One business I audited runs a commercial manufacturing operation alongside training programmes for military veterans and people with mental health difficulties. The same workshop, the same lathes, two completely different purposes.
The digital challenge was how to present both sides without confusing either audience.
Two audiences, one website
A corporate buyer looking for turned wooden components needs to see professional capability. Quality standards, production capacity, lead times, examples of finished work. A clinical, commercial proposition.
A veteran considering the training programme needs to see something completely different. Empathy, community, real stories from people who've been through it. The tone, the imagery, the language should all feel different from the commercial side.
The existing website tried to do both and ended up doing neither particularly well. The commercial capability was undermined by the social enterprise messaging. The social impact story was diluted by the product catalogue. Visitors from either audience were landing on a page that wasn't quite for them.
The recommendation was a restructured site with clear entry routes. A commercial buyer sees one path from the homepage. Someone interested in the training programme sees another. Same domain, same brand, different journeys. Each audience gets the language, the proof points and the calls to action that make sense for them.
The content strategy nobody expected
Here's where this audit taught me something I didn't expect. The owner is dyslexic. Written blog content was a genuine barrier. Sitting down to write a 500-word post about woodturning techniques wasn't going to happen, and pushing for it would have been pointless.
We talked about video instead. Not polished, scripted, professionally shot video. Phone video. Him in the workshop, talking about what he does and why it matters. No script, no editing, no production company. Just a genuine person talking about something he cares about deeply.
The stories he tells about the people who come through his workshop are extraordinary. Veterans who found purpose again. People with mental health difficulties who discovered they could make something beautiful with their hands. Those stories are the best content the business could possibly produce. They just needed capturing.
Authenticity as strategy
This audit reinforced something I'd seen hints of across other businesses but never quite this clearly. The most effective content strategy isn't always the most sophisticated one. Sometimes it's the simplest: let a genuine person talk about what they do.
His customers would connect with a rough phone video of a real craftsman in a real workshop in a way they'd never connect with a polished corporate video. And the veterans considering his programme would see a real person, not a charity brochure.
If you're struggling with content creation, ask yourself whether the format is the problem. Not everyone communicates best through writing. Some people are natural storytellers who come alive on camera. Some explain things brilliantly in conversation but freeze when they try to write it down. Find the format that fits the person, not the other way round.
This article is part of a series based on findings from 55 digital audits. Read the full case study for the complete picture, or get in touch if you'd like an honest look at where your business stands.