Pre-Production
Research
User Analysis / User Needs: Personas, Scenarios, Surveys
Content Inventory / Audit
Content Gap Analysis
Competitor Analysis
Search Engine Optimization Research
Content Aggregation / Data Sourcing
Editorial Strategy
Voice / Style / Brand Guidelines
Idea / Concept Development
Development of Themes / Messages / Topics
Establish Workflow: People, Ownership, Roles, Processes
Content Plan: What, When, How (Short/Long Term)
Management
Information Architecture
Establish Metadata Frameworks
Implement Taxonomies and Classification Schemes
Develop Site Structures
Content Management Tools and Practices
Content Migration
Content Conversion
Analytics Configuration
Establish Content Backup / Versioning / Archival Practices
Production
Content Creation
Copywriting
Asset Production
Tagging / Classifying
Content Optimization
Search Engine Optimization
Accessibility Optimization
Proofreading / Editing / Fact Checking
Content Delivery
Encoding / Converting for Web
Distribution Processes and Tools
Post-Production
Promotion
Monitoring / Reacting (e.g. Social Media, Comments, Moderation)
Social Media Submission / PR / Marketing / Syndication
Evaluation
Analytics Analysis
Success Evaluation and Learning
And there you have it. The definition isn’t as precise as I’d intended when I started this post, but that may be appropriate for the tangled, messy world of content strategy.