Biz Q&A: Focus on customers, says content strategist

This week’s Monday Q&A features Sarah Werner, a content strategist for Click Rain. She is a Cleveland native and a graduate of Valparaiso University.

Question: How did you become a content strategist?

Answer: I was a huge nerd and pretty much grew up at the public library, where I developed a deep love of both books and technology, both of which are now essential to my line of work. Over the summer, my parents would have to beg me to spend time outside — and to this day, I am still pale as a ghost and possess zero athletic ability.

I earned a bachelor of arts degree in English from Valparaiso University in Indiana, which is also where I met my husband, Sioux Falls native Tim Krause. We met because we were in a ska band together (remember ska music?).

After graduation, I worked for a software company in downtown Chicago for two years before taking the plunge and moving to Sioux Falls to be with Tim. In Sioux Falls, I worked at The First National Bank in Sioux Falls as a marketing specialist until I realized my true passion was digital. Coincidentally, Click Rain was hiring a content strategist at the time — a position that fit my skills and interests perfectly.

I interviewed with Click Rain in December 2011 and couldn’t believe my luck when they hired me. A small culture-conscious tech startup staffed by folks who were just as nerdy as me? It was a dream come true. It still is.

Q: What’s the best part about your job?

A: I love going to work every single day. Paul, James, and Eric (Click Rain’s partners) have worked incredibly hard to create a work environment that promotes not only tech smarts and web expertise, but also humor, stewardship, leadership, inclusivity and openness.

We’re all nerds, and we’re all friends. We laugh. We debate. We do lunch together. We challenge each other. We go on trips. We wear jeans to the office. We volunteer. We have fun. I love my job.

Q: You specialize in content strategy. Why is this something that businesses need to pay attention to?

A: According to Google, “Content is the most important aspect of any site.” People are going to visit your website to research your products and services, watch your videos, read your articles or download your app. They’re not there to study your source code or evaluate your design — they are there to consume your content.

A content strategy is a customized plan that lays out exactly how your web content can help you reach your business goals. It not only asks what you’re publishing on your website but why, how, when, where, for whom, with what, how often you’re publishing that content and tons more.

Anyone who’s worked on a website can tell you that good web content takes planning, foresight, audience empathy, knowledge of best practices, expert execution and a ton of time. Good web content will engage your audience and boost your search-engine rankings.

However, many businesses continue to ignore their content, turning content creation over to interns, overworked marketing staffers or print writers who don’t understand web writing best practices. Businesses need to understand that that’s simply not going to cut it anymore, and that they’re only going to open themselves up to a slew of problems in the future.

Q: When it comes to content strategy, what’s the biggest mistake you see businesses making?

A: Honestly, the biggest mistake I see is businesses thinking that their website is all about them. It’s not. Your website should be about your users — your audience. When you make your business the focus of your web content, it’s easy to end up with stuff no one outside of your business wants to read. But when you shift to focus on your audience’s wants and needs, you begin to create content a little differently. And your audience will react to it differently, too, with increased engagement, loyalty and even sales. It’s so subtle, but it works.

Q: Do you have a certain service organization or charity you like to support?

A: Last year, Click Rain and the Sioux-Falls-based Dispatch Project made it possible for me to participate in a mission trip to Jamaica, where my team and I spent a week living among a maligned deaf community deep in the Jamaican countryside. We also spent time serving at an orphanage and visiting an infirmary.

This experience changed my life, and I plan to return to Jamaica this fall to continue serving and building relationships among the community there. If any readers are interested in getting involved with international service projects through the Dispatch Project, they should visit http://dispatchproject.com. It’s an amazing organization doing great things for our global community.

Q: What do you do for fun?

A: I’ve always been a writer, and I always have a manuscript or two in the works. Right now, I’m working on a historical novel set in 1811 as well as a work of speculative fiction set in the near future. (My tastes are kind of eclectic.)

And I’m really not kidding when I say I’m a nerd. In addition to reading any and all books I can get my hands on, I am a huge gamer (from video games to tabletop RPGs) and an avid viewer of old B-movie horror films. And I dearly love gardening despite being really, really terrible at it.

Q: What do you like about living in Sioux Falls?

A: I love that Sioux Falls is constantly surprising me. I’ll admit, I had my doubts about moving here, having spent most of my life in big cities like Cleveland and Chicago. But I’ve lived here for seven years now, and I still haven’t run out of awesome things to do, parks to explore, foods to try or interesting people to meet. Sioux Falls is such a unique and vibrant ecosystem that just doesn’t get enough credit.

Q: What can Sioux Falls do to attract more young professionals?

A: Sioux Falls is already a great place to jump-start a career — young professionals really have a chance to stand out here and find success. And I think that the tech industry is poised to become much more prominent in Sioux Falls, which will likely attract more of that demographic.