Internet Strategy ~ eMarketing ~ eGovernment ~ eLearning

TOPICS | ARTICLES

Thinking Strategically About the Internet
Thinking strategically means first considering where you want to be, and then mapping out a path to realize your goal. In my consulting work, I find that many organizations have not gone through the exercise of asserting a goal for their web efforts. They haven't asked "What do we want this tool to do for us?" As the adage goes, it's nearly impossible to map out a journey if you don't know where you're going.

Speeches on strategy can be about creating an overall technology plan, defining policies and guidelines for using email, or mapping out a direction and purpose for your web initiative. My role is to help your audience focus on the objective, and then explore the wide range of options available to meeting those objectives. I offer a model for thinking through the process of strategic planning and guide your audience to avoiding some of the common mistakes.

In one very popular speech, "Lessons Learned From Dot-Coms," I showcase some of the high-profile, and lesser-known efforts on the Web and how their revolutionary--but not always successful--new ideas have changed both our ways of delivering information/products/services and changed the expectations of consumers. This is a high-energy program, well-suited to a keynote address.

A more tactical, but also popular, workshop is on writing an effective Request for Proposal. This session may sound dry, but if your organization has had one too many mishaps with vendors and technology projects, you might respond well to the session entitled "Getting it Right the First Time - Essential Planning for your Next Technology Initiative." For me, the highest praise for this program has come from vendors who say they wish all their clients would have gone through the process we advocate.

Sound interesting? Email me.

Marketing with Internet Tools

An "If you build it, they will come" mentality is insufficient on the Web. To stand out among all the Internet congestion, you must have a marketing strategy the compliments your technology strategy, and addresses each of the four major marketing areas.

In a full- or half-day workshop, I would facilitate your group through an exercise to craft marketing goals, based on your audience and your organizational goals. Then we would concentrate on each of the four major marketing areas and demonstrate a wide range of tools (including website, email, CRM tools, design techniques, content changes, etc.) will help you meet your goals. My role would be to discuss best practices and showcase novel applications of these tools.

For a shorter presentation - a conference break-out or plenary session - I would present a myriad of Internet marketing strategies to stimulate ideas for new approaches. My most in-demand speech is probably "Marketing on a Shoestring - Internet marketing for No-Cost or Low-Cost."

Sound interesting? Email me.

The Internet and State/Local Government
The most popular presentation in my eGovernment repertoire is also the most dynamic and changing: it's a look at what other states, counties, or municipalities are doing online. The presentation is used to spark ideas and fresh thinking in your local government and understand better what's possible online.

Oftentimes the local government offices are looking for basic education about the Internet, in plain English. My session "Web Tools 101" offers an overview of the key tools of the Internet and how they are used across a variety of industries. This makes a popular break-out session for conferences that have attendees with a wide range of technology-saavy.

"Dot-Com Customers and Dot-Gov Constituents" is an interesting look at how commercial entities and retailers online are setting a whole new level of customer service on the Web, and what that means to how local governments provide service. This session has been popular with Municipal or Government audiences, concentrating the examples on how local and state governments can better understand the needs of their e-citizens and prioritize the services they want to automate.

Serving the Online Customer
Who are your online customers? How are they different from your offline customers and are you meeting their needs and expectations? This program focuses on how you can better quantify your online market and target your email and Web efforts to respond to them. We'll look at who's setting the standard for online customer service and how some of the simplest tools can be used in powerful, responsive ways.

One niche program under this category is "Virtual Customer Support," developed specifically for the help desk/customer support industry, but also recently adapted for associations as "Virtual Member Support." This program showcases some of the more innovative applications of Internet technology to provide real-time customer service and support.

eLearning
From the moment computers hit the consumer market, there has been wide-eyed optimism about how computers could enhance (or save? or turn profitable?) the learning enterprise. I's been almost two decades of starts and stops, and only one thing is for sure: we're all still learning how best to use these tools.

In my consulting work, we help organizations determine what methods of elearning are most likely to be successful with their audience, content, and business goals. We work clients through a process that is outlined in a presentation I call "Look Before You eLeap." This session presents a methodology for looking at all the factors of eLearning and crafting a strategy for eLearning within your organization.

The IN-Complete Internet Toolkit for Trainers is a fun session, designed specifically for people who have responsibility for training or who want to use more technology tools to energize your programs. In this 3-hour workshop I make no assumptions about your familiarity with the tools, and instead introduce everything from simple email to full webcasting or virtual reality and set the context for how the tool can be used effectively for various learning activities. We'll work through some design principles and talk about administrative hurdles, like cost, maintenance, and support. This is a great program if you are looking to introduce some new approaches into your programs and want to get everyone on the same page.

I'm currently working on a program that takes a tongue-in-cheek look at presentation disasters and offers tips-for-success for how anyone can appear more confident, more prepared, and more polished when delivering via eLearning.

Sound interesting? Email me.

Working Virtually
Technology affords many of us the means to work where we want and when we want, but the concept of "working virtually" may not be suited to all types of work or workers. As owner of a completely virtual enterprise, and long-time manager of telecommuniting or remote staff, I can offer both the manager and the employee's perspective.

As a keynote address to HR professionals or workshop for operational managers, I talk about how to determine the right structure for your organization, then detail the considerations in each including infrastructure, technology, policies, managment practices, and impact on company culture and employee morale.

Check out my article "You're Hired, Now Go Home," in the Articles section for some valuable tips on hiring the virtual worker.

Sound interesting? Email me.

TOPICS | ARTICLES

ARTICLES

Mining Your Own Business - Executive Update, December 2001. An examination of the kind of market intelligence that can be gathered from your web statistics.

Hail The IT Scout. Executive Update Online, November 2001

Are Virtual Association a Reality? - Executive Update (GWSAE), October 2001. Feature article on the extent to which associations have incorporated virtual work into their operations.

You're Hired, Now Go Home - New Hire Challenges in a Virtual Company - March 2001, reproduced from ASTD Training & Development Journal . This article was also selected for inclusion in Annual Editions: Computers in Society, Ninth Edition by McGraw-Hill Publishers and is being used at the University of Illinois in its Informatics curriculum.

Selecting an eLearning Platform - March 2001, article reproduced from ASTD Technoscope
Email me for a copy.

A 12-Step Program for Info Junkies
February 2001, ASTD Training and Development Journal. Received the APEX Award for Publication Excellence

Your Web Intention - February 2001, Ellipsis Partners
Email me for a copy.

Meeting Customer Expectations in Online Conference Management - January 2001, Ellipsis Partners

Technology Exec Starts Teaching - Ellipsis Partners Executive supports Loyola MBA program with Internet Marketing course. October 2, 2000, Baltimore Business Journal

Startup Staffing: Finding the Right People to Grow a Business - Ellipsis Partners featured in article on hiring for start-up dot com companies. August 29, 2000, Wetfeet.com

Breaking Through the Ceiling: New Technologies Helping Women Enter Tech Fields - Ms. Allert profiled for supporting the next generation of women in technology.

Authored a series of Technology Briefs for the National Education Association, including:

Fair Use/Acceptable Use
Portfolio Assessment
Privacy & Security
Virtual Reality in Educational Settings
Gender Equity and Computers
Technology and Learning Disabilities
Technology Staff Development
Software Selection Guidelines

TOPICS | ARTICLES