This
article originally appeared in
Magazine
1.
Open
All Channels of Communication
This
is the high-tech extension of "The customer is always right." If
they use e-mail, you need to use e-mail. If they like fax, be user-friendly,
and use fax too. To do better business and make more customers happy
, we need to be able to respond to customers throught whichever
medium they prefer, regardless of how we may feel personally about
any particular "channel" or means of communication.
2.
Create the Color Advantage
As
computers continue to increase in power exponentially--doubling
every 18 months for the last ten years--one of the most observable
benefits of all this power is the ability to handle color , both
on the desktop and with lower cost printers. Those who learn to
use these tools to enhance their messages can create a colorful
competitive advantage for themselves. Remember black & white
TV, or have you already forgotten about it?
3. Build a Network
of Resources
The
"virtual company" and "outsourcing" are buzzwords de jour for a
reason. Digital technology requires a wider range of expertise than
ever before. We used to get by with the plumber, the electrician
and the copier repairman. Now, we need network administrators, web
site programmers, presentation and design consultants, and more.
Doing business in the digital age is most effective when you engage
a community of collaborators, and virtual resources are also much
lower in overhead costs. Think of digital communications as a "team
sport."
4.
Leverage the Net
Metcalfe's Law observes that "The value of the Net goes
up as the square of the number of people on the Net." By all counts,
the Internet has much too viable and valuable a vehicle to be ignored,
not only in terms of the potential audience that can be reached,
but also in terms of time saving benefits. From e-mailing or posting
a color proof on your web site for client approval to using newsgroups,
electronic Public Relations services, on-line alliances and associations
as new low-cost marketing tools, the Net provides exciting new alternatives.
If you aren't actively on-line yet, learn now or risk being left
behind.
5.
Put People Before Technology
Don't
get caught using technology for technology's sake. To be effective,
digital communications are like any other form of communication.
They must touch the people who are the intended audience. The more
we learn to depend on technological innovation, the more we need
to connect with our own and each other's humanity. Otherwise, there
will be no lasting success.
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