From PDF's to Personalization: Higher Ed's Content Shift with WIll Noble

In this episode of EdTech Connect, host Jeff Dillon sits down with Will Noble, an expert in digital content solutions and SaaS sales, to explore the challenges and opportunities in higher education content creation.

Will shares his journey from information retrieval to content creation, discussing why universities still rely on outdated formats like PDFs and how Foleon provides a modern alternative with interactive HTML5 content. They dive into bottlenecks in content approval processes, the role of AI in content strategy, and how institutions can optimize search and data-driven decision-making.

Whether you're a CMO, CIO, or digital strategist in higher ed, this episode offers actionable insights on improving content workflows, personalization, and measuring engagement effectively.

Key Takeaways

1. The Problem with PDFs – Universities default to PDFs due to legacy habits, but they create accessibility and engagement challenges.
2. Content Approval Bottlenecks – Overly strict workflows lead to decentralized workarounds (e.g., rogue PDFs).
3. Folion’s Solution – A platform for decentralized creation + centralized governance, replacing PDFs with interactive, responsive HTML5 content.
4. AI’s Role in Content – Useful for translations, alt-text generation, and transforming legacy PDFs—but risks "AI slop" if not strategically managed.
5. Search & Discoverability – Semantic structure, subdomains, and PR backlinks now impact rankings in LLM-driven search.
6. Measuring Success – Focus on engagement time (2–3 mins/page), heatmaps, and contextual CTAs rather than vanity metrics.
7. Lessons from Corporate – Empower internal creators (faculty, students) with tools to amplify authentic voices.

Chapter Headings with Time Stamps

1. Introduction & Will’s Background (00:00)
2. Content Approval Bottlenecks (04:36)
3. Folion’s Solution to Content Control (07:01)
4. Scaling Content with Limited Resources (10:48)
5. Ideal Tech Stack for Content (12:33)
6. AI in Content Strategy (16:29)
7. Search & Data-Driven Insights (20:40)
8. Lessons from Corporate for Higher Ed (24:33)
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