Do you remember your favourite jumper as a teenager? Perhaps it was really in fashion at the time or just the perfect colour? What happened to it? The world of fashion moved on and so did you – the jumper just did not suit you anymore, you grew out of it and only keep it for sentimental reasons. Add to this the challenge of finding another item of clothing that you love just as much, and you could be forgiven for feeling a little lost. Does this sound familiar? If you are a business owner, it might well do, as this is the exact thought process many companies go through with their websites.
When set up as part of the launch of a new business, corporate websites often perfectly meet the initial needs of the business but can also frequently find themselves struggling to sustain this relevance. This is particularly true as the standards for websites evolve, new technologies emerge and businesses grow and become international. Increasingly, business find that the old website doesn’t really fit with their objectives anymore but that they fear the hassle of setting up a new structure that reflects their new focus.
Despite this, it is imperative for companies to have a cutting edge, up-to-date website as it often is the first point of contact for a company with is customers. In today’s ‘always-on’ connected world, it has become vital to adopt digital marketing strategies that embrace online, mobile and social to most effectively reach target groups. Only by addressing target users on cross-channel basis with effective content can companies stay top of mind, achieve an emotional response, improve customer loyalty and, of course, increase sales.
Migrating content from one system to another thereby often is the single-most elaborate task in re-designing a web presence. It requires careful planning and consideration and can take up a large part of staff and time resources. A simple content migration therefore is of vital importance for the continuous re-use of content for corporate websites and online stores.
So, what’s the best way of beating this challenge and getting your website back in fashion? Perhaps the first part of the call is to find the right partner. With the right partner, re-launching a website can be done easily and efficiently with all aspects coming from one source: content and technical concept, responsive Web design development, programming and hosting, as well as support services such as editor training. Just as a fashion advisor can help you update your jumper to match the latest trends without you having to leaf through hundreds of magazines, the right partner can give your website the direction it needs.
Let me give you an example: Transmission manufacturer Getrag, the world’s largest independent system supplier for passenger cars, recently re-launched its website to meet the needs of today’s mobile audience, simplify its editorial processes and optimise its workflows for editors located at offices around the world as well as target various regional markets. The relaunch became necessary as Getrag expanded offering more products across various countries and eventually grew out of its existing website – usability, flexibility and long-term use therefore were among the most important selection criteria for the new system. To implement the project, Getrag worked with a full-service agency that handled all the processes involved in the re-launch.
The results show just what a new web design and content management system can do for businesses. Getrag is now able to better target relevant user groups by preparing an information architecture that generates and manages branded content for various target groups. Another benefit is the user-friendliness of the corporate website that allows maintenance at lower cost and presents the content in a modern and innovative way which was not possible with the previous system. In addition, the website has been created in a responsive HTML5 design which enables content to automatically adapt to any screen size. This way users can have an optimised display of the website on any type of mobile device.
Changing to a more modern and flexible content management system also simplifies editorial processes. Centralised and multilingual content can be globally replaced from a central location and changes then take place throughout the entire website. Also, maintaining centralised company data, such as employee numbers, site information or key company figures becomes much easier. Using regional targeting, companies can control how content is delivered to regional websites. It is even possible to adapt content to the specific needs of certain markets such as Asia.
This shows how the change to a new content management system, if done with the right partner, can improve usability, flexibility and long-term use of the website. It grows with the company and is prepared to meet their current and future needs. Just like your jumper – choose the right one and it’ll be a timeless piece that can easily be updated with just a few twists and always shows you in the best light.
By Oliver Jäger, Vice President of Global Marketing & Communications at e-Spirit.
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