Web content guru Gerry McGovern contends that Sears Roebuck – one of the first large corporations – was built on the ability of Richard Sears to write well.
Marketing guru Seth Godin points out that for 27 consecutive years, the movie that won the best-picture Oscar was also nominated for best editing.
McGovern tells us that most managers don’t respect writers. Writing isn’t perceived as delivering value. The writers on a web team get paid much less than the programmers.
Godin contends that “great products, amazing services and stories worth talking about get edited along the way. Most of the time, the editing makes them pallid, mediocre and boring. Sometimes, a great editor will push the remarkable stuff. That’s his job.”
The University of Montana has a massive conglomeration of websites that are critical to the health of the institution. Who’s doing your writing? Who’s doing your editing? How much value does your department place on writing and editing?
