Web Content Management Support

Web Content Management (WCM) and the Expansion of the Content Universe

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 by Gavino Gonzalez

Traditional Content

Content is king and will continue to be king for the foreseeable future. Content is everywhere we go. Content has many faces it can be the huge billboard across the street, the stationary on your desk, it can even be the small ads in the magazine or newspaper that you read this morning.

Online Content

Content is all over the internet. It’s everywhere, from banner ad’s to blog posts, Tweets, Youtube, Linkedin, emails, presentations, ratings, customer responses, tags and comments. The amount of online content that is produced daily is astonishing and it will continue to grow at an expediential rate.

Mobile Content

Ever contemplate that your mobile device is content? Yes, you’re Blackberry, iPhone, Nexus One, iPad- all capable of producing and mobile receiving content. Your mobile device will handle text messages, applications, mobile ads, uploading images and videos to Facebook. You can even participate in mobile campaigns, for example text a phrase to ‘#####’ to receive special updates and promotions. Mobile content is already showing promising signs, people can bank at their fingertips, get weather, transit and travel updates via their Smartphone also. One can assume that mobile content in its infancy has already created a major impact in our daily lives and will continue to do so for many years ahead.

Challenges that lie ahead for Mobile Content

The expectation has been set for mobile content to experience significant year-over-year growth. We have begun to fulfill that expectation, people tweet, update their facebook status on smart phones, but have not reached its full potential, yet. There are many issues to work out before mobile becomes a force to be reckoned with.
Mobile browser support – There is no universal screen size for a smart phone, every smart phone varies in multiple shapes and sizes. If you visit a website on a smart phone there is a chance that the site will recognize that it’s from a mobile browser and will automatically scale it to size, but may be a little difficult to see.
Updating Mobile Content (Websites) – Many companies today are having enough difficultly in maintaining their mission critical websites. A Considerable quantity has begun to incorporate personalization and web 2.0 applications, but many are still lacking today.

Solution: Next Generation Web Content Management System

Deploying a best-in-class enterprise web content management system can help you achieve your business objectives. The SDL Tridion Solution allows you to simply display relevant content on your website through personalization. The Tridion Solution also allows you to simply manage multiple website (including mobile websites).
SDL Tridion is positioned as a “Leader” by both Forrester and Gartner. SDL Tridion ushers in next generation web content management by integrating a suite of ROI focused online marketing tools.

Turning unstructured content into a corporate asset

Monday, November 23, 2009 by Remco van Rij

Unstructured content (e.g. Documents, Web pages, XML components, audio, video, medical images, scanned images, engineering drawings, enterprise reports, records, presentations) is growing overall by over 200% per year - 35 billion emails per day, Word content doubles every two months. Structured content is growing at only 4%.

Most business executives consider unstructured content to be an asset, yet few believe that it is properly managed like an asset. The majority of corporate unstructured content is not really managed as an asset at all, but instead is just needles of value in a haystack of shared drives, mailboxes and more systems than organizations know what to do with.

Unstructured information assets that are uncontrolled and unexploited do not support the implementation of corporate strategy and communication; in fact, they hinder it. Instead of reducing risk, they increase it.

And much of this content is brought to the outside world via the internet. If you want to maximize the value of your content (instead of treating it as a cost), trust it to a platform that manages your content in a way you can use it for all your channels.

SDL Tridion is market leader in Global Web Content Management, and by offering integrations with digital asset management systems and collaboration software, it supports the full life cycle of one of your most valuable corporate assets: persuasive content! Your content becomes fuel for target audience marketing, brand management and email campaigns. Only imagine...

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.

WCM Allows Company To Provide Ideal User Experience On Global Scale

Friday, November 13, 2009 by Brad Davis

As a general practice, we don't post press releases to the SDL Tridion Blogosphere. The IHS story is an exception becuse it is a perfect example of a company moving beyond basic online content management and selecting a next generation web content management system as the foundation for their online marketing strategy.

IHS To Implement World-Class Web Sites With SDL Tridion

IHS, a leading global source of critical information and insight, has selected the SDL Tridion enterprise Web Content Management system (WCMS) to manage its global network of websites. With full implementation planned for the second quarter of 2010, IHS is undergoing a massive online overhaul that will merge 45 business unit-specific sites and domains into a single enterprise-level Web experience.

"We've had several substantial acquisitions at IHS in recent years," says Kevin Spiller, director of Web development and strategy at IHS. "This created a difficult situation for getting people to the right information or demonstrate the full value of IHS. We knew that it was integral to reorganize our Web content in a system that helps to maintain a robust global presence. Starting with 14 different WCM systems, we whittled the selection down to three. SDL Tridion was the best fit for a company like ours with a wide range of customers."

The IHS Web site reaches users and customers across a diverse array of business units. From engineering, geology and oil prospecting to supply chains, military, security and financial analysis, its goal is to provide potential users from many industries with an ideal experience across the site. IHS plans to accomplish this by using SDL Tridion's workflow, translation management and website personalization features. As Spiller explains it, IHS wants to implicitly understand where users are coming from and what they are seeking.

"We're planning on using SDL Tridion to ensure that our Web experience flows seamlessly across all channels," says Spiller. "Whether we are providing data or taking more of an advisory role, it becomes important that users and customers understand the breadth and diversity of our business solutions. SDL Tridion provides a personalized user experience that will accomplish that goal while protecting our brand and localizing updates. This allows more flexibility on a bigger Web site that meets all of our governance needs."

"SDL Tridion is very pleased to welcome IHS as a customer," says Jan Jaap Kolleman, CEO of SDL Tridion. "In many ways, the IHS site is an exemplary case that demonstrates the scalability of our enterprise web content management system. Our software will help them streamline their Web presence by transforming marketing sites into a large, global Web presence that reinforces the IHS brand. Now, a subject matter expert in Europe can update content directly for local users in a specific industry while sharing design, layout and branding elements with the rest of the Web site. For a company that's rapidly expanding such as IHS, this capability becomes an invaluable tool for growth over multiple years."

About IHS (www.ihs.com)
IHS is a leading global source of critical information and insight dedicated to providing the most complete and trusted information and expertise. IHS product and service solutions span four areas of information that encompass the most important concerns facing global business today: Energy, Product Lifecycle, Security, and Environment, all supported by Macroeconomics.

Evolution of Websites and Online Content

Friday, November 13, 2009 by Gavino Gonzalez

In the beginning…

Pay careful attention as this question as may allow you to win a bet some day, When was the Internet founded? The answer is 1958. I am not going to go that far back as the Internet was kept under government use only for many years, but I will start sometime in the last 15 years.

Sometime over the last 15 year we were all introduced to the Internet. The Internet then was mostly filled with pages of text only content. There was very little online content, only a few websites had images. Preliminary Internet chat was made by typing text on a page and clicking ‘refresh’ to ‘post’ your remarks. There was no music or videos to listen to or watch. There were no fancy online tools, no ecommerce, no Google or social media.

As time went on…

For general users, the Internet evolved and presented new opportunities with the proliferation of online content. Music, videos, live camera feeds, webinars and of course almost real time status updates. For businesses, this presented a double edged sword.

Pro:

•    Businesses are ‘always’ open
•    Brand management
•    Website globalization
•    Reduced time to market
•    Reduced operational costs

Con:

•    Brand management (See Web Content Management (WCM) and Social Media post)
•    Satisfying demand of relevant content

What lies ahead…?

As the Internet continues to evolve into the future we must ask ourselves the following questions:

•    Who will be the audience?
•    What will websites look like?
•    What kind of online content will be demanded?
•    How quickly can you adjust to change?
•    How will you manage online content?
•    How will you support your website?
•    What is your online strategy?

Looking forward I think we can safely assume the following:

•    Online content will continue to grow at an expediential rate
•    Demand for personalized content will continue to expand
•    Social Media channel will continue to increase
•    Growth in demand of mobile content
•    Globalization of websites will become the standard

Are you ready?

A best-in-class enterprise web content management system can help you ‘future proof’ your website(s). SDL Tridion solution is fully scalable and will allow you to adapt to whatever the future may hold.

About SDL Tridion

SDL Tridion is provider of best-in-class enterprise web content management systems. Positioned as a "Leader" by both Forrester and Gartner, SDL Tridion ushers in next generation web content management by integrating a suite of ROI focused online marketing tools.

How cheap is open source in the real world?

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 by Remco van Rij

As closed source software vendor, SDL Tridion is of course not blind for the trend within companies to add open source software to their short lists. If it is either as part of a dictated policy (e.g. governmental organizations) or for financial arguments. But for both reasons it is essential to get insight in the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) to make fair and wise decisions in the end.

In many blogs, on websites and in articles, you can read academic studies on this. But the real proof of the pudding is of course in the eating! And the taste is not always as sweet as expected... Therefore I would like to share with you some real life experiences you can take notice of.

When starting with Open Source, and coming from a closed source enterpise product like SDL Tridion Enterprise Web Content Management System, then you need to deal with at least one of the following habits in your organization.

Your business and IT people are used to:

work with fully supported and 'fit for purpose' Web Content Managements products
get good and timely answers on their requests, issues, changes and enhancements
be able to get experienced consultants on-site when necessary

And what did your people experience during the open source implementation? They found out that:

Former standard functionality has to be customized (like SDL Tridion's BluePrinting)
support is not (timely) available
experienced consultancy is scarce and certainly not for free
Motivation drops after first enthousiasm at the start

Already before go-live of the new open source solution, the TCO advantages that were predicted are dissapeared. And what is left is a demotivated organization with a sour IT project that cannot execute its plans and actions to fight competition via the web.

My advice: Let the functionality and flexilibity that you need to gain business advantages lead the way in your decicion making. And then start evaluating the price and benefits of your futureproof Enterprise Web Content Management System!

Releasing the Hounds after Web Content Management (WCM)

Friday, October 30, 2009 by Gavino Gonzalez

Caged Web Site Content Management

Fellow Marketers, raise your hand if you cannot change the content on your website promptly. Come on you don't have to be afraid, I've been there more times than I can count in my career. You have a collection of perfect collateral that you are itching to deploy on your website, but you’ve been informed that it will take a week(maybe longer) before it can go live. Why? It's sitting in the IT departments 'web content management support box'. You have online marketing objectives to achieve, so time to market is a critical factor in the success of the campaign.

Releasing the Hounds

Best-in-class Web Content Management software can help you reach your business objectives faster and with less headaches. Benefits of a well deployed enterprise Web Content Management system include:

•    Reduced time to market
•    Increased efficiency
•    Maintaining consistency of brand and message
•    Increased customer loyalty
•    Increased conversion rates
•    Reduced Operation costs

All of the above combine to deliver an amazing return on your marketing investment.

Imagine if...

Imagine having the ability to do things like adding new content to your website, deploying an email campaign, creating landing pages and micro sites and fixing incorrect content and more without the need to go through IT.

The best part is you don't need to be an HTML wizard. You don't even need to know HTML at all. Best-in-class enterprise Web Content Management systems are extremely easy to use and have WYSIWYG editors which make editing website content as easy as creating a word document or sending an email.

Check this out

SDL Tridion offers a top rated enterprise web content management system. Positioned as a leader by both Forrester and Gartner, renowned WCM industry analysts, the SDL Tridion solution makes managing complex content over multiple websites and channels fast and easy. Better yet, it even includes a suite of ROI focused online marketing tools. To learn how SDL Tridion can make your life easier and your online campaigns more successful, contact us today and request a demonstration.

Web content management and old school marketing (2)

Wednesday, October 28, 2009 by Annelore vanderLint

Like confessed before, although I work for a global web content management software vendor, I'm still an old school marketer. I believe it’s the business benefits and not the technical specifics that are making a web content management system - or any interactive marketing tool for that matter - sexy. But even with all the interactive tools we have at our disposal, taking the benefits of these techniques to the next level is not easy.

I feel that the most important achievement of today’s interactive marketing solutions is that they enable us to measure the result of everything we do. The old credo “I know I’m wasting half of my marketing budget, but I do not know which half” does not fly on the online stage.

A content management system with integrated analytic solutions enables us to close the loop in our marketing activities. We can capture customer responses and behavior and we should use this data to direct and refine our interactive marketing strategy and tactics.

Easier said than done. That’s why we have drafted a whitepaper and a webinar (recorded version) that shows for each step in the AIDAS cycle how ‘closed loop marketing” concepts for the online channel are relevant and what you can do to support them.

We show how customer acquisition on the web starts with being noticed and how you can make people aware of your offering by using activities ranging from online advertising, branding and email marketing to search optimization and social tagging. We illustrate how the web over the years has developed from the mass communication platform it was, to becoming an engagement channel and the consequences this has for online marketing organizations that need to shift focus from traditional shotgun strategy to a rifle approach. To generate desire and action, marketers should actively seek direct dialog and need to offer a relevant and persuasive online experience. Only by establishing a strong emotional bond that creates loyalty to a brand, long-term growth and success can be guaranteed. The key is to make intelligent investments that allow you to measure result, improve and create long lasting relationships with your customers.

Forrester Reviews Top Web Content Management Vendors and Systems

Wednesday, October 21, 2009 by Brad Davis

Searching for an Enterprise Web Content Management System? Start Here.

In an earlier blog post, I suggested that you begin the web content management vendor selection process by doing some research and developing a "short list" of vendors to evaluate. If you're like most organizations, you will probably begin with a Google search using phrases like:

Web Content Management Reviews
Web Content Management Vendors
Enterprise Web Content Management System
Global Web Content Management
Best Web Content Management

Search on a WCM related phrase and you'll get a mind blowing number of results-over 184,000,000. And most of these will be from WCM companies who want to sell you their wares. Of course that includes your friends at SDL Tridion :)

Want Factual, Unbiased WCM Research? Go Straight to Forrester.

Forrester Research, a renowned web content management industry analyst, publishes a report that evaluates leading enterprise-class web content management vendors and their solutions. Their latest report is "The Forrester Wave™: Web Content Management for External Sites, Q-2 2009". The detailed report is used by many organizations to develop their "short list".

About the Forrester Report

Forrester evaluates 10 web content management vendors across approximately 115 criteria, which they grouped into three primary categories:

Current offering
Strategy
Market presence

Results are summarized in a clear concise manner with easy to read charts, diagrams and tables. If you are looking for a best-in-class enterprise web content management system from a leading web content management vendor, this report is definitely a "Must Read".

Download the Forrester Report for Free

Click here to download the web content management reviewed report by Forrester, compliments of SDL Tridion, a leader in enterprise web content management and online marketing solutions.

Selecting the Best Web Content Management System

There are hundreds of web content management products, systems, and solutions on the market today from hundreds of different vendors. Hopefully, you will find the Forrester report helpful in narrowing the playing field and developing a short list of enterprise web content management vendors to evaluate.

Which enterprise web content management system is right for you and which vendor should you select? This depends upon the specific needs of your organization. In any case, be sure to select a financially strong company with the ability to provide excellent web content management support and service.

Beyond Web Content Management

In addition to looking at the features and benefits of different web content management systems, I would also suggest that you take a look at how they will help you achieve your online marketing objectives, such as increasing conversion rates. Look for web content management software tools that will assist with online brand management, target audience marketing, email campaigns, and website personalization.

The bottom line: Top web content management vendors will help you do much more than basic online content management. They will help you realize the many benefits of web content management, the most important of which is ROI.

10 Features a Best-In-Class Web Content Management System Should Have

Tuesday, October 20, 2009 by Brad Davis

Features versus Benefits

Yeah, I know. People (and organizations) buy benefits not features. And, of course, the benefits that a top rated enterprise web content management system can deliver are far more important than a collection of whistles and bells. That said, it is features that deliver benefits and properly employed functionalities that help achieve online business objectives.

"Must Have" Features & Functionalities

So, your an enterprise-class organization shopping for a best-in-class web content management system. What key WCM features should you be evaluating on the solutions being offered by the vendors lucky enough to make your short list? Here's a list of ten, that, according to my research, many WCM & CMS experts feel are mission critical:

1. Content Creation & Publishing Tools

Functionalities for tempalting, creating content components, and managing changes. It should be simple to build new websites, web pages, micro sites, and templates. The system should also make it easy to share and reuse content across multiple websites, and ideally, across multiple channels.

2. Editing Tools
A set of tools for editing content that are easy to use, including a WYSIWYG editor.

3. Automated Workflow & Approval Process
The ability to manage the content creation process from start to finish with an automated workflow and approval process.

4. Content Preview
The ability to preview content and check for errors prior to publishing to the live website(s).

5. Centralized Content Repository
The content repository should make it easy to upload, store, manage, and deliver different types of content, files, and digital assets.

6. Enterprise Ready Technology
Web content management software should be scalable and upgradeable with minimal effort. Modules that add additional functionalities and updates should be easy to install.

7. Check-in & Check-out
Secure library-type tools that allow for easy check-in and check-out of items with version control.

8. Integration & Connectivity
An enterprise web content management system should "play nice with others". Meaning that it should easily integrate with other technology and platforms, like, for example, CRM systems, Web 2.0, and social media applications.

9. Online Marketing Tools
Web content management is evolving and "next generation" web content management systems will offer integrated online marketing capabilities that will help users achieve online marketing objectives, such as increased traffic and conversion rates. Examples include website personalization for target audience marketing, interactive marketing, and online brand management.

10. A Solid Company Behind the WCM Solution
Web content management vendors should be evaluated very carefully and due diligence given to your finalists. Will your selected company be around for the next three to five years to provide service and support?

To be sure, there are other features and functionalities that you will want in an enterprise web content management system. Indeed, considering the number of solutions on the market, you will have, quite literally, thousands of features to choose from. Therefore, you might want to consider having three categories of features as you evaluate WCM solutions and vendors:

Must have features
Important features
Nice to have features

One final thought: Enough about web content management features. Don't forget about the benefits!

Sample RFI Template for Web Content Management Vendor Selection

Friday, October 16, 2009 by Brad Davis

Selecting An Enterprise Web Content Management System

To state the obvious, selecting an enterprise web content management system begins with selecting an enterprise web content management vendor. While there is no set process for doing so, it’s definitely wise to begin by doing a little research to come up with a “Short List” of similar vendors most likely to meet your specific needs.

Assuming that you have:

Done your research
Set project objectives
Made a plan
Received executive approval
Established a budget
Assembled a team
Decided on some basic "must have" web content management features

it's time to do an RFI (request for information) from your short list of web content management vendors. Generally, the enterprise web content management system RFI is used to gather enough information about the vendors themselves and their proposed solutions so you can trim the list to only those from whom you want a demonstration.

Download Your Free Sample RFI Template Here

To help you select the best web content management system for your needs, SDL Tridion has developed a vendor neutral template to get you started. Please feel free to modify and use it however you like. Here is the link to where you can download:

Enterprise Web Content Management RFI Template

Other Considerations

A word of advise: Choose your web content management vendor very, very carefully. Even if a solution has a lot of fancy whistles and bells that you absolutely "must have", you want to be pretty sure that the providing vendor will be around for the next 3-5 years with the ability to provide support.

I also suggest that you give more weight to the benefits of web content management than you give to the features of a particular system. In the end, it's about results and ROI- especially in today's economic climate. So when evaluating WCM solutions, you might want to determine which one will best help you achieve business objectives such as increased conversion rates and improved online brand management.