How do you compare information architecture and content strategy?

1 What is information architecture?

IA is the practice of designing the underlying framework and logic of a website, app, or system. It involves defining the content types, categories, relationships, navigation, labeling, and search features that help users find and understand the information they need. IA also considers the context, goals, and behaviors of the users and the business, and aligns them with the content and functionality. IA outputs may include site maps, wireframes, user flows, metadata schemas, and taxonomies.

2 What is content strategy?

CS is the practice of planning, creating, managing, and evaluating the content that goes into a website, app, or system. It involves defining the purpose, voice, tone, style, and format of the content, as well as the processes, roles, and tools for producing, maintaining, and governing it. CS also considers the user needs, expectations, and emotions, and how the content can meet them and support the business objectives. CS outputs may include content audits, inventories, models, guidelines, calendars, and analytics.

3 How are they different?

IA and CS differ in their scope, focus, and deliverables. IA is more concerned with the structure and organization of the information, while CS is more concerned with the substance and quality of the content. IA is more focused on the user interface and interaction design, while CS is more focused on the editorial and communication aspects. IA delivers more visual and technical documents, while CS delivers more textual and strategic documents.

4 How are they similar?

IA and CS share some common principles, practices, and skills. They both aim to create clear, consistent, and meaningful user experiences that solve problems and achieve goals. They both rely on research, analysis, and testing to understand the user needs, behaviors, and feedback. They both use tools and methods such as personas, scenarios, journeys, and prototypes to design and validate solutions. They both require collaboration, communication, and coordination with other disciplines and stakeholders.

5 How do they work together?

IA and CS work together to ensure that the information and content are aligned and integrated throughout the project lifecycle. They collaborate on defining the user and business requirements, mapping out the content types and structure, designing the navigation and layout, creating the content and labels, and evaluating the results. They also coordinate with other teams such as developers, designers, marketers, and managers to implement and maintain the solution.

6 Why do you need both?

You need both IA and CS to create effective and engaging digital products and services that meet the user and business needs. Without IA, your solution may be confusing, frustrating, or unusable for your users. Without CS, your solution may be irrelevant, boring, or untrustworthy for your users. By combining IA and CS, you can ensure that your solution is easy to find, understand, and use, as well as valuable, relevant, and persuasive for your users.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?