Content in a Zombie Apocalypse by Karen McGrane—An Event Apart video

Friends, a zombie apocalypse is upon us: an onslaught of new mobile devices, platforms, and screen sizes, hordes of them descending every day. We’re outmatched. There aren’t enough designers and developers to battle every platform. There aren’t enough editors and writers to populate every screen size. Defeating the zombies will require flexibility and stamina—in our content. We’ll have to separate our content from its form, so it can adapt appropriately to different contexts and constraints. We’ll have to change our production workflow so we’re not just shoveling content from one output to another. And we’ll have to enhance our content management tools and interfaces so they’re ready for the future.

In this exciting presentation captured live at An Event Apart Austin, Karen McGrane explains how to survive the coming zombie apocalypse by developing a content strategy that treats all our platforms as equally important.

For more than 15 years Karen McGrane has helped create more usable digital products through the power of user experience design and content strategy. She founded Bond Art + Science in 2006, and has led content strategy and information architecture engagements for The Atlantic, Fast Company, Franklin Templeton, and Hearst.

Karen helped build the User Experience practice at Razorfish, hired as the very first information architect and leaving as the VP and national lead for user experience. There she led major design initiatives for The New York Times, Condé Nast, Disney, and Citibank, and managed a diverse team of information architects, content strategists, and user researchers.

She teaches Design Management in the MFA in Interaction Design program at the School of Visual Arts in New York, which aims to give students the skills they need to run successful projects, teams, and businesses. She is also VP of digital for consulting and venture capital firm Ignite Venture Partners. Her books Content Strategy For Mobile and Going Responsive are published by A Book Apart.

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