When transitioning from a traditional CMS to a headless CMS like Storyblok or Contentful, one of the biggest mindset shifts is learning how to structure content for flexibility, scalability, and reuse. Headless content modeling isn’t about dragging and dropping blocks on a page—it’s about designing a system that serves your content across multiple layouts, devices, and even platforms.
Done right, structured content becomes the backbone of a fast, adaptable, and future-proof digital presence.
In this guide, we’ll walk through best practices for content modeling in a headless CMS, whether you're migrating from WordPress or building something new.
What Is Structured Content?
Structured content refers to content that’s organized in a predictable format with clearly defined fields—rather than unstructured blobs of rich text. Each content type (e.g., blog post, product, team member, landing page) has its own model, made up of fields that describe specific data points.
For example, a blog post might have:
- Title (text)
- Author (reference to author model)
- Published date (date field)
- Body content (rich text or modular blocks)
- Tags (multi-select)
- SEO fields (title tag, meta description)
Structured content allows you to:
- Reuse blocks across pages or channels
- Render content differently on different devices
- Ensure consistency across large teams
- Scale without redesigning your CMS every time you grow
Why Content Modeling Matters in Headless CMS
In a headless setup, your CMS doesn’t care how your site looks—it just manages and delivers the data. That means you control how content is structured, how it’s related to other content, and how it gets displayed by the frontend.
A well-structured model makes development easier, content editing safer, and design systems more scalable.
Best Practices for Structuring Content
1. Think in Terms of Reusable Blocks
Instead of creating rigid page templates, break content into modular components—hero banners, testimonial sliders, feature grids, CTA sections, etc.
These components can then be reused across different pages and layouts.
2. Separate Layout from Content
Your CMS shouldn’t store layout-specific instructions (like "make this text red"). Instead, use design systems and component libraries in the frontend that handle style and presentation. Your CMS just holds the content and structure.
3. Model Real Content Types, Not Pages
Avoid building a new “page” content model for every unique layout. Instead, model content types based on the purpose of the content:
- Articles
- Case studies
- Events
- FAQs
- Team members
Use a "page builder" model only when you truly need layout flexibility.
4. Use References to Relate Content
Use single or multi-reference fields to connect related pieces of content. For example:
- A blog post references an author profile
- A product page references a related testimonial block
- A location page references a global CTA
This improves maintainability and allows for content reuse without duplication.
5. Create Global Components for Shared Content
Headers, footers, modals, CTAs, banners—these should live as global components that can be updated once and reused everywhere.
6. Define Clear Field Rules and Naming Conventions
- Use descriptive names for fields (e.g., "Button Label" instead of "Text")
- Set character limits where appropriate
- Add field instructions to help editors stay on-brand
7. Design for Editor Experience
A powerful content model is useless if your editors hate using it. Use collapsible sections, dropdowns, tooltips, and consistent logic to make content easy to manage.
8. Model SEO and Metadata From the Start
Include SEO fields (meta title, meta description, OG tags) and JSON-LD or schema-related fields in your content types. This makes your site easier to optimize and helps search engines understand your structure.
9. Plan for Multi-language or Multi-region Support
If you anticipate translation needs, build your model to accommodate localized fields or variants from day one. Don’t treat it as an afterthought.
10. Version and Stage Content Carefully
Use CMS features like workflows, preview environments, or content staging to prevent accidental updates and to support better QA before publishing.
Headless Content Modeling Tools We Recommend
- Storyblok: Visual editing, block-based modeling, and real-time preview make it ideal for design systems
- Contentful: Scalable API-first content modeling with robust environment and localization support
- Sanity: Schema-as-code approach for developer-heavy teams
Each platform supports the same fundamental content modeling principles—it’s about choosing what fits your workflow best.
Think Long-Term, Not Just Layout
Structured content is your website’s foundation. When you design your content model intentionally, you empower your content creators, developers, and designers to work faster—and with fewer limitations.
Whether you’re planning a migration from WordPress or starting from scratch, following these best practices will ensure your headless CMS setup is scalable, editor-friendly, and ready for the future.
Need help designing your content model or planning your migration? We’d love to help you build something flexible and future-ready.
