Discover. Test. Build. Impress.

Work with Sarah Johnson, content design leader, to deliver successful products, grow teams, mentor, and lead content initiatives.

Definition, discovery, design, delivery

Well-versed in research and discovery methodologies, testing, working with designers, product, engineers, and business to deliver high-performing solutions.

Collaboration, communication

Works to understand stakeholder goals and create meaningful collaboration. Dedicated to navigating difficult conversations that create successful outcomes.

Teacher, speaker, author

Content First Design will release in Fall 2024 from XML Press. Contact Sarah for information on teaching and help implementing content first design in your organization.

Key Services

With 15+ years in content strategy, content design, and UX writing, I bring a wide range of expertise to every phase of the content design process. Whether developing content for the web, app, emails, or SMS and beyond, I have the experience to help you create successful outcomes.

Content design

I conduct content projects from definition and discovery through ideating, testing, building, then testing some more. I’ve contributed at companies such as Fidelity Investments, Bank of America, TIAA, CVS, and Stash.

Content testing

Understanding where your content is successful and where it isn’t is key to developing user-friendly products that that help both business and users achieve their goals.

Workshops

I offer a wide range of workshops on topics including every phase of the content design process, tools such as empathy mapping, user interviews, user journeys, and competitive analysis, ideating, UX Writing, Navigating Difficult Conversations, and Content First Design.

UX Writing

UI content is an art and a science. Based on metrics, business goals, user goals, discovery work, and testing, I work to deliver high quality content on every product.

Building teams

Growing teams, mentoring content professionals, and refining a team roster is a passion of mine. I’m proud to see my team members evolve and move within the organization as they succeed in delivering excellent products.

Content process design and implementation

With a focus on content first design, I work with companies to establish the right content design process for your department or project, including education around each phase of the process.

The Secret of Success

I bring my core values to every job and every project.

Collaboration and communication are key to creating successful products, advocating for content design in the organization, designing processes, developing style guides–whatever the task may be. Mindfulness, empathy, passion, and ambition are my strengths, and I work to bring my full self to every project and job on my plate. Working toward equity and inclusion is key to any company’s success, and I strive to build diverse teams and work with a wide range of people.

Testimonials

I have had the privilege of working with amazing people at some industry-leading organizations. Here’s what they had to say.

“Sarah helped shape our UX content practice at TIAA while working as a lead content strategist and designer. Sarah proactively seeks out emerging industry knowledge and has developed a strong network of content professionals, researchers and academics. She’s a skilled teacher and workshop facilitator. She helped me up-skill and become a better manager by sharing ideas about content design, mindfulness and team health. As close colleagues, I appreciated Sarah’s authenticity, honesty and openness. I hope we’ll work together again.”

Karen Detjen

Manager Content Design, Meta

“Sarah is a natural collaborator, teacher, and mentor who is an asset to any design and UX team. Early in my career, Sarah taught me how to ask the right questions and make any project better through better content. I strongly recommend Sarah to any hiring team or manager.”

Ryan Looney

Lead Content Designer, Instagram

“Sarah is a super-sharp UX mind. While she might say her specialty is content strategy, she’s a terrific practitioner (and educator) across roles, including interaction design, accessibility, and UX strategy. She’s also a blast to work with!”

Jack Howland

VP, Chapter Leader, Digital Workplace Experience, Fidelity

“Sarah has been an amazing leader and mentor. I have learned so much with Sarah as my manager. She has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to content design. She is also kind and thoughtful leader who helps her team learn and improve. She is excellent at identifying people’s strengths and gathering people who can work well together. She encourages collaboration and is always willing to learn more herself.

She works hard to create a safe and enjoyable working environment for everyone around her. She understands the difference between managing and leading and she excels at leadership.”

Shannon Geis

UX Content Designer, CVS

Got questions or ideas? Let’s chat!

Feel free to reach out for inquiries, questions, or comments. I look forward to hearing from you.