{"id":70262,"date":"2019-04-11T02:43:00","date_gmt":"2019-04-10T16:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/elements.blog-cms.envato.net\/?p=112"},"modified":"2025-11-11T17:55:24","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T06:55:24","slug":"invisions-editorial-director-on-creating-brand-content","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elements.envato.com\/learn\/invisions-editorial-director-on-creating-brand-content","title":{"rendered":"InVision\u2019s Editorial Director On Creating Brand Content"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From his early days of running a consultancy, where he had the unenviable task of trying to convince skeptical brands that content was the next big thing, to his role as Editorial Director at the wildly successful digital product design platform InVision App<\/a>, Sean Blanda<\/a> has been a champion extraordinaire of content marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his role at InVision, he oversees Inside Design, the premium online resource for digital designers, and works closely with channel specialists to share InVision\u2019s editorial vision. As a result, Sean has a unique insight into what works and what doesn\u2019t when it comes to content and social strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why we got Sean to sit down with us for a Q&A, covering essential topics like where he gets ideas for the Inside Design blog, the impact content marketing has had on the InVision business, his approach to content production, and the brands that he believes are acing content marketing today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hey Sean, can you tell us about your role at InVision?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

SEAN: <\/strong>I’m the Editorial Director, which means I’m responsible for Inside Design<\/a>, our biggest publication (we have several including Design Better<\/a> and Medium<\/a>). I also oversee our social media platforms, our online store that we have big aspirations for, and I help out on lots of other areas of branded content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sean<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

What makes InVision a super cool place to work, and why I admired the brand from the outside, is that as a company we put content first. We make documentaries and film, and we produce great editorial content and emails. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mission of InVision is to elevate visual product designers and there are so many interesting ways we can do that through our content marketing.<\/p>Sean Blanda, InVision’s Editorial Director<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Where do you get ideas for the Inside Design blog?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

SEAN: <\/strong>One hundred percent of the Fortune 100 companies use the InVision product, so I’m spoiled in that I have a direct pipeline to some of the most dynamic companies in the world. That’s where so many of our ideas come from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also find inspiration while attending our many events, from designers tweeting at us or by a pitch from a designer. Sometimes, I\u2019ll see designers on Twitter or Medium saying, “Something my company cares about is \u2026\u201d and they start rolling out a design system. So we’ll say, \u201cGreat, write about it for us.\u201d So our content comes from looking at the cool people around us and trying to frame and elevate their insights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another source is all the amazing design expertise we have internally. For example, Aarron Walter<\/a>\u2014InVision\u2019s VP of Design Education\u2014 used to be VP of R&D at Mailchimp, and I can Slack him whenever I want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second layer of that (and this is something we’re trying to get better at) is how we look at the culture\u2014and I mean that in the broader sense\u2014and how design\/digital design has affected that culture. For example, I’m currently producing a series of posts about fitness and health. That industry has been totally revolutionized by digital transformation<\/a>. Digital products are utterly flipping over entire industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Invision<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Who and what is involved in producing content?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

SEAN: <\/strong>The Inside Design team is managed by myself and Shayna Hodkin<\/a>\u2014a super talented Managing Editor based in Tel Aviv. At the moment, since the blog is small and we\u2019re still figuring out the best direction to go in, I function as an editor-in-chief and I am editing everything, or at least touching every piece of content in some way. We have created several buckets of content, and this is different depending on the publication, but we have two axes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. The distribution axis<\/li>
  2. The branding axis<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    The distribution axis is for content we think will play well in our email newsletter, content we think will be good for SEO or content that will work on Twitter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For the branding axis, content might be more about hard skills; for example, topics like: \u201cThis is how you use the InVision product.\u201d Sometimes we write a softer trends piece like: \u201cHere are 20 new UX trends.\u201dWe also profile people and ask them about their design journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    At this point, we know that certain types of content work. For everything we plot out, we try to pinpoint who it\u2019s for and what we are trying to talk to them about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    No content for content\u2019s sake\u201d is what I\u2019d have tattooed on my arm if I was into tattoos!<\/p>Sean Blanda, InVision’s Editorial Director<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Also, we put all of our content through JIRA. I make sure every piece of content has a JIRA ticket and all the commentary for the piece of content happens on that ticket. Then every ticket is attached to a Google document with our briefing template. Everything has a Jira link and ticket, as well as a headline summary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What assets do you create to promote content?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    SEAN: <\/strong>We have weekly editorial meetings with key stakeholders. People can attend optionally. In those meetings, we discuss our ideas. For example, let\u2019s say I had the idea for interviewing the designer at Pinterest. I outline why I think their story is unique and why it would be good for social. Our Social Media Manager, Alisa Calvillo<\/a>, might say, \u201cHey, if you manage to include x, y, and z it would really help.\u201d And the person in charge of email might say, \u201cMessage it this way and I can use it too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So it depends on who owns that platform. I understand that in smaller organizations it might be the same person or people that own every platform, but it\u2019s just about knowing the outcome you need for that piece of content and taking your time to get it right. Unless you\u2019re in a breaking news situation you can always afford to take a few more days to get it right for distribution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    How do you create visual content?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    SEAN:<\/strong> At times we work with external designers, but normally we use our internal team, led by Aaron Stump<\/a> and Jason Santa Maria<\/a>, who manage a talented group of designers. A thing we do really well here is what we call a \u201claunch stack.\u201d It\u2019s just like a tech stack. Let\u2019s say we\u2019re launching a documentary; we try to determine what assets we need at what point and on what platform. We create a plan of action in advance and consult each channel owner. So, as the blog channel owner, I say, \u201cI need this image and it needs to look this way according to our style guide.\u201d Then our designer and photographer will ensure we have it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That\u2019s what we do for bigger campaigns anyway. For individual pieces of content we use some stock photos, but I don\u2019t like that. I want each article to have its own individual package and we\u2019re working towards that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What I also find is that being ahead of schedule by 10-14 days allows more time for creativity and for everybody to get their job done in the best way. Ideally, every channel has to have a person whose main job is to address the reaction of the audience so that we stay connected to impact and aren\u2019t just shovelling stuff out there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I have a couple of editorial truisms. One is, \u201cAlways keep the copy moving\u201d and the other is, \u201cProcess produces creativity\u201d.<\/p>Sean Blanda, InVision’s Editorial Director<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Why is InVision’s social strategy a success?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    SEAN: <\/strong>The people who manage the various platforms are in tune with the community that they\u2019re talking to. They attend events, listen to feedback, and take community response very seriously. They hold social media as just as important as the publication (Inside Design) itself because the only thing separating any brand from its competition is brand love: how much people love and trust it. This is why you give away more than you ask of your audience, trusting that the conversion will come on the back end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n

    Design \/ dev handoffs just got way easier\u2014with @Jira<\/a> \ud83d\ude0d https:\/\/t.co\/B5zxPc5SGo<\/a> #InVisionStudio<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/4IiA8dD3Ep<\/a><\/p>— Freehand by InVision (@InVisionApp) April 26, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote>