Audience – DK Consulting of Colorado

Leveling an Editorial Eye on AI

April 30, 2025June 5, 2025Debra W Kahn (@debrawk.bsky.social)

A colleague and I once pioneered using levels of edits to help manage the workload through our content department at a large high-tech firm. We rolled out the concept and refined it over time, all in the name of efficiency and time to market. What we were really trying to do was save our sanity.

We failed.

Or rather, the whole endeavor of developing and releasing educational content through a single in-house unit failed. All the work—from course design to release—was eventually outsourced. But I learned something valuable from the experience. (And I hope others did, too.)

You can’t outsource quality.

I think that’s as true in today’s world of generative AI as it was “back in the day” when I was a technical editor. But how does editorial refinement work in today’s hungry market for “easy” content? Let’s look at how it used to work, how people would like it to work, and how it might work better.

Turn Your Keynotes into Content Gold: Writing Tips for Speakers

March 31, 2025July 31, 2025Debra W Kahn (@debrawk.bsky.social)

I recently collaborated on an article with a colleague whose ability to speak extemporaneously impressed me. Not a skill I have ever had. Her delivery was confident, and her knowledge of the subject matter was deep.

But she was intimidated by a blank page.

Even when I drew up an outline for our collaborative article, she seemed to stumble through sentences and lose her way. Who knew?

Professional speakers know how to engage a live audience—but translating that spark into writing? That’s a different craft. The good news? By implementing a few golden strategies, your writing can carry the same power and authority as your voice on stage.

The key is to know what to keep from your speaking style and what to change.

Chunking for More Accessible Online Content

April 30, 2024September 13, 2024Debra W Kahn (@debrawk.bsky.social)

In our omnichannel world, where attention spans are short and the cognitive load is great (thanks, AI!), effective content design plays a key role in reader engagement. It’s more important than ever to structure online text so that our readers can easily scan, understand, and retain the key points.

Double underline that for readers who rely on accessibility aids such as screen readers.

The element of content design you’ll want to apply is “chunking.” Chunking refers to breaking up information into meaningful, bite-sized sections or “chunks” that are relatively similar in scope and intensity. Visually, this means that your paragraphs are short, and there are fewer of them under each subheading.

Richard Johnson-Sheehan, the technical communication guru, generally refers to this idea as “partitioning.” Rather than presenting a dense wall of text, you divide your content into well-organized subsections with meaningful headings.

I offer some techniques for applying this element of content design here. However, the starting point is to understand how chunking aids the reader.

Adapting Content for a New Audience – My Journey in 4 Steps

February 28, 2022June 30, 2024Debra W Kahn (@debrawk.bsky.social)

Recasting existing content for use by a different audience or in a different context empowers you as a writer – as a marketer – and/or as a consultant. And it is a great way to reuse evergreen content.

I discovered this myself when I rewrote four existing blog posts – aimed at fellow bloggers – as a single blog post aimed at project managers.

Creating Online Content for Your Customers: Scannability

June 30, 2021February 1, 2024Debra W Kahn (@debrawk.bsky.social)

Even as the current crisis recedes, offering quality content still remains a crucial way for businesses to attract and retain customers. According to a 2020 survey by the Content Marketing Institute (CMI), 72% of content professionals agree that their organization views content as a core business strategy.

Most of this new content will go online. So how do you do online content well? This blog series can help.

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