Digital Footprint Consult
Across Marketing, Sales, Product, and Service, your digital footprint includes:
This digital footprint isn't typically managed as a whole, until problems bubble up...
These are signs you may need to rebalance the macro-level content allocations across your digital footprint, and/or within your programs.
What are content allocations?
Content allocations are the % of your content devoted to key dimensions.
They include (but are not limited to):
- Customer journey stage being served
- Audience being addressed
- Product / service types and offerings
- Features / benefits cited
- Key messages
These allocations are a signal
to prospects and customers who engage with your content - giving them an intuitive sense of who you are and what you do.
Few companies manage or measure their content this way.
Even fewer companies measure their competitors' content.
What do content allocations show your prospects and customers?
Primary research tells us that content allocations are the most influential dimension of your digital footprint. They are your best tool for SHOWING who you are, rather than TELLING - which is essential if you want the public to form accurate perceptions about your organization.
Content allocations are also the best predictor of how prospects and customers will interpret your brand positioning, answering questions such as:
That makes sense - but why do we need to measure our content allocations?
Most content portfolios evolve organically. Whether it's website pages, self-service resources, or sales collateral, items are typically developed one at a time, by separate teams, in response to specific needs.
At some point, when it's time to make these collections available as a whole - we tend to focus on ways of organizing it for easy access - using tools like architecture, taxonomy, tables of contents, or other directory-style tools to help people find the piece they need.
We forget the importance of managing the amount of content devoted to each topic, to align with our overall strategy.
Bottom line: a Digital Footprint Analysis will help you identify macro-level problems that your tactic-level reports won't catch.
OK, we should do this. Where is the best place for our organization to start?
Your website is the natural starting point, because it serves as a hub to link your digital footprint together. By comparing your website content allocations to those of your competitors, you'll get immediate insight - both strategic and tactical.
If you have a team with extra time on their hands, and experience in qualitative coding and text mining, you can tackle this in-house.
For organizations who lack qualified internal resources, Sequent offers a fast, affordable Website Footprint Analysis that can get you started with this type of measurement.
Depending on your needs, you may also consider working with us to analyze your:
- Sales Colateral Footprint
- Demand Gen / Lead Gen Footprint
- Self-Service Resources Footprint