23 Oct, 2020
IXIAtalks: Episode 17 - How to Power Up Your Content With Taxonomy
In order for information to be easily found, navigation menus need to make sense and your search engine needs to provide the right results. Taxonomy not only provides the backbone for digital navigation, but also powers successful filtering.
20 Jul, 2020
Content Strategy + Information Architecture = Customer Success
Content strategy and information architecture are two different disciplines that work together to create customer success. Information architect Amber Swope and Content Strategist Chris Hibbard share some methodologies and processes, best practices, and insights on how content strategy and information architecture work together to help make client projects succeed.
31 Dec, 2019
Can You Afford to Do It Twice? Know When to Use Experts to Help With Your DITA Implementation.
Moving to a new source format, such as DITA, is a major project and one to not be undertaken lightly. When companies that are fiscally constrained approach a move to XML, their teams should understand when to utilize expert assistance.
20 Jan, 2019
Everyday IA: Episode 7
Everyday IA Episode 7 is all about the IA Checklist. Learn why and how to use the IA Checklist as a tool for capturing and easily referencing a high-level decision summary of your information architecture.
20 Dec, 2018
Introduction to DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture)
DITA is an Architecture. It’s an XML framework that provides mechanisms for organizing content. I want to be very clear: DITA is not a tool, nor is it an application – it is an architecture, and that means that there are many different ways to use it and there are many different tools that support it.
27 Nov, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 6
In the sixth episode of our Everyday IA podcast series, Amber Swope explains how you can use the Deliverable Structure Diagram, a component of the Information Architecture Blueprint™ Toolkit, to define the structure of each deliverable type, capture visual analysis, and convey the structure of information.
27 Nov, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 5
In episode 5 of our Everyday IA podcast series, Amber Swope talks about why she created the Deliverable Analysis Worksheet as part of the Information Architecture Blueprint™ Toolkit. Amber explains how you can use it to define the purpose and requirements for each deliverable type.
02 Oct, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 4
Everyday IA Episode 4 focuses on the content deliverable matrix: what it is and how you can use it. Amber explains how to use the content deliverable matrix to analyze where content appears in deliverables, either in multiple deliverables of the same type or in different deliverables that serve the same audience.
17 Jul, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 3
In the third episode of our Everyday IA podcast series, Amber Swope shares how you can use the Information Architecture Blueprint Toolkit™ templates to perform a formatting audit of your content.
17 Jul, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 2
In the second episode of our Everyday IA podcast series, Amber Swope explains how to get started with your content analysis using some of the analysis templates in the Information Architecture Blueprint Toolkit™.
17 Jul, 2018
Everyday IA: Episode 1
In the first episode of our Everyday IA podcast series, Amber Swope discusses the Information Architecture Blueprint Toolkit™ and explains why she created it, who can use it, and what makes it a valuable product.
28 Jun, 2018
Sharing content across the enterprise
As part of the Stilo DITA Knowledge Series, Amber Swope discusses using content collections to share content across the enterprise. Learn how to identify the requirements for the collection, determine the collection scope, and collaborate with other stakeholders to build and manage the collection.
15 Jun, 2018
Information Architecture Resources
There are many resources out there for learning about information architecture (IA) – here are Amber's recommendations.
07 May, 2018
Episode 2, Part 3: Becoming an Information Architect
In the final episode of our three-part series, Becoming an Information Architect, Amber Swope addresses the overarching question: how can you become an IA, and what does it take to get there?
31 Dec, 2020
Information Architects: What They Do and How to Become One
In 2018, Amber Swope surveyed a group of Information Architects to better understand the career path and scope of an Information Architect. If you're considering becoming an Information Architect, or if you're new to the role, this is a must read.
19 Apr, 2018
Episode 2, Part 2: Becoming an Information Architect
In Part 2 of our three-part series, Becoming an Information Architect, Amber Swope discusses how to define the role of IA and what kinds of tasks the role of an IA demands.
28 Feb, 2018
Episode 2, Part 1: Becoming an Information Architect
In the first of our three-part series, Becoming an Information Architect, Amber Swope introduces the survey that DITA Strategies sent out on September of 2017: why we made it, what questions the survey asked, and what kinds of responses we gathered from 35 information architects.
28 Feb, 2018
Using Structured XML to Power your Learning Content
Dawn Stevens, President of Comtech Services, and Amber Swope, President of DITA Strategies, explain how DITA can provide the structured foundation for your learning initiatives.
31 Jan, 2018
Advanced Techniques for Customer-Centric Delivery of Product Information
Join Amber Swope, President, DITA Strategies and Chip Gettinger, VP Global Solutions Consulting, SDL to learn about advanced techniques for managing and sharing structured content.
31 Jan, 2018
Automate to Stay Up-to-Date: 5 Ways to Maintain Your Training Content
Amber addresses one of the major challenges to developing and delivering training content today: "How do I keep my training content up to date?"
31 Jan, 2018
Optimizing your DITA Content Model for Translation
Are you translating DITA content? If so, are you getting the expected results?
20 Sep, 2017
DITA Resources
There are many resources out there for learning about the Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA) – here are Amber's recommendations.
14 Sep, 2017
Episode 1: Meet DITA Strategies
DITA Strategies President and DITA Specialist, Amber Swope, introduces the company and explains how DITA and information architecture can help you.
31 Jul, 2017
Four Best Practices for Sharing Content Across Departments using DITA
Your company’s teams may produce similar or identical content, but do they share that content?
31 Jul, 2017
DITA Maturity Model
Have you ever wondered what investment you need to make in DITA to get specific business value benefits?
12 Jun, 2017
DITA XML as Neutral Content Source for Educational Publishers
The information landscape has changed drastically in the past decade, and learners’ expectations of how they interact with content have changed along with it.