What can you do to get the news out there and start dipping your toe into social media waters, while you wait for intranet nirvana to arrive? A few ideas.

1. Creative Ways to Compensate for
Old Intranets
How to capture employees' interest
and spark interaction, while you wait
for the Intranet 'Revamp’
Paula Cassin, Monthly webinar, May 26, 2009

2. helps medium and large companies improve their internal
communications using innovative technology solutions.
Transforming 'push' communications, reducing information
overload and/or email fatigue, and driving employee action
are our areas of expertise.
Paula Cassin, CEO
1.805.758.3392
Twitter.com/paulacassin
paula.cassin@cutthroughcommunications.com

3. We’re Overloaded
with Information…
The average knowledge worker spends about
25% of the day searching for needed
information, getting back to work after an
interruption and dealing with other effects of
information overload.
Basex, leading I.O. research firm.

4. ...and in a conversational Web 2.0 World
“We need to „push‟ out information that explains
WHAT the business is doing,
and WHY it is doing it . . .
and then use interactive social media tools
to get employees to start talking about
HOW they‟re going to help make it happen.”
Steve Crescenzo, Consultant

5. Focus on Two Intranet Roles
Company News Source
Interaction, Social Media

6. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

7. 7 Ideas:
Using basic intranet html:
• Opensource blog software
• Widgets for the homepage
Webpages in other places
• Snap Comms Desktop Tools
• Interactive Screensavers
• Enewsletters to the next level.
Non-html ways to spread the word
• Voicemail/podcast radio
• Microblogging, SMS, IM.

8. Blog software. Opensource + inhouse.
• Can you get wordpress in house?
• Example:

9. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

10. Widgets for your Intranet
• Embed the html, then update
• www.sproutbuilder.com
• surveygizmo, survey monkey
• Youtube, GoogleVideo, etc.
• Blog/RSS feeds
• Utterli, Twitter
• Then you can update and manage content automatically

11. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

12. 7 Ideas:
Using basic intranet html:
• Opensource blog software
• Widgets for the homepage
Webpages in other places
• Snap Comms Desktop Tools
• Interactive Screensavers
• Enewsletters to the next level.
Non-html ways to spread the word
• Voicemail/podcast radio
• Microblogging, SMS, IM.

13. Snap Comms Tools
Snap Mag
Snap Interactive
Snap Alert
Snap Ticker
Snap Quiz /Poll

14. Snap Comms Desktop Tools
Secure without
password integration
• Desktop software
authenticates
• No software, no
webpage/forum access
• No „take-up‟ worries
Message History window
shows your key content –
‘html’
pages, forums, breaking
news, resources

15. Snap Comms Examples

16. Admin, Editor and Writer Levels
• No emailing drafts
back and forth
• Easy to manage for
the comms team
• Several ways to access
article input view, all
single click
• Guided, easy steps
• Formatting can be
locked down or not

17. Is it Secure?
• All communications between the Snap Client and
the Snap Platform are initiated by the Snap
Client and include some application control data
(see handout).
• All data is sent over a secure connection using
HTTP over SSL.
• For the hosted model, we follow
best practice security measures.
(Full information on platform security
provided on request.)

18. Southern Wines Example
• Remote Salesforce with PCs
• Use a web-based ordering system
• Do not VPN in often = don‟t see the intranet.
• Do not check email frequently
• Sales Intranet substitute.
• Using desktop messaging to get
promotions, pricing, new products, monthly results
out to staff.
• Using Snap Mag, Q&A to replicate core intranet
rscs

19. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

20. Interactive Screensavers
• Each employees‟ screensaver
becomes series of revolving visual
messages
• HTML, image, video, flash.
• Include hyperlinks/images
so staff can click to access
more information
• Update and change
screensavers easily, without
any major IT deployment or
involvement

21. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

22. Email Newsletters
• Easy to mimic HTML of homepage, embed links
• Subject line is key
• Interaction
• Email comments
• Polls, “rate-this-article”
• Article submissions
• Measure readership/activity.

23. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

24. 7 Ideas:
Using basic intranet html:
• Opensource blog software
• Widgets for the homepage
Webpages in other places
• Snap Comms Desktop Tools
• Interactive Screensavers
• Enewsletters to the next level.
Non-html ways to spread the word
• Voicemail/podcast radio
• Microblogging, SMS, IM.

25. Other Channels
Microblogs Voice Mobile
(private message Device
Twitter) broadcast. SMS,
Daily PDA apps
Podcast

26. 7 Criteria
Secure?
Low Cost?
Easy to Update?
Easy for Audience?
Visually Rich?
Interactive?
Cut Through?

27. TAKEAWAYS
You don‟t have to wait to spark
conversations/interaction
Start with your top criteria and
Checklists,
evaluate from there
Comms and IT need to work together
to make it happen.

28. THANK YOU!
Offering extended free trial to
all attendees.
Please contact me for details
CHECKLISTS HERE: http://bit.ly/lqkjc
Feel free to contact me/us at Cut Through Comms
www.cutthroughcommunications.com
Email or tweet me at:
Paula Cassin
Paula.cassin@cutthroughcommunications.com
1.805.715.0300. Twitter: paulacassin. LinkedIn: paulacassin
http://www.twitter.com/paulacassin
for Webinar: Creative Ways to Compensate for Old Intranets 2009