By:
Michael D. Farley
March 15, 2000
Table of
Contents
Marketing’s Role in Establishing a Corporate Website
Required Skills/Personnel for Website Development
Potential Barriers to the Establishment of Effective Websites
Internet Business Infrastructure (IBI) Applications
“He’s taken it, “ he
said. “Now I’ll let him eat it well.”
--Ernest
Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
--Larry
Chase, International Internet consultant, author and speaker
This white paper examines the role of the marketing department within an organization regarding the establishment of a Website. Marketing’s role in establishing a corporate Website, the four Cs of a Website, three types of Websites, required skills/personnel for Website development, potential barriers to the establishment of effective Websites, Internet Business Infrastructure (IBI) applications, and new technology are all discussed from a marketing perspective, with an emphasis on the importance of having a well designed, thoroughly thought out Web design and architecture. Many companies underestimate the importance of having an effective Web presence in today’s business climate; although many executives realize the need for a corporate Website, there is often a lack of strategic planning and insufficient asset allocation required to produce and maintain the highest levels of performance on the site. This paper is designed to bring to the forefront many of the requirements and potential shortfalls, which websites inherently entail.
Marketing departments are tasked with leading the corporation down the right path, strategically and tactically. They do this by conducting research, analyzing data, and forecasting trends and potential customers’ needs. On a daily basis, astute marketing professionals gather information regarding pricing of their current and future product lines, remain abreast of current industry mergers and acquisitions, and watch what the shakers and movers within any given industry are doing, and what strategies are being employed. This enables the marketing agent to predict how the competitive landscape will appear in the near and long-term future.
A marketing department within a telecommunications or Internet industry must be highly proactive, keeping up to date on technological as well as marketing trends and developments. In today’s Internet-speed business environment, information is available in real-time, and is constantly changing. Marketing departments and corporations must think, act, and react with lightning-fast speed to keep up with the ever-increasing pace of business as usual. A marketing department must be the driving force of an organization. Marketing drives networking, IT, and back office initiatives to push cutting-edge products and technology to a demanding marketplace. The sales force demands the highest quality products and support from the marketing department, in order to remain competitive with their offerings to current and potential customers. Marketing departments must continuously strive to develop new products even as Sales develops new markets. No other department within an organization can affect the direction of a corporation as drastically as Marketing, and it should be this way. Only Marketing, due to its charter within an organizational setting, has the required tools and processes in place to accomplish its goal of providing corporate leaders with the information required to reach an informed decision regarding corporate goals and objectives. At all costs, Marketing must stay focused and not allow other departments to drive the corporation; a reactive marketing department, catering to other departments’ whims, is an ineffectual marketing department.
As Marketing departments lead from the front, they must set the example in all aspects of establishing an outstanding corporate identity and must relay a cohesive marketing message to employees and customers alike. The establishment of a corporate Website can be a highly effective way to do just that. Marketing should have significant input in the corporate Website layout, and the desired effect from the Web presence. The best way to do this is by working with the Web team to ensure Marketing’s ideas are effectively communicated to all Website designers. Marketing’s site should be the first launched, and should include product descriptions (basic descriptions on the Internet and more detailed product descriptions on the Intranet), documents which support the sales force (on the Intranet), and other information beneficial to customers and employees. As sales forces increasingly become automated, able to access the corporate Intranet and Internet from handheld and laptop devices, the Website will become a real-time one-stop shop for all corporate sales pieces and information. Streaming video may be utilized to train the sales force on products and selling points, thus minimizing the time required to push new products out to the marketplace.
From a return on investment (ROI) standpoint, the establishment of a Website is the most effective method of mass advertising in use today. As business leaders are increasingly pressed for time, they are constantly seeking new ways to more effectively gather information. Email has surpassed the telephone and even face-to-face meetings as the most popular medium of communication in the workplace. Websites offer an outstanding ability to provide business leaders (potential customers) with information regarding your company. When potential customers hear about your business (from friends, the Press, etc.), they will most likely search for your corporate Website using a search engine (www.Yahoo.com, etc), and upon displaying your site, will seek information regarding your organization (who you are) and the products and/or services you sell. Effective Websites enable customers to quickly find information they seek, and allow the ordering of products and services online, without the need to speak to a representative. The most effective ecommerce sites now have tools, which allow customers to check the status of their orders in real-time. An example of this is FedEx’s Website (www.fedex.com ), where a customer can view the status of a shipment by entering the package tracking number. This system not only saved FedEx’s resources by decreasing customer inquiries by phone, but also saves FedEx’s customers time and frustration by the increased ease of accessing required information. Empowerment of the customer should never be underestimated as a powerful sales and retention incentive when dealing with today’s informed, innovative businesses.
There are four Cs which must constantly be considered in the process of developing a Website. From a marketing perspective, these are the considerations that will keep eyeballs on your site.
1. Customer: The customer is priority number one for a
Marketing department (and for all other departments within an
organization). A major responsibility
of Marketing is to support sales representatives in the field in making sales
and increasing revenues for the corporation.
Marketing agents must constantly keep in mind the following two
questions:
1) Why would a customer buy our product/service; what problem
are we solving, or how are we making the customer’s life better?
2) What differentiates our product from the competition?
These questions must be answered immediately on a Website. Time is a valuable resource to a customer (on the Internet) and also to a sales rep (on the intranet). In Web design, the end user must be the most important design criteria. Pretty, gyrating images are great for users with high-speed, broadband connectivity, but if your average customer uses a dial-up connection (56kbps), it could take minutes (which he/she will most likely not wait) for a page to fully appear. Whiz-bang features are great for designers’ egos, but not effective if they do not assist the end user.
2. Community: Establishing a community online is the best
way to keep a repeat customer base. By
listing an up-to-date frequently asked questions (FAQ) area, customers will
return time after time, for answers to questions. By constantly updating the Website as information (pricing, etc.)
changes, customers will return to the site to view new offerings, and see how
they can improve their current service requirements. Proactive emails advising customers of their usage and
alternative plans for new offerings go a long way here. Many corporations view a Website as a static
display of the corporate stock price, and place the information which the
company’s executives feel are important on the site; however, potential
customers may have a different view of what is important. Once again, the customer (buyers, stock
analysts, retirees, partners, press, etc.) is the audience.
3. Content: This includes all typed documents and graphics on the Website. An important aspect of content is the navigational aids (i.e., tabs and search functions), that assist customers in finding information about the products or services they seek. A good rule of thumb for navigation is that no information should be more than three clicks (links) from the top page on a website. Furthermore, a website should be easily navigable from a layout perspective (links to subsidiaries should be present on the uppermost Web page of a multi-unit corporation.)
4. Commerce: Ecommerce is widely accepted now as a standard way of doing business. All businesses that do not currently have Web-enabled processes are rapidly striving to put those processes in place. By selling services/products online, a company decreases its overhead costs by automating many of its sales and support functions, centralizing the sales, provisioning, and billing processes, and decreasing the time required to provide the service/product to the customer. Automating business transactions is truly a win-win situation for both the customer and the business.
There are three types of websites that may be developed. From a marketing perspective, each is equally as effective, depending on the intent of the site. By far, the most enveloping format for exposing potential customers to your product line or services is the “immersive experience” site, which is the most stimulating type of site.
1. Static: Elements remain the same after being created; this type of site is great for posting information about products and features, or for information regarding the company’s executives, etc. Even static sites must updated periodically.
2. Data-driven: Pages are created dynamically based on the
user’s input. As a viewer enters text
in a form-driven questionnaire, or through other means, the display is directly
affected by the user’s entries. For
example, if searching a Web-enabled database, and one field on a form asks for
color of hair, a drop-down box may be utilized to list all possible hair colors,
and upon selection of one color of hair, the number of fields in the database
searched are limited to only those listing the chosen hair color.
3. “Immersive experience” sites are made possible by broadband Internet access and increasingly greater data transfer rates. These sites have streaming video and allow the viewer to enter a digital world where it appears as though the viewer is actually walking down a street, looking at buildings in a virtual world. Billboards in the virtual world display real-life marketing messages, and viewers get a sense of belonging to a new, alternative group of people with similar interests. These sites are potential goldmines for “bandwagon” marketing strategies. The main downside to this type of site is the bandwidth requirement for a constant data feed; this is extremely limiting for viewers with limited bandwidth (slow Internet connectivity), and may frustrate viewers, causing them to leave the site. As technology continues to improve, more sites of this type are expected to appear. A good example of this type of site is located at www.activeworlds.com .
Site designers
implement and maintain Websites. They
use authoring tools, scripting languages, and content generation and management
tools. Good designers can play a large
part in keeping the Website navigable by potential customers. By placing the most important information
and links “above the scroll” (the part of the page that appears before
scrolling downward), the information corporations want to relay to their Website
audience will be apparent when the end users first view the site.
Graphics designers
are trained in creating visually stimulating Web graphics. From a Marketing perspective, a picture says
a thousand words. Nothing grabs your
audience like an impressive design layout.
Application developers
build client- and server-side Web applications using software development
tools. Effective use of websites
requires a variety of applications.
Within resource constraints, the more applications employed by a site,
the more impressive it is likely to be.
Again, the designers must keep in mind that not all viewers have
high-speed connectivity.
Beta testers
click through all links on a site to ensure they are active and directed to the
correct location on the site. They also
check for spelling errors and program malfunctions prior to a new Website
launch. Testers also conduct research
to ensure that various applications used are compatible. Compatibility may vary from system to system
and among various browsers (i.e., Netscape Navigator and MicroSoft Internet
Explorer) and browser versions (i.e., Netscape version 3.0 and version 4.0).
Security specialists
understand threats and develop countermeasures such as firewalls; they also
actively and passively monitor server security. This is important because of
hackers’ attempts to gain access to servers and deface Websites (which may
cause misinformation to be reflected on the site, such as incorrect merger
information or embarrassing content) or gain access to secure information and
systems. A good hacker can gain access
to a variety of systems by cracking security codes and passwords (easily
accomplished by use of widely available password cracking programs), and cause
dramatic effects on a company’s bottom line.
Firewalls are vital to a company’s online security, from a public
relations and information security standpoint.
Internal employees may also be a security threat (disgruntled employees,
etc.). Security weaknesses are a
potential Marketing nightmare. In a
company providing Internet-related services, a hacked website (or a hacked
customer website, in the case of webhosting) demonstrates that the company
cannot adequately protect its site (or the sites of its’ customers).
Multimedia specialists
are experts on streaming video and up-and-coming technologies that utilize
broadband connectivity on an increasing basis.
This area of development will become an increasingly achievable
mass-marketing dream.
Server administrators
manage and tune ecommerce infrastructure, including Web servers, news, mail and
FTP servers.
Enterprise developers create multi-level database and connectivity solutions for Web sites, using programs such as Java and related tools.
Ecommerce specialists
understand standards, technologies and practices related to ecommerce,
including security technologies currently employed and in development.
Internetworking specialists define the network architecture. They monitor and analyze the network performance for websites and
Intranets. Without feedback regarding
the performance of a website, the Marketing department will be unable to
analyze trends (click-throughs) and suggest improvements to the site. Scalability is the buzzword emphasized here.
Lack of clear standards
have slowed the progress somewhat of Website designs; however, the World is
quickly embracing the Web, and companies large and small realize the necessity
of establishing a presence online. There
are varying methods of creating Websites in use today, which, although increasing
the variety of features on the Internet, also make it more difficult for browser
creators to ensure their browsers are fully compatible with all programs.
The varying skill/knowledge level of site designers/maintainers is
also a potential barrier to establishing and maintaining an effective, real-time
site. A major impediment is the organization’s ability
to maintain back-office compatibility with new Web programs, especially ecommerce-related
applications linked to billing systems, etc.
Internet Business
Infrastructure applications are systems which enable service providers to
manage their customers, services and business models. In establishing a Web presence, the utmost care must be taken to
ensure that all systems are scalable.
Ordering, procurement, tracking, customer care, and billing systems must
all be Web-enabled, and capable of real-time reporting. In determining the ideal IBI solution for an
organization, Marketing must determine its requirements for current and future
products and the IT department must conduct a cost-benefits analysis to
determine whether to purchase a system from a third-party vendor, outsource the
function, or build an application using internal resources. If current enterprise (legacy) systems are
in place, a determination must be made as to whether these systems are capable
of supporting future expansion of the corporation. If not, the longer a company waits before implementing sweeping
upgrades, the further behind the company will be when it finally decides to
implement new technology. If upgrades
are not conducted periodically, this may severely inhibit a company’s ability
to support its customer base, and as a result, Marketing efforts may be
hampered by inadequate reporting and tracking, and customer churn rates
(turnover) may spiral upward.
Characteristics of
the best IBI solutions3:
Hand-held devices are becoming increasingly popular and more affordable to the average customer. The anticipated saturation of the marketplace by handheld wireless devices is prompting companies to create mirrored miniature Web sites. By emplacing code on the Web server that can differentiate between handheld devices and normal-size devices accessing the site (by the browser), the same URL can host a site compatible to both desktop and handheld devices. This technology has progressed from bleeding edge to leading edge technology. Yahoo (www.yahoo.com) now uses this feature on its site.
Marketing must lead corporations’ Web integration strategy. Companies which do not realize that business is no longer “business as usual” will quickly lose market share to upstart companies which embrace new technology and automation methodologies. A shift in marketing paradigms has been brought about by the rapid development and acceptance of the Web by companies worldwide. In a Web environment, speed to market is key. To facilitate speed, a company must empower its employees to make decisions on the fly. Small, matrixed organizations are quickly overtaking larger, slower corporations in the marketplace. To remain competitive, larger companies must embrace leading edge technologies (if not cutting edge technologies), and must not hesitate to make decisions with 85% of the required information. It is becoming more common for business leaders in Internet start-ups to reach decisions once they have obtained a 51% confidence level of the correctness of any given decision. This enables them to remain on the cutting edge, and not be usurped by upcoming garage to gorilla competitors. It is survival of the fittest, and across the organizational structure, technology is the new primary determinant of fitness level. From a Marketing perspective, an effective, well thought-out and implemented corporate Website is the second-most important asset a company can have; first, of course, is its people, which enable the miracles to happen.
1.
The Four Cs of creating a
great Web site that keeps them coming, Laura Wonnacott, VP of InfoWorld.com, InfoWorld,
February 14, 2000.
2.
Collaborative Web Development: Strategies and Best Practices for Web
Teams,
Jessica Burdman, 2000, Addison-Wesley
3.
Lassoing Internet Business
Infrastructure,
Richard Kagan, VP of Marketing, Narus, Inc., Xchange Magazine, February 15,
2000
About the
author
Michael D. Farley began his
high-tech career as an electrician in the U.S. Navy, and was subsequently
commissioned as an Intelligence officer in the Maryland Army National Guard
(http://www.inetstrat.com/1-158cav/ ).
After receiving his BS degree in Business Management, Michael worked
with the Maryland General Assembly and later with Internet startup America
Online, and with TrialNet.com, the nation’s leading provider of legal
extranets. Michael is currently a
Product Manager for Internet and data (broadband) services with Teleglobe
Business Solutions, Inc., and attends MBA classes part-time at George Mason
University. He may be reached by email
at mfarley@teleglobe.com or at mfarley@nova.org, and always appreciates
feedback.
ã2000, Michael D. Farley