You have holes and you have pegs. Certain pegs are meant to fit in certain holes. People like to say you can force any peg into any hole, and in some cases that’s true, but that doesn’t mean you should. These rules apply to content on the web. As I continue to work for a media conglomerate that manages many web sites I continue to be amazed by how we treat content.
Between two radio stations, a TV station, a cable network, and a newspaper, there is a HUGE pool of resources and content. From sports to entertainment to that wholesome community crap that people claim they like to read. Every company, despite the corporate mantra, is its own island ultimately doing their own thing. But every now and then someone will offer up content that can be used by everyone, honest to God sharing. This is great but you can’t just take the content, put on your site and have it look and work as well as it does on the site for which it was made.
You just can’t take what people give you and run with it, especially when it comes to designed content (product). When you take something that has been designed for a specific purpose and place and drop it into an entirely different spot, it will not look good. Period. It will look cheap, copied, and half-assed.
Have some gumption and take what you’re given and make it work with what YOU have. Chances are you and whoever you got the content from have two different plans and goals. Anything that you are given and display, regardless of the original source, should look like something you made…or at least changed it so that it is presented to your audience as best as possible. Don’t claim it to be yours, just make it look like yours.
Don’t take a peg you find (or are given) and expect it to fit in your hole. You need to whittle that peg down (or build it up) so it fits perfectly.
