What comes first. Huh? That's right, the "what" matters more than anything else when you set out to create strong, appealing content.
Sounds simple. But it's not. Figuring out "what" can be deceptively difficult: It involves deciding upon the main message that you, or your client, want to communicate with, and through, the content. Not the top three or five, but the single most crucial message the content must convey.
Once the "what" is clear, other content-related choices - notably, the "how" relating to the best medium, design and communication channels - snap into sharper focus.
This model works with any subject. Here's a perfect example: a brand new way to separate eggs, quickly and without mess. Okay, that's the what. So, now how should that content be communicated? Demonstrate it! Show how. You gotta see it to get it: video is perfect for this.
It works so well, in fact, this video uses a script with barely a score of words. Just a snappy little ditty playing in the background to help sustain viewers' attention. What a perfect reminder - next time you're creating content - to let the main point guide your other choices about how to communicate, based on the audience, subject, resources and objective (or call to action). In this case, producer Handimania, makes subscribing to its videos irresistibly easy with perfectly timed, placed and scaled pop up buttons. And I did...because they had me at "what."
What do you think? Let me know!