Web plan workbook english

Part 1

What do you do?The following questions will help you consider how your social enterprise / organisation’s aims and your clients may affect how you approach your online presence.

a) What type of social enterprise / organisation are you? RetailServiceBusiness to BusinessSignpostingOther (Type/write your answer below)

b) Who are your clients/customers?Private IndividualsFamiliesOther organisationsBusinessesOther (Type/write your answer below)

c) Where are your clients/customers?LocalCountyNationalInternational

d) What do your customers/clients want from your online presence?To find your location(s)To see your opening hoursTo contact youTo find out more about your products or services you offerTo buy products and servicesOther (Type/write your answer below)

Communities 2.0 December 2012 Page 1 of 17

Part 2

Directory ListingsBeing listed in an online directory is the bare minimum of your online presence. In some cases it may be all you need. 97% of customers search for local businesses on the Internet. Online directories such as Google Places (www.google.com/places) and Yell.com (www.Yell.com) help your clients find your organisation based on your location and the type of service you offer. Listing yourself on these websites is free.

The level of detail you need in your online listing will vary, however at the very least you need:

- The name of your organisation.- Your contact information (address, postcode, email address, telephone)- A short description of who you are.

You can also think about adding:

- A link to your website- Photos of your products, or your services, or your building- Your opening hours- Regular or one off events

Setting Up a Google Places ListingTo add your organisation to Google Places, you will need a Google Account (if you use Gmail you will already have one). If you don’t have a Google Account, go to www.google.co.uk and click ‘Sign in’, on the following page click ‘Sign Up’ in the top right corner and follow the instructions.

Once you have a Google Account, navigate to www.google.com/places/ and click Get Started Now

On the following page sign in to your Google Account; the next page asks you to input your business telephone number (make sure you select United Kingdom). This checks if you haven’t already been listed on Google Places.

The following page is the main listing details, where you have to input: Your country, Company/Organisation Name, Street Address, City/Town, Post Code, Main Phone number and at least one category your organisation or business fits into.

The rest of the form is optional, but fill in as required.

You will notice on the side bar a map of your local area, you can adjust the marker to your exact location.

When you are finished Click Submit


http://www.google.com/places/

http://www.google.co.uk/

In the box below write a reminder for your Google User Name, password and the URL of your listing:

Setting up a Yell.com ListingVisit the yell.com (http://marketing.yell.com/products/yell-free-listing/) and register for an account with your name, email address and a password. You need to provide your basic organisation details which will then appear online with Yell, in the Yellow Pages directory, the 118 24 7 service and on the Yell mobile app. You can log in to your listing at any time to update or add details.

In the box below write a reminder for your Yell.com log in details:


http://marketing.yell.com/products/yell-free-listing/

What benefits does having an online presence bring?a) In the next exercise, think about what is important to your organisation or group, its

aims and goals, and how important the benefits of being online are to you. There are empty rows to include other benefits to your organisation

Online Benefit

Not Important

1 2 3 4

Very Important

5Increased Sales

New Clients

Gathering Client informationBuilding a community

Improved Client retentionProviding Information

Reducing Advertising SpendReducing Administration

Client feedback on products/servicesRecruitment of staff / volunteersDonations

Promotion of cause or service


b) Now you have identified the benefits that you feel are most important to you and your organisation, use the box below to write a short statement about what you want to achieve by having an online presence:


What Makes a Good Online Presence?Many organisations activities online are focus on more than just a main website. The online presence covers numerous activities:

- The Organisation’s Website- Listing on Online Directories- Online Storefronts e.g. Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Folksy- Social media pages such as Facebook, Twitter, Google +- Podcasts and Video content- Email Newsletters- Staff and user blogs and comments- Discussion Boards and Forums

a) Choose a business or organisation you are familiar with which you think has an effective online presence. It may have a varied presence, with lots of the things listed above, or only a couple. Fill in the boxes below.

Business Name

Do you consider the information provided high quality? Why do you think it is high quality?

Is the online Presence user friendly? What makes it user friendly?

Is the information clearly structured? How does the business make the structure clear?


What are your objectives – what will you gain by going online?The objectives for going online may be different from organisation to organisation. One organisation might want to reach a new market or section of clients; another may want to provide information and signposting. Moving online can also have an effect of business processes and administration.

Identifying clear objectives will help you plan your online presence effectively. It may be useful to look at your business plan or organisational aims.

a) What are your organisation’s objectives (overall, not just online)- To increase client numbers- To communicate better with customers- To increase enquiries- To increase sales / bookings- To reduced advertising spend- To reduce administration- Other (use box below)

b) Identify the top 3 objectives you’ve listed above, explain how an online presence could provide a solution or opportunity.

What do you want to achieve and how could an online presence help?List your top 3 objectives and how an online presence could provide a solution or opportunity to achieve these.Objective Solution/Opportunity


EvaluateTo get an idea of how other organisations approach online strategies, it is useful to review their sites and compare them to what you want to achieve.

First, think of several organisations working in a similar field, in direct competition to you or are merely covering similar subjects.

Open your browser and head to a search engine (Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc.):

Type in your first competitor’s name. Note where their webpage appears in the resulting list. Find their official site (be wary of adverts!) and fill in the form (on the next couple of

pages) Repeat this for three of the organisations you identified.

Next, if relevant, fill in the form to review your own website and online presence.


Organisation 1What is the Organisation’s name?What search terms did you use?Where did the organisation appear in the results list?How quickly does their website load? Could it be improved?

Are there any errors or missing images?

How useful, clear and accurate is the information on the website?Suggest at least one improvement that would make the site more user-friendly.

List any additional features of the website? E.g. Online booking, online store..

How easy to use and intuitive are the features?Suggest at least one feature that could be improved and how you would improve it.

How regularly do you think the site is updated?How can you tell?Is there any evidence of user participation?

What do you like about the website design?

What do you dislike about the website design?





List any additional features of the website? Eg. Online booking, online store..















Your OrganisationWhat search terms did you use to find your site?Where did your organisation appear in the results list?How quickly does your website load? Could it be improved?


How useful, clear and accurate is the information on the website?Suggest at least one improvement that would make your site more user friendly.



How regularly is your site is updated?How can you tell?Is there any evidence of user participation?




Which of the organisations you have looked at has the most effective online presence?

Think about their website and other online activities, and how they relate to the organisations offline activities and purpose.

What makes the online presence effective?


What are the impacts of going online?Taking an organisation online can expose it to many challenges, from set up to maintenance of a site, as well as dealing with legal and security issues.

Every organisation faces a unique challenge depending on the kind of online presence needed or wanted. It is important is to be aware of these challenges and how they can impact the day to day running of the organisation.

What constraints might you face when setting up a website? Use the table below to help identify these and begin to plan actions on how to solve or reduce the issues that you identify.

What are your constraints?Identify whether the following constraints could affect your organisation, and if they could then why they might affect your organisation and what action you can take to minimise the impact of these.

Constraint Will this affect your organisation? Why?

Action

Resources needed to set up and maintain an organisation website.

Security issues around payments and customer / client details

Legal Considerations and/or barriers


The Features of your Online PresenceNow you have taken the time to look at how other organisations are using the internet and creating their online presence. You have also considered some of the constraints your organisation faces in creating your own online presence.

Feature Appropriate? Why?

Home Page Yes Primary landing page for the users

Contact Form

Booking Form

Client Testimonial

Online Shop

Menus

Site Map

Security

Video

News

Social Media / Forums

External Links

Now it is time to start planning what you want to have in terms of features. Look at the table below and select the features which are appropriate for your organisation and give one reason why. There are blank rows to fill in any additional features you come up with.


Choosing a URLSetting up an organisation’s website starts with deciding upon a domain name or URL. The domain name is the registered name of the website, and the URL is its web address. For example the BBC’s domain name is bbc.co.uk, and its URL is www.bbc.co.uk.

When you consider the domain name you want to use, think about how easy it is to remember, does it contain any punctuation, how long is it. Also consider the suffix you use (.co.uk, .org, .com) as these refer to you organisation’s status, for example .org is generally used by non-profit organisations whereas .co.uk is often used by companies based in the UK.

Think of several suitable names for your domain, then use a domain name registrar (www.nominet.org.uk, www.123-reg.co.uk, whois.domaintools.com or an alternative, there are many out there!) to find out if the domains you are interested in are available for you to register.

Use the box below to record any addresses that are available to you.


http://www.123-reg.co.uk/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/

Next StepsThis guide will have got you thinking about how you want to start creating your website, but there are still a few things to consider:

Do you have the capacity to possibly build a website yourselves?

If so, what solution is right for you?

If not, what options are there?

Do you have your organisations logos and colour scheme decided?

What other services are you using or intend to use?

Remember that there you have legal obligations:Accessibility, according to the Equalities Act 2010

Privacy, according to the EC Privacy Regulations, which includes the EU Cookie Directive which came into force in May 2012

Distance selling regulations, if you are trading online – Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000


Documents

Web plan workbook english