What is a proven method for successful content creation? This 10-Step Strategy.

Are you a “Content Creator”? If you design and deliver communication, you very well may use that title to describe what you do.

The term content creation became popular alongside the rise of the internet, but message creation has occurred since the dawn of civilization. And the way to do it successfully is also timeless. Do you know how?

What is the process for successful content creation?

Designing and delivering messages that successfully reach audiences and have the desired impact follows a proven strategy. This strategy has three primary focus areas and includes 10 steps. It is...

The Nutrition Communication Development Strategy

I developed this strategy while teaching nutrition communication to undergraduates. It is included in Chapter 3 of Communicating Nutrition: The Authoritative Guide.

It applies to all types of communication and provides a roadmap connecting the key steps in communication design and delivery, while successfully accounting for three focus areas:

The Audience – with whom are you communicating?

The Message – what and why are you communicating?

The Channel – how are you communicating?

All 10 steps fit within the three focus areas as follows:

Designing effective communication ALWAYS begins with identifying and assessing the audience. Even if you have been tasked with sharing a specific topic, you still begin with the audience. Steps 1 and 2 should precede all others to ensure the message and channel are audience-focused.

The remaining steps can occur simultaneously and in a variety of ways. For the greatest impact, the audience remains involved throughout all 10 steps. When communication is designed without audience input it is more likely to miss the mark.

What are the 10 Steps for Creating Communication Content?

Each of the steps has been described in a blog post:

Step 1: Identify the audience 

Step 2: Conduct needs assessment 

Step 3: Identify your purpose and message 

Step 4: Research your message 

Step 5: Write and organize your message

Step 6: Identify communication channel(s) 

Step 7: Plan effective communication strategies 

Step 8: Practice! Pilot test! Revise! Practice! Pilot test! Revise again! 

Step 9: Present, produce, or publish!!

Step 10: Evaluate 

Do 10 steps feel like too much to accomplish? When done well, they are worth the investment. When something is overlooked, a resulting failure means all your effort was wasted.

The more communication you create for specific audiences on similar topics, the more you can use smart shortcuts to achieve quality work. To learn what these shortcuts are, refer to Chapter 3 in Communicating Nutrition: The Authoritative Guide, page 42-43, or this post.

As stated in Chapter 3, “Each time the steps in the design process are followed, the knowledge and experiences gained inform future work and streamline the process for new projects. Effective nutrition communicators are constantly learning and improving.”

To download a worksheet for implementing the 10 steps, visit this resource page.  

“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.” ~ Pablo Picasso

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