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
In the past
field. In the past, organisations have frequently got stuck, by making
organisations have
decisions regarding internet on ´too low a level´, with a restricted
frequently got
horizon or without founded research. However, positive experiences from
stuck, by making
the past are no guarantee for the future either. The (online) world is
choices on ‘too low
developing too fast for this.
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.
2. Trends
From several angles and disciplines, long- 1. Develop-
ments
term choices have to be made, which can
have severe consequences. If the vision Figure 1.
3.
Organisation
states that an organisation wants to digitise Needed input
its services entirely, then this has large for a vision
consequences on the organisation, with
respect to required capacity, knowledge and
expertise and for example processes that
Role of online
have to be adapted to the new situation.
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
1 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
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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 Mobile 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 information needs better or to provide services.
Ecological 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:
o The presence of organisations on Twitter or other Where necessary, new research is
social media. started, for which an organisation
o The possibility to have insight in everything can hire specialised market
(regarding yourself and the organisation: 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
displayed in figure 2 (derived from the competitors
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 Market Consumers
substitutes, the negotiation position of
suppliers and consumers, and the
rivalry between the current players. Figure 2. Model to
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
What is hot today,
describe the possible role of online for an organisation in the future.
can be outdated
tomorrow. For this
A few examples:
reason constant
• The super-fast rise of mobile Internet, the use of video
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 • Letting the target audience decide on
audience is. the composition of the products, for
• Starting a dialogue with the example by generating ideas.
concerning target audience, to retrieve • 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 co-
operations 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
Stakeholders all of a
radiates through the entire organisation.
sudden see beautiful
Faith arises because an umbrella has been developed that offers grip
opportunities for their
and which takes the internal and external factors into account.
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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