My advice is always that – when thinking about content – companies think bigger than a single medium. Websites, presentations, videos, blogs, datasheets, press releases (the list goes on) – these are all simply different media/channels through which your message is told/communicated. So instead of thinking “website”, think “message”: develop core messaging about your company, solutions, products, and technologies, from which all the derivative content can ‘pull’ as needed.

Elsewhere on this site, we’ve summarized this project in a success story; this post takes you behind the scenes to see how the project was delivered.

Background: A Blast from the (Recent) Past

In late May, as I sat in Portland (cool city!) vacationing and working on the home stretch of the Miovision project, I received an inquiry from Kristin Mueller. She and I had worked together for years at Sandvine; now the HR Manager at VueReal, Kristin was looking for someone to do content editing as they overhauled their website.

Kristin asked me a simple-enough question: was I interested in and able to do some content editing?

If you’ve read this site’s FAQ, then you already know that I’m all about enabling an informed decision; naturally, my response was perhaps longer than expected…

Hi Kristin,

Thanks for reaching out…

In short, yes, that’s something I’d be interested in and able to help with. Over the past few months, I’ve been working with a few companies, primarily around core messaging and derivative content, including websites.

The longer answer is a bit more involved…

My advice is always that – when thinking about content – companies think bigger than a single medium. Websites, presentations, videos, blogs, datasheets, press releases (the list goes on) – these are all simply different media/channels through which your message is told/communicated.

So instead of thinking “website”, think “message”: develop core messaging about your company, solutions, products, and technologies, from which all the derivative content can ‘pull’ as needed. Doing so will ensure a consistent message across all your media formats, preventing all sorts of rework in the long term, and makes new content creation much more efficient. For instance, once you’ve got a messaging guide, you just copy and paste as needed into the website, choosing from ready-made headlines, paragraphs, tables, etc.

OK, that’s more than you asked for =)

If you’d like to talk about either approach – a quick web refresh or a larger messaging engagement – then let me know.

Not put off by this dissertation, Kristin introduced me to Reza Chaji, VueReal’s CEO. A few days later, I met up with the two of them to discuss the project.

Getting to Know VueReal

VueReal has some really interesting technology with huge potential, and they’re looking to aggressively grow their team. To aid with that growth, they were overhauling their website so it would serve as a useful recruiting resource; to that end, they’d already engaged with a local solution provider for the design work. In addition to the cosmetic upgrade, they wanted to use the opportunity to beef up their company messaging.

VueReal has some really interesting technology with huge potential, and they’re looking to aggressively grow their team. To aid with that growth, they were overhauling their website so it would serve as a useful recruiting resource. In addition to the cosmetic upgrade, they wanted to use the opportunity to beef up their company messaging.

Over an hour or so, Reza and Kristin told me about VueReal’s nascent culture, direction, goals, aspirations, and technology, while I asked probing questions and fervently took notes. In particular, I used the conversation as a proxy for demographic research: I asked quite a few questions about why their current employees had joined, what those people were looking for, what they liked about the company, etc.; I really wanted to understand their motivation, so I would be better equipped to write messaging that held strong appeal.

We quickly agreed that the best strategy was to go with the Messaging Guide approach I’d described in my email response to Kristin, as it would give them a collection of content from which to draw as needed in a variety of media.

A Little Bit Different

Unlike most other projects, where a company has distinct solutions and products, this one was a bit different – due to the nature of VueReal’s business, the company identity and the technology are very closely linked. My challenge was to describe the company and the technology in distinct, but very connected ways.

Due to the nature of VueReal’s business, the company identity and the technology are very closely linked. My challenge was to describe the company and the technology in distinct, but very connected ways.

Another neat challenge was how to position the company’s target market for solutions: VueReal’s initial focus is to revolutionize micro-LED production, but much of the same technology is applicable to any nano- and micro-device production. So really, the micro-LED market is just the first of, potentially, many.

After the conversation, the first step for me was to research the heck out of micro-LEDs, nano-devices, and so on, so that I could understand the market, the technology, and the challenges, which would let me better understand and explain VueReal’s unique capabilities as I sought to appeal to prospective employees. Conveniently enough, the same messaging that attracts job applicants (broadly: “we have unique technology that will let us solve these high-value problems in an enormous and growing market”) could be very easily relied upon when speaking with potential investors.

So, I eagerly dived into research papers, news items, analyst reports, and patents, and reached out to some friends who know a thing or two about micro-devices and the display market.

I eagerly dived into research papers, news items, analyst reports, and patents, and reached out to some friends who know a thing or two about micro-devices and the display market. The more I read, the more excited I got. I didn’t know much about VueReal before starting this project, but holy heck – they’ve got some amazing technology and are poised to really play a big role in a huge market.

Wow!

The more I read, the more excited I got. I didn’t know much about VueReal before starting this project, but holy heck – they’ve got some amazing technology and are poised to really play a big role in a huge market. While VueReal have made a name for themselves in the industry, they really haven’t received a lot of local coverage, but there are signs that things are changing.

It was also a bit of a trip down memory lane: at the risk of undermining my marketing credibility, my university degree is in Computer Engineering, so reading about pulse-width modulation (PWM), systems design, electrical engineering, semiconductors – and other fun stuff – conjured up memories of Nyquist plots, Fourier transforms, Laplace transforms, circuit design, and other things that gave me nightmares for years (true story!).

I followed my usual process of research –> mull –> write –> mull –> refine, and then sent the first draft over to Kristin and Reza. Reza and I got together a couple of weeks later to chat about a few tweaks, and after making those small changes we were done.

VueReal now had a brand-new messaging guide that:

• defined company positioning (including specific recruiting-oriented messages)
• explained the current state of micro-LED production
• identified existing production problems
• summarized their technology
• specifically explained how their technology addresses today’s production problems
• …and touched on how the overall solution is generally applicable to a broad range of micro-and nano-device production

Success Factors

Ever since passing over the final version of the Messaging Guide, I’ve been regularly checking their website, eager to see the updates (I’m excited for them, and I’m curious to see how the content I provided would be used). Last week, the wait ended as their new site went live. Several of the pages draw heavily from the Messaging Guide, so I’m glad to see it’s been of use!

So, what factors contributed to this project being successful?

First, as soon as I sat down with Kristin and Reza, it was clear that they had a very clear idea of why we were chatting. Perhaps this part sounds silly, but it’s not at all uncommon to work with clients who aren’t on the same page. Thankfully, Reza and Kristin were in agreement about the purpose of the engagement, which is the best possible starting point. From there, everything else is an implementation detail.

As soon as I sat down with Kristin and Reza, it was clear that they had a very clear idea of why we were chatting, which is the best possible starting point. From there, everything else is an implementation detail.

Second, at the risk of tooting the Cromulent horn, I must say that I think my own technical literacy and background helped. I was able to quickly find and digest quite a bit of technical information about the market and VueReal’s proprietary solutions. Obviously, not all of this information goes into the company positioning, but understanding it is crucial to correctly assessing differentiators and for determining what proprietary aspects should remain secret. This project is a pretty solid example of how powerful it is when marketers understand technology.

In Closing…

This project gave me the opportunity to learn about another really neat company right in my own backyard (they’re literally located across the road from one of my favourite coffee shops), and for that I’m thankful.

Plus, I enjoyed diving into technology that was new, but familiar. Part of the appeal for me in starting Cromulent Marketing is that I’ll get to learn an awful lot about a wide range of technologies and solutions, and this project really scratched that itch.

I’ll close by congratulating VueReal on their new website launch, by thanking Kristin for reaching out, and by thanking Nicole DeNoble for putting Kristin in touch with me (Nicole ran the Marketing Communications team at Sandvine, and Kristin initially reached out to her).

Part of the appeal for me in starting Cromulent Marketing is that I’ll get to learn an awful lot about a wide range of technologies and solutions, and this project really scratched that itch.