Category
Production
28 posts in this seam.
Run a content audit before you change your CMS
Migrating platforms without knowing what you have means migrating problems. Audit first, then decide what moves.
Write captions for images when you add them
A caption field left empty at upload time stays empty. Write it when the context is still in your head.
Version numbers belong in your file names
If you're saving files as final-FINAL-v3-actual.jpg, you've already lost. Name versions so you can find the current one without opening twelve candidates.
Scheduled publish dates require a rollback plan
Setting content to go live at a specific time isn't just a calendar event. You need a documented process for pulling it back if something changes.
Pick one publication date field and stick with it
Multiple date fields in your CMS create confusion about which one matters. Choose the field that governs visibility, then make everything else follow it.
Log when you publish, not just what you publish
A timestamped record of what went live—and when—gives you a reference layer that CMS change logs and analytics timestamps can't replace.
Your CMS rich text editor isn't a word processor
Stop treating the WYSIWYG editor like Microsoft Word. The formatting buttons you ignore now determine whether your content survives template changes, mobile layouts, and CMS migrations.
Draft mode means someone else will publish it
If you're the only person working on your site, draft mode might be hiding a workflow problem you don't actually have.
Write the redirect before you delete the page
Deleting a page without planning the redirect means broken links and lost traffic. Decide where visitors should land before you hit delete.
Decide what happens when users leave a field blank
Every form field on your site needs a plan for what happens when someone skips it. That plan is content work, not a developer problem.
Empty states are instructions, not decoration
What your CMS shows when a field or section is empty shapes how people use it. Write those moments like documentation.
Batch upload your images once you've named them all
Upload one image, name eight more, upload the next one — you're wasting time on context switching. Name everything first, then upload the set.
Image file names before you upload them
Your image management problem starts when you click 'choose file' with a filename like IMG_3847.jpg. Name it right the first time.
Revision dates remind you who changed what when
Adding a simple last-updated field to your CMS catches stale content before readers do and gives your team a shared reference point.
Version control for content isn't just for developers
Track what changed, when, and why — without learning Git or relying on CMS revision logs that expire.
Publish schedules reveal how you actually work
Your editorial calendar isn't aspirational decoration. It's infrastructure that either matches your team's real capacity or creates friction you'll blame on laziness.
File names matter before you upload
Your image file names become part of your site's structure. Name them clearly once instead of renaming them later in the CMS.
Choose your default publish state and stick to it
Your CMS offers draft and published states for a reason. Pick which one new content starts in, make it consistent across your site, and stop creating confusion.
Preview mode is for checking your work, not doing it
If you're writing in preview mode, you're letting visual polish interrupt your thinking. Draft with the CMS tools that keep structure visible.
Your style guide doesn't need a tone section
Most small sites waste time documenting voice when they need usage rules. Write down decisions that prevent inconsistency, not aspirations.
Stop resizing images by eye
Guessing at image dimensions wastes time and produces inconsistent layouts. Define your sizes once, then enforce them at upload or in templates.
Field-level help text that prevents mistakes
Most CMS help text just repeats the field label. Effective help text shows format expectations, gives examples, and stops errors before they happen.
Draft in plain text, format in the CMS
Separating writing from formatting reduces friction and produces cleaner content. Write first, structure second, style never.
Redirects are documentation your future self will need
Every redirect you set up is a tiny piece of institutional memory. Treat them like the load-bearing infrastructure they are, not cleanup tasks.
Metadata inheritance saves hours you're currently wasting
Stop filling the same fields on every page. Let parent pages pass values down and override only what changes.
Alt text audit in fifteen minutes
A systematic sweep through image descriptions that actually helps search and screen readers, without overthinking or AI slop.
CMS guardrails for staff who should not design
Editors need power over words and images — not over the gravity of the layout.
The editing pass that ships
Stop polishing forever. Use a brutal checklist once, then publish.