Jan 15th 09 Posted by Fritz McDonald in Strategic Creative

Top 10 Digital Promises for 2009

1. I will work from a clearly defined strategy.
During last year’s Stamats SIM TCR conference, I asked the audience to demonstrate by a show of hands how many of them were developing Web sites from a clearly defined strategy. About eight hands shot up. It’s high time for colleges and universities to take their Web development process as seriously as they take admissions. The ideal Web plan should connect to your overarching strategic vision, center your marketing communications plan, and detail precisely how your site will help you meet your most important goals.

2. I will focus on people first and then technology.
In the digital realm, it’s easy to jump to tactics before thinking about how and why those tactics should be deployed—everyone loves the latest gadget. Digital technology offers a seemingly bottomless array of whiz-bang communication devices and techniques. Don’t get hung on up on the machinery—in the long run, it’s the relationships your technology enables with your key constituencies that will make a difference, not a specific technology.

3. I will improve my content.
Perhaps the biggest change of the last few years is the way in which content has moved center stage in Web development—and everything else. It’s the difference between a blog worth reading and blog worth ignoring, the user-generated foundation for any social network or 2.0 sites, services, or technologies, and the incentive for spending any serious time on a Web site. Content is now your least expensive and most productive tool. It’s time to move it from an after-thought to integral part of your Web planning and implementation process. Content is everything—and content fitted to audience needs and expectations should be the rule, not the exception.

4. I will focus on simplicity.
Too many institutional sites are still too complicated, favoring endless links and overly long pages over a more concise delivery of content. Flash works beautifully in simple, elegant executions—not so beautifully in gaudy, over-amplified ones. A site’s workings should never draw so much attention to itself that it distracts from the experience it provides—or from the content.

5. I will make usability my first priority.
Simple, clear navigation is still crucial. Let the title of Steve Krug’s famous book on usability—Don’t Make Me Think—guide your navigation decisions. Make sure your link labels are precise and unambiguous and that your target audiences—from prospective students to potential donors to parents—can easily find what they are looking for. Remember, good usability reinforces a good brand experience.

6. I will provide an experience.
Whether you like it or not, Web sites deliver an experience…at least that’s what this rising generation of highly sophisticated users expects. Your site needs to provide a substantial level of engagement to compete with the kind of experience prospective students encounter on social networking sites…a total immersion in who you are, what you do, and how you benefit others. In what ways can prospective students participate on your site? Remember that digital experience goes beyond features—it is the chief means for building sustained relationships with your target audiences.

7. I will move my Web site to the center of my marketing communications.
Though it’s been happening for some time now, the Web is the hub of marketing. Still, some institutions seem reluctant to admit it. Out in the media world newspapers and magazines are dying off and ad agencies are losing money on campaigns that don’t make the Web a fundamental player in their communication strategies. It’s high time to join the revolution—within five years, the bulk of traditional media will become digital.

8. I will measure what I do.
By paying attention to your analytics data you can accomplish much. For example, examining page views, repeat visitors and story rankings can help you make a case for using particular content in particular places. Simply put, it can help you decide which content has more value for your audiences and help you make the case for revising your site content along those lines. A more in-depth analysis can you tell you what it takes to get users to fill out particular forms and how your social media is faring.

9. I will engage social media in a strategic way.
As the latest in a long line of attractive Web trends, social media offers potentially low-cost high contact relationship building tools that can support your marketing, recruiting, and advancement goals and programs. However, just like any marketing tool, social media works best when it is applied strategically, not randomly. The emerging field of social media marketing has already earned several success stories in the corporate world.

10. I will take integration seriously.
Although leading digital thinkers believe the world will be almost entirely digital in the next 5-7 years, traditional marketing is not and will not be completely dead anytime soon. The principles of integrated marketing apply to the digital world as well and are still sound. Certainly, you’ll need to balance your marketing more in favor of your digital assets. But when it comes to integration, you need to take it further than simply adding links to text-based documents. How can you weave your traditional marketing tactics with your digital tactics in a seamless, results-oriented way?

Photo by: prendio2