URLyGrl.com Strategic Planning (Jerry McGuire)

Passion for the web. Passion for life!

Dear friends of URLyGrl.com,

URlyGrl.com has been ramping behind the scenes, examining its business and marketing plans, doing market research, understanding the needs to the industry in the mid-2000s, and re-designing its internet face.

This summer, URLyGrl.com would like to know what you too find important – how do you perceive the World Wide Web and the Internet? Are these invaluable tools your ally? Has the internet become as common place a “need” as the phones?


Or do you still mistrust it, wary of viruses, stealthy thieves, and a waste of time? The IRS prefers it; it’s time you leverage everything it has to offer (but please do trust your instincts; would you walk around a dark ally with jewelry showing and cash hanging out of your pockets? No, we would guess not. )

Overheard

Some of the things we have heard and seen in the past 12 months in terms of the direction for the internet and web:

-Sense and Sensibility - Companies are now looking to leverage the web sensibly, as a marketing and distribution channels, with internet technologies, such as XML to publish information, sell products, and automate data customization.

-SEO / SEM - In terms of Internet Marketing, Search Engine Organization and Search Engine Marketing are getting hot! (How to use what we have learned ethically.)

-Women in technology and female leadership - What issues do women face in 2005-2006? Must you be an entrepreneur to demonstrate entrepreneurship?

-Business Process Architecture - Effectively trend forecast and plan based on the history of the business operations and sales (turn data into information!) Not only market forecasts for sales, but there has been a heavy influence on business processes. Since the processes in place formed around the technology that had been implemented, companies are now re-architecting business. Making web sites is fun, but “doing business” cannot be overlooked.

-The information age - Business intelligence (BI) is not new, but it is coming into its prime! The information age is ready to take over the technology age. It’s already prevalent as executives are examining how to re-position technology from the perspective of how to improve business. It’s been too many years where the hype of technology gets in the way instead of helping. IT grows up.

-Education must not be overlooked.

-Web sites too grow up – gone are the days of making picture perfect, one-size-for-all table-based web sites. These sites look good for only a sliver of your customers. And they work for even fewer. Industry experts have quickly realized that web sites are not just marketing brochures for the front office! Web sites are your customers’ entry to your business! Even if your web site offers minimal interaction, it is in your best interest to make the sites flexible and extendible. We heard about this in 1999, but in 2004 the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) took it into their hands to make it happen. If you are not using a document type declaration for the latest standards of technology and separating your presentation fully from content, you are doing it wrong!

Results of the Research

In 2005, URLyGrl.com took a close look at its business model, and faded into the background. We stopped talking about our tax ID, and began to assess our key business strengths.

For one, we examined our ability to do all of our contract work independently. This would mean liability insurance, paperwork, and in most cases, stepping up from a sole proprietorship to an incorporated business.

Industry experts have quickly realized that web sites are not just marketing brochures for the front office! Web sites are your customers’ entry to your business. Even if your web site offers minimal interaction, it is in your best interest to make the sites flexible and extendible. We heard about this in 1999, but in 2004 the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) took it into their hands to make it happen. If you are not using a document type declaration for the latest standards of technology and separating your presentation fully from content, you are doing it wrong!

Business Architecture

For URLyGrl.com, the first step was exploring these potential paths. The second step was to understand which strengths and skills would be useful. The third step was re-aligning my approach towards the new goals.

(End part 1. …to be continued)