Creating a Story: Step-by-Step Guide to Content Briefs

Overview

This article provides a step-by-step guide on how to create a story in Contently using content briefs. You’ll learn how to start a story, fill out key details, and organize it within your workflow for effective content creation.

Information

Creating a story in Contently is an essential part of the content creation process. By using story briefs, you can ensure that your content has clear goals, target audiences, and well-defined formats. This guide will walk you through the process of creating and organizing a story using the story brief feature in Contently.

Here’s how to create a story in Contently:

Step 1: Starting a new story

• In the top right corner of the Contently dashboard, hover over the plus icon and click "Create Story."
• Select the publication or project for which the story will be created. This could be your organization’s main publication or a specific department's project.

Step 2: Filling out the story brief

• Title: Add a title that summarizes the piece of content. For example, "Blog Post: How to Use Contently."
• Description: Provide a brief overview of what the story will cover. This helps guide the content creator and stakeholders.
• Pillars: Select the relevant pillar(s) from your content strategy. These represent the main topic or theme the content will address.
• Audience: Select the target audience. For example, the content might be aimed at entry-level professionals or decision-makers.
• Format: Choose the format of the story (e.g., blog post, video, article). This helps streamline the content creation process.
• Other details: You can add specific instructions, set a word count, include SEO keywords, or specify the number of images required.

Step 3: Organizing the workflow

• Assigning tasks: You can assign the story to specific team members or freelancers and specify the steps they need to take. Each step in the workflow can have detailed instructions and due dates.
• Editing the workflow: You can customize the workflow by adding or removing steps. The default workflow may include steps like "Drafting," "Editing," "Review," and "Publishing."
• Saving the story: Once the brief is filled out and the workflow is set, click "Save" to finalize the story.

Once saved, the story will appear in your Stories Library and Calendar. Team members or freelancers can claim the story, start working on it, and follow the predefined workflow steps. The text editor within Contently also allows content creators to work directly within the platform, making collaboration easy.

Summary

Creating a story in Contently involves filling out a detailed story brief and setting up a structured workflow. The brief helps define key elements like the title, audience, and content pillars, while the workflow ensures that tasks are assigned, organized, and tracked. By following this process, teams can efficiently create, manage, and publish content that aligns with their content strategy.