Understand your audience

Most organizations that self publish their content are missing one critical element that traditional magazine publishers have: an editorial mission statement.

The first thing an editorial mission statement does for a publisher is define the subject area of content that will be published, whether it is on a website, in a magazine, or published elsewhere. It defines the scope of the content.

The other thing an editorial statement does is differentiate one publisher from another, the unique angle or coverage of a topic that a publisher pursues over many years. Knowledge accumulated over time. Intelligence.

Everyone involved with the content creation should know where their organization is going content wise. And they should know why the organization is going that way. Does it support a larger mission of the business, organization, technology, or movement? Does it educate and provide knowledge to readers that goes beyond the organization’s knowledge base?

As a content creator, you must choose a path early in the development process. If you approach the job as an editor, remember that the readers, and their informational needs, are the primary focus.

Case in point: Engineer's Guide to Military & Aerospace magazine. An editorial item I wrote was specifically developed for the publication’s editorial mission, which included ideas for the design, development and sustainment of military aircraft (e.g. fighter jets and helicopters). The piece described concepts that are important for the publication readers to understand about how design effects the efficient and ongoing maintenance of military aircraft. The by-line was given to an engineer who helped me identify the concepts and develop the piece for the publication’s editor. In addition to serving the needs of readers, the piece also helped establish the engineer and his employer as an authority on military aircraft maintenance. The story ended up earning three pages within the magazine and was mentioned on the cover.

When I started the piece, I had to do a lot of preparation before writing a single word of text. I went through a lengthy process just to prepare the interview questions and gather the information. I had to step back, do the interviews, and then see where the facts took the story. I did not come to any conclusions until after I conducted the interviews and reviewed input from the engineers, the magazine editor, and other independent sources.

As a magazine editor, I usually had the freedom to pick and choose the people I interviewed, what questions I asked, and the weight I gave to each part of the story. Stories for private companies were sometimes more defined for me in terms of subject matter and the client’s ability to edit the piece.

Editors are not supposed to let outsiders edit their stories. Another editor could maybe edit your story. But not outsiders. Nevertheless, I would sometimes give the people I interviewed the opportunity to see the written piece before publishing it. And they could even comment on the piece. But it was me, the editor, who had the final say as to the final edits and what got posted online or published in print. It doesn’t work that way when you are a consultant, a marketing or PR person, or even a freelance writer.

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Editors and publishers need to maintain clear distinctions between true editorial and advertising. Content developers have an obligation to readers to label or otherwise point out what content in their site or in their publication has been bought and paid for, versus what content is independent editorial material. Native advertising can blur this line.

Publishers who try to make editorial deals with advertisers in attempts to influence advertising decisions will eventually lose their readers and or viewers. What good is your native advertising if no one shows up at the site to read it?

Even among experienced editors who, for the most part, approach their work with objectivity and seek to report factual content without an agenda, there is still inaccurate and misleading information published. This is particularly true with complex events, where the human brain may struggle to reconstruct the events, subject matter, and content.

Republican and Democratic journalists, for example, may be sincere in their attempts to explain the reason(s) for the outcome of the 2016 presidential election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. And both types of reporters may find factual information about why some people voted one way and other people voted another way. But can any single journalist ever present a comprehensive and complete picture of what happened? I doubt it.

I believe “fake news” existed long before Donald Trump made it into a big deal. Even so, it has evolved into a bigger problem. It has eroded confidence in all media, including the ones that I thought were mostly credible. Make no mistake. There are bad people out there, committed to putting out misinformation and propaganda. Some might try to influence political elections. Others may use “click bait” stories to get you to a place on the Internet you didn’t intend to visit.

I trust and believe most journalists have a purer approach to their reporting. And some will be clearer, more certain, and more complete than others. Job 1 for a journalist should be to arrive at an understanding of fundamental truths that are as irrefutable as 2 + 2 = 4. And then arrange these facts in a comprehensive and logical sequence for others to comprehend.

Following are some important questions to ask about your organization’s content and content development strategy. Who are the persons most responsible for technical content development? Where do they work? At your company? An agency? Can they be objective and third party? What is that person’s title? Editor? Marketing? Engineering? R&D? A combination of these or other titles?

It’s important to determine what is the intent or goal of the content. Why was it selected among other types of content? How did the idea for content start? What is the agenda for content? Goals? How will it be used, and by whom?

Also ask yourself: Is similar content available elsewhere? Is anyone else operating in this technical content space? How do I provide something useful and interesting to my audience in my content?