Question

Topic: Website Critique

It Vs. Marketing Web Development

Posted by Anonymous on 5/12/2005 at 9:20 PM ET 500 Points
Has anyone ever run across a situation where a company had their Web Site originally developed by an IT-focused company and continues to maintain their site despite their growing displeasure of the site’s performance in its ability to engage the customer. I’m looking for saleable ideas to sell them on the use of our marketing organization and ease their discomfort for change. We can provide them the added value of optimization, interactive venues and valuable tools for their principles, customers, sales and prospects. Design is a no-brainer. We can introduce them to Internet Marketing and make their Site an integral part of their campaigns.

How would you go about the constructing this case?

Your input will be valued greatly.

Dave
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by mgoodman on 5/12/2005 at 9:36 PM Member
    A few ideas:

    1. Present yourself to advertising, promotion, and PR agencies as their private label producer. You work for their clients as though you were part of the agency. The advantage is that they have the client relationships you need. The disadvantage is that you'll be anonymous to the client and the world.

    2. Focus on a few target customers and really research the situation, meet with the marketing vp, even create a sample site that will demonstrate how much more effective your work would be than what they have now. Invest your time/effort in getting to know the company and giving them a free sample of what you can do. Advantage: Fewer cold calls and higher closing ratio. Disadvantage: All your eggs will be in one basket. If you don't land a few quickly, you're going to be very hungry for a few months.

    3. Create your own website and get it listed in the top 10 on Google. That will demonstrate your SEO capability, show a sample of your creative work, and make a strong statement about what you can do. Advantage: You'll get a lot of visibility for the right reasons. Disadvantage: It's not so easy. It could take months, or even years ... and a major investment of time and money.

    Hope these help. My personal favorite is #2, but all three are viable options.
  • Posted by ROIHUNTER on 5/12/2005 at 10:26 PM Accepted
    Change rarely happens unless there is pain so if you can pinpoint the pain then work with it.

    This has worked for me in the past in dislodging IT developed and run web sites.

    1. Have the prospect identify 3 business objectives for the year that the web site is supporting or responsible fore.
    (If they can't, you have them, brainstorm a couple, and jump to item 3 below)

    2. Ask them to show how their existing site, via reports or measurements, are supporting those objectives.
    (If they can't, you have them, brainstorm a couple, and jump to item 3 below)

    3. Be prepared to explain how their site could be altered to support those goals and explain why and how certain measurements should be used to track the progress. Oh and yes, how you are perfect to help them achieve their business goals!

    I know this seems very basic, but if you can't help them solve their business problems, all the gadgets and gizmo you have won't keep them when they become dissatisfied with you and decide to change to someone else.

    Hope this helps.
  • Posted by Pepper Blue on 5/13/2005 at 12:36 AM Member
    dkuhner,

    Your question is the premise of Seth Godin's book "The Big Red Fez".

    Have you read it? If not order it and read it and the solution to your problem will be obvious.

    The above answers are good, but I believe they are making the solution to complex. In reality it isn't that complex once you can succinctly explain and demonstrate to them the chasm that exists between an IT developed website and a marketing developed website.

    You need to take their current website and show them how you will distill it down to the important components that are going to compel people to respond to a call to action.

    Explain to them marketing is an ongoing test/experiment and because you can easily measure analytics in emarketing you need to constantly be tweaking all the emarketing components, their website being the first, and in fact you might have to go through a number of iterations before you get it right.

    I hope what I am trying to explain is clear, contact me offline if you want to discuss it further.


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