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Web Content Development

Web content development is the process of planning, researching,

creating, and maintaining information for online publication.
Practically, all information that we see in websites is produced using
this practice.

As of 2016, there are more than 1 billion websites in the Internet.

(source: internetlivestats.com) Because of this, coming up with ideas
for new websites has become a very challenging task. In a time where
there is 1 website for every 7 people in the planet, how can we create
web content that is unique, useful, and interesting to the public?

What is web content?

Web content is the term used to describe text, sounds, images, videos,
and other media that are published in a website.

What is web traffic?

Web traffic is the number of visitors in a website and the number of

web pages that they visit. Web traffic is used to measure the popularity
of websites and web contents.

Web Content Lifecycle

Web content lifecycle is a series of steps or phases that web content
has to go through before and after it is published. There are no official
steps for web content lifecycle because people and organizations that
develop and publish web contents have different practices and
methods. However, for the purpose of this lesson, we will be exploring
5 most common stages:

1. Planning

The logical first step, planning is where the idea for a web content is
born. In this stage, we determine what type of web content should be
created, how it fits in the website’s objectives, and whether or not it
will be interesting to the readers. Here we also lay out important
details such as budgets and deadlines.

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2. Creation

After a solid plan has been created, it is time to create our web content.
The creation stage involves research, writing, and other creative tasks
such as graphics design, photography, and video editing.

3. Deployment

After the content is completed, it is now ready to be delivered to the

readers. Deploying web content may not be as simple as posting a
copy of it in a website. It has to be made available to different regions
and different types of devices and Internet browsers. The content may
also have to be translated to different languages in order to be more
accessible to people from all around the world.

3. Promotion

Web content needs to be seen by as many people as possible but just

because your web content can be accessed by anyone doesn’t mean
that everyone will see it. Promotion has to be done to persuade Internet
users to view web contents. Here are some strategies that are used to
reach potential viewers:
a. Social media
Internet users spend most of their online time in social media
sites and apps like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. This
makes social media a great way to attract potential website
visitors. It is now a common practice for websites to have
social media accounts so they can reach out to people and
promote their contents.

b. Paid ads
Basically, you can pay others to promote your content for you.
Many websites earn money by displaying advertisements for
products, services and other websites. For example, you may
see short commercials that play before Youtube videos or
search-related ads at the top of your Google search results.

c. Email advertising
Websites can ask users to sign up and receive emails that will
inform them about the latest contents and offers. These email
newsletters are often sent in a regular basis and contain links
that will direct the recipient to the featured content

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d. Web syndication
You can give other websites permission to publish your
original contents. These websites are required to give you
credit and even include a link to your website. This will make
your contents visible to other websites’ traffic.

e. Search Engine Optimization

SEO is a popular practice used to make web contents more
visible to online search engines. There are numerous SEO
techniques but all of them require knowledge of how search
engines work and how people use them. For example,
keywords that are related to your content’s topic are
strategically placed in titles, sentences and URLs to increase
the chance that a search engine will pick up your content
whenever someone searches for these keywords.

4. Maintenance

Web content maintenance is the process updating existing web

contents. Certain elements of the content such as pictures, statistics
dates and sources can be updated to keep it fresh, useful, and
interesting to the viewers. Aside from constantly creating new
contents, updating the old ones is a good way to attract web traffic.
Web content can generate a steady stream of traffic for years if it is
properly maintained.

5. Retirement

During this step, old and unpopular web contents are removed from
the website. These web contents can either be archived or permanently
deleted. Web content that become outdated or unpopular have to be
removed for several reasons:
 Digital information takes up memory space. Removing old and
unused contents will free that can be used to store new data.
 Removing the old and unpopular web contents brings focus to
the new and popular ones.
 Outdated contents are bad for the website’s image. If a website
has more old contents than new ones, viewers may get the
impression that it is poorly managed and not credible.

What is archiving?
Archiving is the process of gathering and preserving information for
future use. Outdated web contents can be unpublished and moved to an

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archive instead of being totally erased. Archived content can be

viewed in the archive and used as a source of historical data.

Content Management System

A Content Management System or CMS is a software application or a
set of softare applications that is used to create, publish, and manage
online content. Modern CMS applications have collaborative
environments, which allow multiple users to work on a single project.
Today, you don’t have to be a programmer or an ICT expert to create
and publish web content. In this lesson, you will learn how to work in
a team to produce and promote your very own content.

Blog:

Short for weblog, a blog is an online journal owned by an individual or

a group. A web content that is published in a blog is called a post and
bloggers normally publish them on a regular basis. Unlike a website
which has it’s own unique web address which has to be bought, a blog
can be hosted by a CMS for free.

WordPress
Wordpress is one of the top content management systems today. It is
free and easy to use. In this lesson, we will learn how to create a
WordPress blog.

How to Create a WordPress Blog

Figure 1. The WordPress homepage

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To begin, go to wordpress.com. Here you will see the “Get Sterted”

button. Click this and you will be taken to the first step of the creation
process.

Step 1: Select a category.

Figure 1.1. What is your website about?

In the list provided, select a category that best describes the type of
contents that you will be creating.

Step 2: Select a layout.

Figure 1.2. What would you like your homepage to look like?

A layout is how the parts of your blog will be arranged. Choose one
that suits your taste.

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Step 3: Select a theme.

Figure 1.3. Choose a Theme

A theme is a set of design elements such as font, colors and icons that
work together to your blog a certain style. WordPress themes can be
changed so the one that you will select in this step will not be
permanent.

Step 4. Find a domain name

Figure 1.4. Let’s find a domain

During this step, you will be asked to name your domain. WordPress
will check if the name that you selected is available. If it is already
tken, wordpress will suggest a name close to the one that you chose.
Free blogs have “wordpress.com” included in the domain name.

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What is a domain?

As the name implies, your domain is your online territory. A domain is

a part of the Internet that is under the control of a particular person or
group. Examples of domain name are wordpress.com and ama.edu.ph.
Step 5. Select a plan

Figure 1.5. Pick a plan that's right for you.

For the purpose of this lesson, just select the Free Plan.

Step 6. Create a WordPress account

Figure 1.6 Create your account

You will need a wordpress account to access your blog. To create one,
enter your email address and set a password then click the “Create My
Account” button. WordPress will send you an email. Open the email
and click the “Confirm now” button. This will open the log in page.
Enter your email address and password to complete access your blog.

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Figure 1.7 Check out amaempowertech.wordpress.com. This is

an actual blog created using the steps that we just learned.

Congratulations! You have successful created a blog. You can now

explore your WordPress account and post your original web content. If
you need help on how to use WordPress, you can visit its support page
at en.support.wordpress.com