The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Editorial Mission Statements

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Editorial Mission Statements

Too few brands (18% of B2B marketers) have one. Given that media brands have been in the content business longer than most B2B and B2C brands – and share their mission statements publicly – let’s explore the good and note some of the bad and ugly. Redbook In 12 words and one picture, Redbook magazine describes its editorial mission – “style and confidence for the busiest, messiest, happiest years of your life.” The statement and image are published on its site. The good: It incorporates the push-pull of its readers’ lives. Describe your editorial mission clearly to prevent your content team and your readers from making assumptions about the purpose of your brand’s content. Sky & Telescope The editor of Sky & Telescope crafts the mission statement in a 235-word letter to readers: Now in its 77th year, Sky & Telescope is the world’s leading compendium of timely and accurate information about the science and hobby of astronomy. Peter Tyson Editor in Chief, Sky & Telescope The good: The statement clearly states the goal of its content is to “compel readers to go out and experience the night sky firsthand … to become dedicated night-sky explorers and advocates for this exciting science.” It also sets itself apart from the competition, detailing its differentiation: “…(w)e publish more elaborate, thorough, and objective product reviews, and more of them, than any other astronomy magazine.” The inclusion of the current year in the letter indicates the editorial mission statement may be updated (or at least shared with readers) yearly. Someone has to really, really want to know its mission to get through all that. Now craft your brand’s editorial mission statement While each of these examples (good and bad) offers lessons, make your brand’s editorial mission statement great by ensuring that it incorporates all the necessary elements. Ann regularly combines words and strategy for B2B, B2C, and nonprofits, continuing to live up to her high school nickname, Editor Ann.

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editorial-mission-statements

Let’s address the ugly part of editorial mission statements up front.

Too few brands (18% of B2B marketers) have one.

Yet, there are plenty of reasons why brands should have an editorial mission statement. As Kane Jamison writes, “(c)ontent that’s not backed by an editorial mission statement is a bit like a ship without a compass.”

A documented editorial mission statement gives your content team direction – it points out the who, what, and why of their work. And, if shared publicly, it communicates to potential readers what your content is all about.

But there’s an art to crafting editorial mission statements, and not everyone gets it right. Many statements lack sufficient detail – or offer too many details – to be useful.

The good news? You probably have everything you need to craft or improve your brand’s editorial mission statement today. You’ve probably documented the who, what, and why of your content in a multitude of places. Now, it’s time to bring it all together.

To get you started, let’s go over some best (and some bad) practices around editorial mission statements.

Given that media brands have been in the content business longer than most B2B and B2C brands – and share their mission statements publicly – let’s explore the good and note some of the bad and ugly.

Redbook

In 12 words and one picture, Redbook magazine describes its editorial mission – “style and confidence for the busiest, messiest, happiest years of your life.” The statement and image are published on its site. (Redbook is in the top 30 of circulation for magazines in the United States.)

redbook-mission-statement

The good: It incorporates the push-pull of its readers’ lives. It reminds the content team that their readers have complex daily lives.

The bad: Readers of the statement are left to their own interpretations of connotative words such as “confidence,” “messiest,” and “happiest.” Plus, the image accompanying the words is a single stereotype that drills down the audience to happy, white, youthful-looking, and fashionable moms.

Lessons learned: Be succinct but don’t oversimplify. Describe your editorial mission clearly to prevent your content team and your readers from making assumptions about the purpose of your brand’s content. And don’t rely on images to fill in the blanks, especially ones that make your editorial mission statement read more like a persona description.

The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)

The Gazette in Cedar Rapids offers this 22-word editorial mission statement, “To guide the community’s deliberation of public issues, motivating people to get involved in the process and advocating for solutions.”

The good: It effectively describes the purpose of the newspaper’s editorial content (guide community deliberation) and the content’s overall call to action (to get involved and advocate).

The bad: The editorial mission statement could be the same for almost any mainstream newspaper in the country.

Lesson learned:…

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