This publication regarding vision development is the first part of a range of publications concerning `online success in 4 steps´. In this publication we explain how we develop a vision on online. It has been written for the online professional who is searching for a guiding document, which makes it easier to establish an online strategy afterwards.

1. ONLINE SUCCESS IN 4 STEPS
Step 1 Develop a vision on online
April 2012 – Version 1.0
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2. Content
This publication regarding vision development is the first part of a range of publications concerning
`online success in 4 steps´. In this publication we explain how we develop a vision on online. It has
been written for the online professional who is searching for a guiding document, which makes it
easier to establish an online strategy afterwards.
The contents are:
1.
Introduction
2.
Definition Vision on online
3.
Input needed: developments, trends and company policy
4.
Composing a vision on online
5.
Securing a vision on online
6.
Step-by-step plan
7.
Tips
1. Introduction
At our customers we see a growing need for a vision regarding the online
field. In the past, organisations have frequently got stuck, by making
decisions regarding internet on ´too low a level´, with a restricted
horizon or without founded research. However, positive experiences from
the past are no guarantee for the future either. The (online) world is
developing too fast for this.
In the past
organisations have
frequently got
stuck, by making
choices on ‘too low
a level’ or without
founded research.
There are still a number of reasons why the need for a vision on online
exists.
•
The online field is becoming more complex, whereas the foundation for new plans lags behind. A
vision on online can partly ensure this foundation.
•
Moreover new (strategic/e-business) plans are discussed and choices are made at increasingly
higher levels in the organisations. From this `higher level´ there’s a strong need for a guiding
document on basis of which decisions can be made.
•
Many organisations struggle with a mixture of online projects and own initiatives, which are
difficult to manage and control. A vision ensures an umbrella as a result of which everything
becomes more aligned.
•
Finally, a vision on online offers the possibility to acquire internal and external support. With a
vision, plans become more concrete and people become, due to the clarity in direction, more
enthusiastic.
Before we elaborate on how to establish a vision on online, we will first present our definition of vision.
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3. 2. Definition vision on online1
Our definition for a vision on online is:
“The long term (global) picture an organisation has, the factors that are relevant for the organisation
and the role online plays in it”
This definition consists of three elements:
1.
Term: for most organisations we look ahead 3 to 5 years. We do this for instance by looking at
(worldwide) research reports and extract the relevant socio-cultural, demographical, technological
and political developments from these reports.
2.
Relevant factors: factors are relevant for an organisation if they can be of influence on current or
future customers, organisation or other processes of the organisation.
3.
Role on online: this concerns how you want to use online, taking the relevant factors into account.
In this publication these elements will be explained further.
3. Input needed
Writing a vision is a process where several
individuals - not only employees, but for
example also stakeholders2 - are involved.
From several angles and disciplines, long-
2. Trends
1. Developments
term choices have to be made, which can
have severe consequences. If the vision
states that an organisation wants to digitise
3.
Organisation
its services entirely, then this has large
Figure 1.
Needed input
for a vision
consequences on the organisation, with
respect to required capacity, knowledge and
expertise and for example processes that
have to be adapted to the new situation.
Role of online
The needed input for writing a vision, and the desired role of online, exists of an analysis of:
1.
Developments
2.
Trends
3.
Company policy and key points of an organisation
With online we mean: the total amount of (possible digital means an organisation can use to reach her goals, like a
website, campaign page, extranet, intranet, etc.
2 A stakeholder is an individual or organisation that is influenced by (positively or negatively) or is influencing a
specific organisation
1
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4. 3.1. Developments
In this section we look at what is happening in the outer world, and what can be important for an
organisation.
We start with looking at the surroundings, on global, rural and regional/local level. Shifts in the sector
or line of business are also considered. When determining the relevant developments for a specific
organisation we make use of the SEPTED-factors (socio-cultural, economical, political, technological,
ecological and demographical factors).
An overview:
FACTORS
DEVELOPMENTS
WHY RELEVANT?
examples
Socio-cultural
Individualisation of the
These can stimulate organisations to communicate
society
more personally with their target audience,
Flexible working conditions
independent of time and place. For online, this means
Any time, any place
for example communication via a mobile page or via
extranet.
Economical
Globalisation
Economic circumstances can lead to new market
Market shifts
opportunities, or the need to (re)focus. Think of striking
Recession
new markets, or product development when expanding
Inflation
existing ones. Online channels can support this market
development by setting up online marketing
campaigns. Online can contribute to product
development by using crowdsourcing and co-creation.
Political
New legislation
Cutbacks often stimulate the creativity of
Cutback plans
organisations. In education, cutbacks can for example
Changing balance of power
stimulate internationalisation. Online can play an
important role, for example by offering ‘remote
teaching’.
Technological
Technological developments ensure for example that
Use of apps, augmented
new possibilities are available for an organisation to
reality, video
reach a target group more effectively, meet their
Cloud computing
Ecological
Mobile
information needs better or to provide services.
Sustainability of products
Ecological developments are for example important for
and services
organisations who are working at a more durable
Environmental awareness
distribution process, such as orders, reception
confirmations and status updates by means of Internet
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5. instead of by postal services.
Demografical
Age spread
Insight in demographic developments helps an
Family composition
organisation, with the aid of Internet, to anticipate the
Parentage
various customer life phase needs.
Regional shifting
% urban population
3.2. Trends
Beside developments we also look at trends that are important for a certain organisation in a specific
sector.
In this context we define trends as more short period changes, regarding:
•
Target audience: What is changing in the (online) behaviour and media usage?
•
Sector: What are new cooperation programmes? Is there supply chain integration?
•
Online: What are (new) possibilities for users at this moment?
3.2.1. Target audience trends
A visitor of a website has different expectations these days
There is a wide offer of relevant
than a few years ago. He expects he can arrange the site to
research that can be used to make
his own taste, get answers in one click, that at each site
target audience trends transparent.
level there is interaction (e.g. via social media) with the
Think of reports from: CBS (Dutch
organisation or that he can look into what others find of a
Bureau of Statistics), Forrester, AC
certain product or service. A site must also be easily
Nielsen and Morgan Stanley.
accessible by means of a mobile device and must provide
apps that make life easier for him.
We use this data to map general
trends at the target audience, and
When mapping target audience trends, we look at the
supplement these with knowledge
following points:
and experience from the sector and
Expectations: are there movements, commonly or
from the information the
specific for this target audience, which have changed
organisation already has
the expectations with respect to the organisation? For
•
concerning the target audience.
example:
Where necessary, new research is
started, for which an organisation
The possibility to have insight in everything
can hire specialised market
(regarding yourself and the organisation:
o
The presence of organisations on Twitter or other
social media.
o
research agencies.
transparency).
o
•
To be informed about relevant information (personalisation).
Usage: does the usage of online change? The emergence of apps can, for instance, result in the
usage of apps to perform tasks and only consulting the website of an organisation for background
information.
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6. Behaviour: also regarding behaviour developments can be mentioned which are important for an
•
organisation. Think of the need to upload user-generated content, view opinions of others (peer
influence) and to respond to them.
3.2.2. Sector trends
For an organisation is it important to watch what happens in its own sector:
•
Are emerging power shifts to be expected, for example from producer to consumer?
•
What is the position of the intermediate channel?
•
To what extent do supply chain partners join their strengths?
•
How does the competition position itself and what is their online behaviour?
•
Do specific legislation or government directives exist which apply to this sector?
To get good insight, we use the model
new
competitors
displayed in figure 2 (derived from the
Porter model), where we look at the five
forces that play a role in the sector: the
entry of new competitors, the threat of
Suppliers
substitutes, the negotiation position of
Market
Consumers
suppliers and consumers, and the
Figure 2. Model to
rivalry between the current players.
Substitutes
analyse trends in
a sector.
Sector trends within a travel organisation
In the travel sector we can analyse the recent developments using the mentioned model:
•
Think of the increasing power of the consumer. He makes travel decisions after consulting
ratings of others customers (Zoover) or books the journey directly after comparing it with other
providers/travels (Expedia).
•
Internet has enabled consumers to make hotel or campsite reservations without intervention
of a travel agency. With this, the suppliers of the accommodation have also become
competitors.
•
As a result of supply chain integration, more and more leisure market suppliers have
emerged. Think of restaurants and wellness centres, which also offer complete holiday
arrangements online that can be booked directly.
As a consequence of these sector developments, travel consultants must continuously focus on
their role in the online field. Perhaps, in the near future, the holiday bookings will take place on
sites of supply chain partners. The own website will be a place that only presents information
regarding countries, regions and where service information regarding the holiday can be retrieved
(such as status updates, downloads, tips, alerts and frequently asked questions)
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7. 3.2.3. Online trends
At last we look at online trends, to see what online today, or in the
near future, has to offer. These trends give important input to
describe the possible role of online for an organisation in the future.
A few examples:
•
The super-fast rise of mobile Internet, the use of video
What is hot today,
can be outdated
tomorrow. For this
reason constant
orientation is needed.
(YouTube), the availability of WiFi, and the success of social
media ensure that it does not only revolve around a good website. An organisation has to take the
rapidly developing media landscape into account.
•
More and more communication takes place outside the domain and therefore outside the control
of the organisation itself. Discussions take place on, for example, digital platforms with a specific
topic and on social media. Within its own organisation, colleagues find each other by means of
online communities, videoconferencing and webinars.
•
Online workplaces are available to make flexible working possible. On these platforms
documents, discussions and innovations are shared.
•
Via online you can orientate on whatever topic anywhere in the world. Several sites make it
possible to compare products and services. This means that the customer is even better
informed, and becomes more powerful in the decision making.
The above overview is only a small set of the total factors that are important for the organisation. The
world is in constant move, and what is hot today can be outdated tomorrow. For this reason, constant
orientation on these developments and trends is needed.
3.3. Organisation
After the evaluation of developments and trends in the outside world, the organisation itself is taken
into consideration. Online success is not achieved by only looking at the outside world. Online is an
integral part of the total organisation strategy and of the policy fields. Mission, vision, and strategic
planning show which role the organisation wants to play and in which ways it can be achieved. All
internally available policy papers such as ICT, HR, sales, marketing and communication policies are of
importance. They are used to answer the following questions:
1.
How does the organisation envision the world in 3 to 5 years? Where does it want to be at that
moment? What are the points of attention? For example: more internationalisation, to be the
most innovative player in the market or the best employer.
2.
What are the core values of an organisation? For example: open, honest, reliable or socially
involved.
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8. Why is this input so important for a vision on online? Internet as a company instrument has become an
integrated component of the organisation. If we know what direction the organisation is heading and
what the important areas to focus on are, the organisation can adapt the online channels to this to
achieve company goals quicker.
Example 1
Example 2
If the focus is to be the best employer of
If the priority is to be the most innovative
The Netherlands, then online can
player in the market, for example via
contribute by:
product development to stay market
Profiling the organisation, for example
leader, then online can contribute by:
on the social media where the target
•
•
audience is.
•
the composition of the products, for
Starting a dialogue with the
concerning target audience, to retrieve
Letting the target audience decide on
example by generating ideas.
•
Having employees work together on
potential employees’ wishes and
•
product innovations by the use of co-
requirements.
operation and co-creation tools.
Showing that this organisation is the
best employer by facilitating online
instruments/applications that make,
for example, working from home
available.
Core values are also an important input when determining the role of online. For example transparency
to the customer. This means that the online channel also has to facilitate this by:
•
Giving insight in the status of an application, purchase or service.
•
Sharing opinions and points of view, which is possible by means of a website or social media.
•
Returning results as feedback, for example regarding the status of the organisation itself, by
online annual reports.
4. Composing a vision on online
Writing the vision on online is a challenge in itself. A vision is short and powerful, and formulates
exactly enough starting points with which an organisation can make a translation to the online field.
Sometimes it is possible to write a vision on an A4, sometimes more pages are needed.
The secret is to determine a future vision based on collected input, relevant developments and trends,
after which you can determine the contribution of online. The vision is the umbrella for all subsequent
steps, such as the development of the online strategy, which is the subject of the second part of this
publication series.
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9. To get a picture of vision, a number of examples are given as inspiration:
Example (part of) vision for HEALTHCARE
Within healthcare an important development is that patients are more and more ‘in control',
because they can, for example, compare hospitals with each other and are prepared to travel for
better care. Therefore, reputation management is essential for a healthcare institution. The role
of online for the healthcare institution is to persuade the patient of its qualities, for example:
show what its priority fields are, publish positions in ranking, or communicate about cooperations with other authoritative healthcare organisations.
ng met andere toonaangevende zorgorganisaties te communiceren.
Example (part of) vision for EDUCATION
An important development in education is the cutbacks and the need to efficiently open up the
information to the many target audiences with their (personal) information needs. The role of
online is to support the target audience in its processes, in an efficient manner. For example:
the development of a portal, which can be adapted by the target audience. Or by supporting
professors and students in their important tasks with mobile applications.
Example (part of) vision for INDUSTRY
For large industrial organisations, it is important to be innovative in order to lead the market.
Especially in strongly competitive markets, the target audience selects products based on the
degree a product fulfils their needs. The role of online for an organisation with innovation as
point of attention can be to involve the target audience in its product development. For
example: facilitating co-operation platforms (co-creation) where customers can express their
ideas, discuss improvements or test new products.
Example (part from) vision for RETAIL
With retail the challenge is to find a balance between online sale and offline sale. The shift that
takes place also has consequences on how customers (remain) committed, since personal
contact is missing. The role of online is to promote customer commitment. This is possible by
structurally retain a customer by offering his own page or combining specific services that are
related to the bought product. Social emotional binding is also possible: by anticipating what is
important in the lives of customer. The organisation has to be more involved outside its own
online domain. For instance, where customers can be found, like on social media.
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10. 5. Securing a vision on online
An important step during the creation of a vision is to get commitment within the organisation.
Regularly give presentations or introduce feedback moments with key individuals and stakeholders
from within and outside the organisation who have to become involved in the vision development. If
the future vision of online in the organisation is clear to them, then the next step to strategy will also
be logical.
Our experience learns that by presenting the vision on online to a
group of stakeholders at the correct level, an enthusiasm arises that
radiates through the entire organisation.
Faith arises because an umbrella has been developed that offers grip
and which takes the internal and external factors into account.
Stakeholders all of a
sudden see beautiful
opportunities for their
own policy fields
Moreover the vision has been established at such a (high) level that
various policy fields can hook on to it as well. As a result, stakeholders all of a sudden see beautiful
opportunities or thrilling challenges appearing for their own policy fields.
6. Step by step
For those who want to get started with the composition of a vision on online, we summarise the step
by step plan below.
Step 1
Determine your playing field
Determine who and which factors are of influence, or could be of influence in your future
vision. Are these only consumer related, or also political or environmental related?
Step 2
Determine your term
Determine for which term you are going to draft your vision. Due to the speed of
development, a rule of thumb is to develop a vision for a maximum of 3 years
Step 3
Determine what is relevant
Analyse and document the expectations within the playing field (based on the SEPTED input,
trends/developments and the organisational vision and strategy), which are of influence on
the organisation or environment. Use argumentation to show why they are of importance. In
other words: give answers concerning the relevant trends and developments from the point
of view of the organisation
Step 4
Weigh and choose the relevant factors
Determine, based on the relevant factors in step 3, which are of most importance. For
example: which will have most influence on the organisation, how can we deal with them, or
which fit best in the overall organisation visions?
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11. Step 5
Describe the role of online in a vision
Describe for the most relevant factors how online can contribute. The art of writing a vision is
that it is described as short and powerful as possible, frequently in the form of a Powerpoint
slide or short Word document.
Step 6
Present and secure the vision
Ensure that the correct presentation is directed to the appropriate people, who appeal to the
issues that are relevant to them. Make them a member of the process.
7. Tips
Finally a few tips that can be of importance for everyone who is composing a vision on online:
•
Don’t think too much in online developments. Look more widely, and use the SEPTED-method.
•
Work from global, to nationwide, to regional/local level when determining relevant developments.
This prevents you from overlooking certain angles.
•
Make a clear distinction between developments and trends: developments are long term, trends
change more rapidly.
•
When analysing, don’t only take ’positive’ cases into account. The ‘negative’ cases can be of
interest for the online vision as well.
•
Write the vision as short as possible. A short vision is easier to remember and also easier to be
used.
•
Repeat the composition of an online vision (at a minimum within the period which has been set
for the vision). The world keeps changing, and you have to take the changes into account in your
organisation.
With this first publication we hope we have helped the online professional with determining a vision on
online. This vision is the starting point for the next step: online strategy development.
Author:
Jacqueline Westerbeek / Online Strategist
E-mail: j.westerbeek@presentmedia.nl
© Present Media | April 2012
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