The LavaCon Content Strategy Conference | 27–30 October 2024 | Portland, OR
Heather Barranco

Heather is a strategy professional with over 12 years of experience translating complex insights into compelling stories that move people into action and help brands thrive.

With a passion for storytelling and extensive digital experience, Heather brings a deep understanding of the power of intelligent content within integrated experiences.

She’s worked in Miami, Denver, and Boston and has partnered with some of the top brands in the tech, communications, CPG, QSR, fashion, and alcohol industries.

Heather also describes herself as a globetrotter, gym rat, and environmental enthusiast.

The Purge: Killing the Misconception That Content Strategists Are Copy Editors, One Team at a Time

When someone asks me what I do for a living, I can’t just give a one-word answer – Teacher. Artist. Chef. Nope. My title is always followed by a 5-minute explanation and lots of confused looks. Which I’d expect from my dad’s great aunt’s cousin, but not my coworkers.

Despite content strategy becoming more of a household name across industries, many still don’t know what content strategists actually do. It can be beyond frustrating when someone asks you to “fix the words” after you just finished walking them through your in-depth content model for that new product feature.

So we’re initiating a purge.

In this session, you’ll hear how I went from working on a siloed team “”fixing the words,” to building a 10 person (+ growing) content strategy team that’s embedded within product teams and working alongside designers to build solutions that create world-class user experiences at scale.

Let’s forever purge the phrase “Can you fix these words?” from our coworkers’ vocabulary.

In this session, attendees will learn:

In this session, attendees will learn how to shift the perception of content strategists from editors to designers. They’ll learn what to include in an effective roadshow deck and how to build a strong case study that advocates for their craft. They’ll also learn how to build a robust content strategy team, even when their organization doesn’t fully understand what content strategy is or does.