#TBT, Since We’re Ranting About Images…

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In light of Tuesday’s rant about artist images, it seems fitting to bookend it with a callback to another content management rant from 2017 about delivering bio and related promotional copy in PDF format.

PDF files are the bane of a content manager’s work day. In a nutshell, they are impossible to use for copy/pasting the content into web or social media formats without taking as much time cleaning up a bunch of junk formatting as it would take to type out the entire thing by hand.

In order to provide a broader frame of reference, my web development firm charges double for content migration and data input if the source files are PDF format. We even include a language in our agreements that stipulates the clients agree to provide copy in DOC/DOCX format and if content arrives as PDF, then the added time is billed as an overage.

Yes, it’s that big of a deal.

So make sure you maintain copies of your bio and promotional content in DOC/DOCX format first and foremost and provide PDFs as a secondary format if needed (they work much better better as downloadable file content).

Just A Gentle Reminder…

About Drew McManus

"I hear that every time you show up to work with an orchestra, people get fired." Those were the first words out of an executive's mouth after her board chair introduced us. That executive is now a dear colleague and friend but the day that consulting contract began with her orchestra, she was convinced I was a hatchet-man brought in by the board to clean house.

I understand where the trepidation comes from as a great deal of my consulting and technology provider work for arts organizations involves due diligence, separating fact from fiction, interpreting spin, as well as performance review and oversight. So yes, sometimes that work results in one or two individuals "aggressively embracing career change" but far more often than not, it reinforces and clarifies exactly what works and why.

In short, it doesn't matter if you know where all the bodies are buried if you can't keep your own clients out of the ground, and I'm fortunate enough to say that for more than 15 years, I've done exactly that for groups of all budget size from Qatar to Kathmandu.

For fun, I write a daily blog about the orchestra business, provide a platform for arts insiders to speak their mind, keep track of what people in this business get paid, help write a satirical cartoon about orchestra life, hack the arts, and love a good coffee drink.

View all posts by Drew McManus | Website

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