Information Strategy
Using Information as a Strategic Asset
Dority & Associates works with for-profit and nonprofit organizations to help them create an information strategy that aligns with and drives their strategic goals. Working with key stakeholders in the organization, we help identify answers to the following questions:
What are the organization's strategic goals? For example, is it trying to recruit new members or increase donor contributions? Is this year's goal to develop new markets, or increase revenue from existing clients? Is the board pushing for greater visibility and credibility among thought leaders, scholars, the media? Or is more effectively disseminating information to the public for broader impact the most pressing mandate? These are only some of the goals that clients may have that can be supported by print and/or online information content.
What information content will help support/drive achievement of those goals? For example, if the goal is to increase visibility among thought leaders, scholars, and the media, one option might be to do a monthly interview/column with industry influentials and academic scholars to be posted at the website, then create an annual compilation of key quotes, trends, and ideas to circulate to the media for story ideas.
What information content does the organization already have? Many organizations have been creating information content for decades. This can include publications, video and audio pieces, oral histories, conference proceedings, training materials, archival photographs and memorabilia, and similar sorts of materials. Often this can be repackaged and repurposed to provide membership incentives, additional revenue streams, or reference materials of value to scholars, researchers, and the media, among other options. For example, print content can be digitized and housed in a searchable, fee-based database, or made available to members for free as a benefit for signing on.
What other information content needs to be created, licensed, aggregated, or otherwise acquired? Would a research guide on how to find industry statistics be useful to researchers and the media? Would an online tutorial on how to be an effective online learner help potential students sign up for your degree program? Would a members-only column by a best-selling expert on personal finance cause people to join your investment club? Would a directory of clinicians specializing in disability rehabilitation draw users to you site, and thus increase advertising revenue?
Based on the answers to these questions, a project plan can be developed and executed that incorporates all of the actions that will help achieve the goals of greatest importance to the organization. Sometimes this is a phased plan, with priorities set over a 6- or 12- or even 18-month period; others times it may entail a rapid turnaround in order to meet a website launch date.
What's Next?
Depending on the goals of your organization, we can determine how you want to maintain and update your content elements, and consider additional ways that information content can help your organization continue to expand its opportunities with current or new constituencies.