The ‘Content vs. Presentation’ debate

It’s a long-running issue in many areas of creative media – which should be prioritised: content or presentation?

In other words, is it more important to have accurate, relevant and high-quality content, or should we dedicate more time to the design and delivery of a particular piece of media? I feel this issue applies to many creative projects – including design, video production, and web development.

The obvious answer is that we need to achieve both. This would clearly be the ideal outcome, but time limitations and budget constraints inevitably mean that compromises have to be made.

Whether amateur or professional, we surely cannot expect every single video, film, song, website, blog, magazine or e-learning package to achieve faultless perfection in both content and presentation – so where do we compromise?

In this blog post I’m going to explore both arguments in a little more detail, and provide some examples which should shed some light on this issue.

The ‘Content’ argument

Working in an academic environment, it is clearly important that we deliver e-learning materials of the utmost quality in terms of accuracy and content. Our target audience (students) need to learn and revise effectively so that they can ultimately pass their exams. For this reason, it is vital that the information conveyed in our e-learning packages is educationally valid.

I find that content is always the main priority of any academic staff that I work with. Considerations such as design, interface, colour scheme and graphics and generally not high on the agenda during meetings.

Another fascinating instance of this is found through the website Khan Academy – a collection of educational snippets and ‘how-to’s, developed by a not-for-profit community of subject specialists and enthusiasts. The lessons themselves tend to consist of quickly-produced videos and screen-captures. It’s not broadcast-quality material, but the content itself has engaged millions of learners from around the world.

Take another seemingly trivial example – YouTube videos. The Keyboard Cats, Fentons and Numa Numas of the world didn’t get where they are today by posting Hollywood blockbuster material. YouTube’s most-watched video are not popular because of good video production, but rather because they contain content that is hilarious, ridiculous, or unbelievably bizarre.

At a Channel 4 Open Day in Manchester last year, speakers from the media industry emphasised to budding young creatives that being noticed online for your creative work is more about what you present rather than how you present it. We were given the example of Lauren Luke, who gained YouTube popularity through posting her homemade make-up tutorials. Her videos exhibited terrible graphics, sound and lighting, but that didn’t matter because her content was watched by millions and her passion for the beauty industry got her noticed. She’s since featured in newspapers, books and documentaries and is becoming a big name in the industry.

The ‘Presentation’ argument

On the other hand, I would be inclined to argue that high-quality content is irrelevant if its presentation is poor and inaccessible. Students are far less likely to engage with learning materials if they are badly designed and are not intuitive to use. The ‘bottom of the agenda’ considerations such as design, interface, colour scheme and graphics are important if you want your audience to benefit from your content. I have explored this in an e-learning context in more detail in my previous blog post, ‘How To Look Good Online: Makeover your module pages’.

The importance of good design is so often understated because the average person only notices its significance when it’s done badly.

For instance, if you were chatting to a friend or colleague about a TV drama that you watched last night, you would be much more likely to comment on the gripping storyline and characters rather than the superb use of depth-of-field and colour grading. You might, however, discuss how shocking the production was if the camera work was terrible and the audio was constantly distorted!

The same applies to web design. Most internet users do not dwell on the creative genius behind a well designed webpage, but they will find it extremely irritating if the user interface does not allow them to find what they need. Arguably, if a designer has done his job well then the user shouldn’t stop to think about the interface design, because their browsing experience will be smooth and seamless.

Conclusions?

Content and presentation are two side of the same coin. They work together to ensure that the end-user has the best possible experience, and if either is lacking in quality then it will be noticeable.

At a recent Media Enhanced Learning and Teaching (METAL) conference at the University of Nottingham, this issue was raised in several sessions. Steve Hull from JISC Digital Media stressed that the main goal in media production should be to achieve a level of quality that is ‘appropriate’ for a specific purpose. I think this a fairly good point to consider when developing any creative work.

If nobody expects homemade YouTube videos to exhibit high production quality, is it really worth investing the time in doing so? On the other hand, in a more professional context you would expect a video/website/interface to have a polished design, otherwise you might start to question the integrity and reliability of the object as a whole.

Of course, this whole issue is largely subjective (including what actually constitutes good content/design) but it’s still worth considering when embarking on your next creative project.