Based on the screenshots below, which organization are you more likely to trust?

The truth is that you would receive the same educational experience from either website above because they are the same institution. The first screenshot is their old site, and the one below is their new site. At a first glance, which one would you have trusted to be a credible educational experience? This quick exercise was to show that a strong web presence is not about manipulation, it’s about accurately reflecting your true self and your business online.

What made the webcast unique was the first-hand experience of both speakers in dealing with universities. Both Stephanie and David recalled their own university encounters as a student while also highlighting their experience in dealing with university bodies and colleges during their careers.

Throughout the webcast the message for educational institutions was clear: If your students are online, explore the various ways to easily engage them through a dynamic interactive strategy.

Is it good enough to have our content stored in PDF’s on our school website?

It’s important to have PDF’s but it isn’t enough to engage your students or potential students. Audiences want to experience as close to the real thing as possible. A PDF, which is a traditional print piece, will not foster that emotional connection that students look for in a school. With that being said, you shouldn’t disregard PDFs because you want to give your audience file format options: video, photos, interactive maps, and even PDFs.

How do you prioritize all of the projects and initiatives you would like to undertake? Where do you start? It seems very overwhelming.

Well, if you are feeling overwhelmed with all of these online initiatives it would be best to consult with a web agency to help you prioritize your needs. It is important to also look at other initiatives going on throughout the school and use that as your driving force behind the online outlet. We see a lot of online projects fail because schools jump into social media with no meaning behind it. It generates a small buzz, but then fades quickly. There always needs to be strategy for the initial and maintenance stages.

How important is it to have professional photography instead of stock photography?

It is vital. Potential students will want to be apart of something real. Viewing and experiencing what life will be like on campus will come across more authentically with professional photos than with templated photos. You can’t fool students as they are online and live the fast paced visual experience every day.

Everyone talks about social media, what if someone says something bad to us?

The truth is that people are going to say it anyways. Don’t be scared. It is better to be there and be involved.  Not all comments deserve an answer, but most students will want to provide valuable feedback and be heard. The worst scenario would be if no one was saying anything at all.

How do you get buy-in from Senior Admin to move forward with these online best strategies if they don’t understand how valuable they are?

David mentioned that he had been lucky to have Senior Admin who bought in immediately and worked to develop their online strategy. However, if your admin do not understand the value of a web strategy, it is important to educate them. There are so many statistics highlighting the web as a powerful medium for engaging any audience and it will take some time to showcase this to your staff. The important thing is to move slowly having them buy in a small amount at a time.

Firstly, are you looking for a product company or a service agency? There is a difference and it may help to narrow the scope of your decision.

A product company will provide you with an entry level website solution. You can indentify a product company when the organization provides you with a quote without taking the time to understand your business as a whole. For a product company, the focus is usually placed on pre-designed templates and where your logo will be placed. They will not ask for your branding guidelines or about your long term objectives, or provide you with a maintenance schedule. The designer may also be the programmer. It would be like hiring your mechanic to be the interior designer of your home. I’m not saying mechanics can’t do interior design, I’m just saying they are not as specialized if they are a jack of all trades and experts at neither.

A service agency, such as zu, will take the time to understand your business. They will take the time to collaborate with your team, review all aspects of the marketing material, online and offline, and provide you with a phased approach for long term growth. A service agency will have teams of dedicated talent to ensure your story will provide the best results based on your desired outcome. However, they are more likely to cost more and take longer than your uncle’s nephew to build a site.

Secondly, what does your budget look like?

It might also be fair to say you just need an economic solution. You might simply need ‘something’ to get going and that is fine. But remember not to refrain from thinking big as your true focus should be the size of the impact needed to see results. Don’t underestimate the value of your website and what an exceptional user experience can provide to your bottom line. Finally, don’t underestimate how long it can take to roll out a successful project. Anything worthwhile takes time and if you rush the project you will be spending more money by repeating the process sooner than you think.

Thirdly, how is your website enhancing your marketing and communications strategy?

Websites have evolved to be much more than just a logo with business hours – although some companies still forget to add them. Whether it is selling sweaters, attracting investors or competing for tourism, making your website an effective tool for communicating your story should be a number one priority.

I would like to share a story which to this day surprises me. I was having a conversation with an individual who mentioned they had spent $20M on renovations to become a world-class destination in the tourism industry. They proceeded to tell me they allotted $6K to their website. That is a 0.0003% investment online to best reflect the entire renovation project. As many as 80% of their guests will determine if they should visit this world-class destination by viewing their website. If I were the owner of that company, I would want to ensure the renovation was best reflected online to maximize results. I don’t know of any top-notch web companies that could provide a great online solution with a $6K price tag. Yikes, sounds like a missed opportunity to me.

So before you run off to phone ten companies and request proposals, ask yourself what you want from an interactive agency. Take the time to research the companies you are interested in, compare portfolios, the size of staff, how long they have been in business and the differences in services. Compare apples to apples. Those comparisons alone will be key indicators in determining which agency is the right fit for you.

At first the IR lingo whizzed past my head like speeding bullets: 10K, the Wrapper, Annual Review, SEC regulations, XBRL, and stock quotes. More and more details from legal, Investor Relations and corporate branding would come pouring in. These documents are not to be taken lightly, nor the team involved. Every collaborator deals with extreme pressure to perform and deliver a report better than the last.

The annual report is a magnificent piece, articulately composed like a symphony. Every number, every note, every photo, every letter, every sentence, every punctuation mark is reviewed over and over until it is perfect. Only to be witnessed for the first time at opening night.

But time again the grand performance ends for me, abruptly. I want the show to continue the symphony on my player, the Internet. When I am presented with only one fomat—a PDF print format—I don’t want to download anything. I want both. I want to witness it now, not later. I want to search and bookmark float from Financials to MD&A in any order I wish. Does this seem like a wild request for navigating an annual report—online?

Annual reports converted into online masterpiece are sometimes perceived as a luxury item. But based on best practices online annual reports are no longer a luxury, they are a standard. You might be surprised how affordable an entry-level model can be.

At our upcoming webinar on September 24th, I’m going to present online options every Investor can consider by breaking it down into small, medium and large budget categories. In the meantime, I would like to get your feedback about your experiences with online annual reports. Please post your comments in this blog or you can reach me on twitter @katregnier.

Register for our webcast.

twitpitch: Convert your #annualreport into an online symphony. @zutweets @katregnier shares IR insights http://bit.ly/1eaBZW

Most feel having information available on the site in a PDF form is good enough. IROs point to the screen and say, “See it’s right there”. If you were to think of your website as a lobby, and these files are in the filing cabinets behind the desk, there is a very high chance nobody is going to find them, nor do they want to waste their time looking.

Companies can create a great experience online, they just need to have a better understanding of what investors are looking for. Implementing best practices into a web-friendly experience can go a long way.

Here’s a few simple yet highly overlooked practices that you can implement at a low cost and will create a clear vision for your website users.

• Look at all your company materials, select important content, then develop it into web content. The best information is often buried and it’s your job to ensure it filters onto your website. Visitors are impatient so give them a hand.
• Ensure all your PDFs have the appropriate file names, so when downloaded they are easy to identify. Start with the company name then the file name, which should be descriptive. I have seen file names like this: 34293-3892774oiAR09.pdf. A good file name example is ABCComapany_AnnualReport09.pdf.
• The website should provide data and positioning material to address both prospective and current shareholders. Cameco is a good example of this.
• All links that prompt you to download an item should be clearly marked. Nothing is more frustrating then when you click on a link and bam… a PDF starts downloading.