: Ecosystem Guide content should support and seamlessly support what the audience is currently learning about

2. Informational (not promotional): In other words, alerting audiences to Guide content is not about what the Ecosystem Guide is, it’s about how it supports what you need to do.

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3. Cross-promote and help compare options: In cases where IBM is promoting a specific service, it may help build brand loyalty and increase awareness to cross-promote and provide comparisons for similar services.

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Email communications

What is the IBM Ecosystem Guide and why you should use it:

[Subject line options]

IBM Ecosystem Guide: The information you need to work with IBM Get the step-by-step information you need to partner with IBM IBM Ecosystem Guide: How does step-by step sound? IBM Ecosystem Guide: Step-by-step information for working with IBM How can IBM help you today?

[Body copy: IBM Ecosystem Guide mentioned in the subject line]

These step-by-step, online guides are designed to help you better understand end-to-end IBM processes and solutions. Each step provides the information and guidance you need to solve a particular problem or build a marketable solution in partnership with IBM.

Get started now

[Body copy: No mention of IBM Ecosystem Guide in the subject line]

Whether you’re a developer or a business development manager, The IBM Ecosystem Guide provides step-by-step, online information designed to help you better understand end-to-end IBM processes and solutions. Each step provides the guidance you need to solve a particular problem or build a marketable solution in partnership with IBM. Get started now

[New URL to come]

Facebook sharing

Whether you’re sending a private message, sharing on your timeline, a friend’s timeline or in a group, general messages can draw from the email communications above. Links to specific Guides should use the Guide’s introductory content in the body of the message.

See examples below:

Link to Ecosystem Guide Homepage:

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Link to specific Guide:

Twitter

The Twitter share button prefills your Tweet with the page link and “IBM Ecosystem Guide.”

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To create more compelling Tweets that incorporate best practices, we recommend the following guidelines:

1. Set up an @IBM Ecosystem Guide Twitter account2. Add # tags, but no more than two # tags in a tweet 3. Incorporate photos or graphics whenever possible and appropriate

General Ecosystem Tweet

Guide Specific Tweet

At a minimum, a Tweet should use an active voice that pulls in language from the Guide introduction and identifies that this is from IBM and/or the IBM Ecosystem Guide.

Ideally, at least one or two # tags are used to connect key words and ideas with trending topics such as mobile, cloud, etc.

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[Details and additional examples / graphic and imagery guidelines to come]

LinkedIn

LinkedIn provides a number of options for sharing information with the public, connections, groups or individuals. Whether you’re sharing with the public or your connections, we recommend you provide details as outlined below as opposed to using the generic LinkedIn default messages.

Share a general Ecosystem update with public, connections or groups

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Send to individualsLinkedIn pulls in a generic message, but when sharing Ecosystem Guide content with an individual, it’s recommended to add some details about the overall site or a specific Guide.

Default message

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Customize your messageThe Ecosystem Guide provides a variety of intro copy and specific Guide content that can be repurposed to make you message more compelling and customized to you audience.

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[Additional social guidelines and communication plan details including design strategy, brand identity, social strategy and cross-branding initiatives to come.]

Measuring EffectivenessTogether, content governance, strategy and communication plan help drive the site’s overall effectiveness. We can measure this effectiveness through:

Coremetrics: A leading provider of web analytics and marketing optimization, now part of the new Enterprise Marketing Management (EMM) group at IBM, provides a range of analytics and insight into how consumers will interactive with the IBM Ecosystem Guide.

[Details of Coremetrics tool, access, screenshots, etc.]

Consumption

How deep within the site is the user browsing? How much time is spent on site and with certain Guides and steps? Is the user viewing videos, downloading whitepapers, slides or case studies?

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[Open content item: More to come]

Engagement

Are visitors reading the entire Guide? Are they using it in linear, step-by-step way? Are they logging in? (When login is available.) Sharing and participating in forum discussions and social platforms? (When available.)

[Open content item: More to come]

Conversion

Are we increasing ISV usage of IBM solutions (Bluemix, IBM Cloud marketplace) and resources (developerWorks, PartnerWorld)?

Are we helping Business Development Managers and Developers feel it is easy to get their ISV started fast with IBM solutions?

Are we attracting new partners to IBM?

[Open content item: More to come]

Cost Estimation

What does an editor need to know and think about in terms of resources and costs and how to proceed with creating content, videos, infographics, slides etc.?

[Estimation of time to create content to come]

Video production guidance and cost estimation

[Estimation of additional content types to come]

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