How to Justify the Purchase of a New Web Content Management System

Thursday, February 18, 2010 by JanJaap Kolleman
In today's economic environment business and marketing professionals are having a difficult time justifying technology spending- and that includes the purchase of a brand new web content management system.

The justification for this major investment might seem hard to make, but delaying the purchase or piecing together an in-house solution can cost you more in the long run and severely impact your brand. Here are four rock solid points to help you make the business case for an investment in an enterprise web content management system (WCMS).

1.  Demonstrate Increased Revenue

By streamlining and centralizing content creation, a new or revamped WCMS boosts your revenue by allowing content reuse and re-purposing across multiple websites, channels, and, if you're a global enterprise, in multiple languages.  Additionally, a WCMS simplifies workflow and provides robust analytic measurement capabilities to keep you focused on the timely updates of content that makes you money rather than wasting it.

A best-in-class enterprise web content management system will also have an integrated suite of online marketing tools that will help you achieve business objectives, like increasing conversion rates and building brand loyalty. Here are a few examples:

Brand management tools
 
Email campaign tools
 
Target audience marketing
 
Website personalization
 
Another revenue generating benefit of a top-rated WCMS is faster time to market.  Imagine launching a multichannel marketing campaign or a new product in just a few days, rather than a few weeks or even months.  What would this mean to your business in terms of increased sales or leads/

2.  Demonstrate Decreased Operational Costs

With the right WCMS, you will spend less money on updating your website and avoid the inefficient practice of copying and pasting content across various pages. Centralized design elements and templates can be created once and then instantaneously integrated across your website. WCM helps you save money on labor, protect your brand and get it right the first time. Most enterprise web content management systems are easy to use.  One of the major reasons organizations invest in web content management is because it empowers content creators (marketing teams, for example) to create, manage, modify, and publish content themselves- without IT involvement.  Consider the savings of hundreds of IT hours on an annual basis, not to mention the increased efficiency

3.  Calculate Probable ROI

Due to the economic environment, the concept of ROI is on the tip of everyone’s tongue when discussing technology investment. Don’t worry: an best-in-class enterprise web content management system almost always provides a sizable ROI. In addition to saving costs and boosting your revenue, a good WCMS interface comes with a high degree of usability. This means you can accelerate and simplify projects such as site development, implementation and content creation.

4.  Think Beyond ROI

In addition, a WCMS can provide benefits that supersede ROI.  Next generation web content management systems can really help to protect brand equity online and across multiple channels. For large companies, branding remains one of your most important assets and good customer perception is integral for continued success.  A next generation WCM system allows you to build and maintain your brand with minimal hiccups. Even if you come up with initial ROI figures that are lower than you want, maintaining your brand equity and providing the ideal user experience across multiple channels is enough to make the business case for updating your WCM strategy today.



The New Definition of Multichannel Marketing

Monday, November 16, 2009 by JanJaap Kolleman

How would you define multichannel marketing? I define it as the use of multiple media pathways to reach and influence a target audience. Traditionally, multichannel marketing includes some combination of the following pathways, aka channels:

  • Online (Website & Email)
  • Direct Mail
  • Telemarketing
  • Broadcast Media (TV, Radio, etc.)

Like an apothecary mixing a potion, the Marketer will select the right mix of channels to achieve the desired results. The savvy Marketer will select the channels based upon campaign objectives, business type (B2B or B2C), the product or service being offered, and the characteristics of the market segments and audiences being targeted.

 

Today, multichannel marketing can certainly include any of the above, however the channels to choose from have not only increased in numbers, they have evolved. What has emerged are two very distinct species; one surviving, the other thriving:

  • Offline Marketing
  • Online Marketing

The  Ascension of the Online Marketing

 

It wasn’t that long ago that the typical corporate website functioned a lot like a digital brochure. Not anymore.

 

For many organizations the website has become the center of the marketing universe and a primary driver of corporate revenue (directly and indirectly). The website has evolved from a “channel” into a “platform” for online marketing... a hub for emerging channels that exist almost entirely within the online realm:

  • Email Campaigns
  • SEM & SEO (Search Engine Marketing & Optimization)
  • Directory Listings (free and paid inclusion)
  • Banner Ad Campaigns
  • Whitepaper Syndication
  • RSS Feeds & SMS
  • Mobile
  • Blogs
  • Social Media & Networks

New Tools for a New Era

 

The evolution of web content management is being driven primarily by the evolution of online marketing. As a result, next generation web content management (WCM) systems are entering the market.

 

Next generation web content management systems are essentially becoming online marketing platforms. In addition to managing online content, they will also support multichannel marketing. Moreover, they will align with business drivers and include functionalities geared toward achieving marketing objectives, such as increasing conversion rates and building brand loyalty.

 

A best-in-class enterprise web content management system will include:

  • Brand management tools
  • Interactive marketing tools
  • Email campaign tools

Rethinking Multichannel Marketing

The term “Multichannel Marketing” does not necessarily need to be redefined. Rather, it’s our collective perception of what multichannel marketing consists of that warrants redefinition. No longer does a campaign require both online and offline media to be considered “multichannel” - successful multichannel marketing campaigns are now being conducted 100% online.



SDL Tridion is a leading provider of enterprise web contentent management systems (WCM) and online marketing solutions.

Web Content Management (WCM) and Social Media

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 by Gavino Gonzalez
There are basically two types of social media campaigns

1.    Those that you can control

The type of social media campaign that you control are initiated by your own organization, provided you have the necessary tools. A best-in-class enterprise web content management system will integrate with commercially available social media software and tools.

For example, a blog run by your company would require a workflow moderator to approve posts and comments before they go live and the same applies to corporate sponsored wikis.

In addition to using a best-in-class enterprise web content management system there are other brand management tools to help deliver brand consistency online. One of those tools is SDL Tridion's Safeguard. Safeguard is a powerful tool that will help protect your brand online with a few mouse clicks. This ensures that you will deliver a consistent content that protects your brand and its value.

2.    Those you can’t control

If a customer or a prospect becomes upset and decides to slam your organization on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, quite frankly, there is not much you can do about it. You can however; monitor social networking sites and keep an eye out for disparaging campaigns. Should one arise you would then be prepared to take swift action to mitigate potential negative effects.

Contact SDL Tridion today to request a demonstration or to learn more about enterprise web content management systems or brand management tools like Safeguard and how they can protect your brand.

How Much is Your Brand Worth?

Monday, November 2, 2009 by Gavino Gonzalez
Brand Value

Ever ponder how a best-in-class web content management system (WCM) can influence brand value? The answer is a lot! If you are managing online content manually across your website (or network of sites) then you are placing your brand at risk. There are many potential risks (or more) , everything from accidentally coping over a piece of code to inevitable errors such as typos and punucation. What if you placed a banner on your site in the wrong language? What if offensive language some how was published live? How many of your customers will be forgiving? Better yet, how long would it be before you can put up the correct banner? The bottom line is, your brand and it's value has taken a hit... Ask yourself, how much is my brand worth and what am I putting at risk?

Playing it safe


A Best-in-class web content management system will help protect your brand's integrity and value. It will simplify your online content publishing process. Benefits of a properly deployed best-in-class web content management system include:
  • Maintaining consistency of brand and message
  • Reduced time to market
  • Increased conversion rates
  • Reduced operational costs

Online Brand Management

In addition to using a best-in-class web content management system there are other brand management tools to help deliver brand consistency online. One of those tools is SDL Tridion's Safeguard. Safeguard is a powerful tool that will help protect your brand online with a few mouse clicks. This ensures that you will deliver a consistent website that protects your brand and its value.

Contact SDL Tridion today to request a demonstration or to learn more about enterprise web content management systems or brand management tools like Safeguard and how they can protect the value of your brand.

From Web Content Management to Unified Marketing

Monday, November 2, 2009 by Remco van Rij

Welcome to my very first blog! With my blogs I would like to share with you my experiences in my working life as a Sales Executive of SDL Tridion, the market leader in Web Content Management Products for web sites. I want to address topics, subjects and issues I see during client meetings, that you could relate to your own situation.

What does the current economic climate do to companies? I have seen cost cutting, reorganizations, shrinking budgets and closing down offices. All things a company can do on the cost-side to survive this crisis. But what are they doing on the revenue side? Especially in these days, it is important to find and be found by your customers and prospects and stay ahead of competition. Just web presence is not sufficient anymore...

The successful companies are the ones who have a consistent brand image thru all their communication channels. They are able to offer profiled and personalized content because they know their customers, prospects and website visitors. It sounds easy, but it takes some effort to reach this level.

These companies make a difference against their competition because they build and protect their image with brand management tools and apply website personalization. This makes all their communication and campaigns more effective and will lead to increasing conversion rates.

Well, how does your company build and protect its brand and is able to target the right audiences?

The Business Case for Web Content Management

Saturday, October 24, 2009 by Brad Davis
 Justifying Web Content Management (WCM)


It’s certainly no secret that in the current harsh economic environment marketing professionals are having a difficult time justifying technology spending -- and enterprise web content management systems are no exception.

The justification for this major investment might seem hard to make, but delaying the purchase or piecing together an in-house solution can cost you more in the long run and severely impact your brand. Here are four concrete tips and explanations to help you make the business case for an investment in an enterprise web content management system (WCMS).

1.  A Web Content Management System Increases Revenue.

By streamlining and centralizing content creation, a new or revamped WCMS boosts your revenue by allowing content reuse and re-purposing across multiple websites,  channels, and, if you're a global enterprise, in multiple languages.  Additionally, a WCMS simplifies workflow and provides robust analytic measurement capabilities to keep you focused on the timely updates of content that makes you money rather than wasting it.

A best-in-class enterprise web content management system will also have an integrated suite of online marketing tools that will help you achieve important business objectives, like increasing conversion rates. Here are a few examples:

Another revenue generating benefit of a top-rated WCMS is faster time to market.  Imagine launching a multichannel marketing campaign or a new product in just a few days, rather than a few weeks or even months.  What would this mean to your business in terms of increased sales or leads?


2. A Web Content Management System Decreases Operational Costs.

With the right WCMS, you will spend less money on updating your website and avoid the inefficient practice of copying and pasting content across various pages. Centralized design elements and templates can be created once and then instantaneously integrated across your website. WCM helps you save money on labor, protect your brand and get it right the first time.

Most enterprise web content management systems are easy to use.  One of the major reasons organizations invest in web content management is because it empowers content creators (marketing teams, for example) to create, manage, modify, and publish content themselves- without IT involvement.  Consider the savings of hundreds of IT hours on an annual basis, not to mention the increased efficiency.

3. Create an honest ROI calculator.

Due to the economic environment, the concept of ROI is on the tip of everyone’s tongue when discussing technology investment. Don’t worry: an best-in-class enterprise web content management system almost always provides a sizable ROI. In addition to saving costs and boosting your revenue, a good WCMS interface comes with a high degree of usability. This means you can accelerate and simplify projects such as site development, implementation and content creation.

4.  Save 70% - 80% by Purchasing an Enterprise Web Content Management Solution

Gilbane found that site development based around a content management system saves a company 70-80 percent on cost when compared to in-house development.

Content creation in a WCM system looks and feels like standard applications such as Microsoft Word™ and blogging platforms. Gilbane found that this ease-of-use cuts training times by up to 90 percent. With an out-of-the-box commercially available enterprise web content management system, updates don’t get bogged down in IT departments. Marketers and other communicators can create and re-purpose content as easily as making or editing a Word document.

Beyond ROI

In addition, a WCMS can provide benefits that supersede ROI.  Next generation web content management systems can really help to protect brand equity online and across multiple channels.  For large companies, branding remains one of your most important assets and good customer perception is integral for continued success.  A next generation WCM system allows you to build and maintain your brand with minimal hiccups. Even if you come up with initial ROI figures that are lower than you want, maintaining your brand equity and providing the ideal user experience across multiple channels is enough to make the business case for updating your WCM strategy today.

For more information about justifying web content management and building a case to purchase a new enterprise web content management system, SDL Tridion produced an excellent whitepaper titled ROI for the online channel.  Please feel free to download free of charge by clicking on the link.

Quality & Compliance Management For Your Online Presence

Thursday, October 15, 2009 by Brad Davis
Online Brand Management

 

Enterprise and global organizations want to present their brand, image and vision clearly and consistently. But with thousands of pages, in dozens of languages, for many different brands and products, this may seem like an impossible task. The good news is it doesn’t have to be.

 

Safeguard is a web content management software tool for SDL Tridion’s Enterprise Web Content Management System. It’s a powerful solution that provides website quality and compliance management- with just a few clicks of a mouse. This means you can deliver consistent, high-quality websites that comply with your own internal standards, industry best practice standards, and regulations.

To learn more about Safeguard and how it can simplify online brand management and improve the quality of your online presence visit: www.sdltridion.com/products/web_content_management/safeguard/ 
 

The Challenge of Website Management

 

Effective online communication requires the orchestration of many different factors. Ask yourself these questions:

  • Is all published content accurate, up-to-date and search engine optimized?
  • Do all of your sites have consistent branding and messaging?
  • Do your websites meet accessibility and legal requirements?
  • Are local websites presented in the right language?
  • Are digital assets managed according to company rules?
  • Do your websites comply with global and regional standards
  • Are you tracking and bench marking site-wide performance?

Safeguard monitors your entire web presence, in any country or language. Easy-to-use dashboards provide detailed information on your online performance, reporting any quality and compliance breaches so you can fix them and maximize your online business results.

About SDL Tridion

SDL Tridion is a recognized leader in web content management and has received top rankings by leading industry analysts.  In addition to enterprise web content management systems, SDL Tridion is also an online marketing solutions company that provides:

  • Brand management tools
  • Interactive marketing solutions
  • Email marketing software
  • Website quality and compliance software
  • Global web content management tools
  • And much more
SDL Tridion provides enterprise web content management systems.  Visit us at www.sdltridion.com

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