:: The answer isn't always "a web site"... especially now!

The image of your customer sitting at a computer to conduct business with you, via your web site, is rapidly becoming an antiquated notion. While it is a given, that to be successful your website must anticipate and reliably facilitate key end-user task completion, it is a sure bet that your audience is looking for your services across multiple, digital channels (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, PS3, their TV, whatever is "connected to the cloud"). In fact, you should be attempting to understand the lifestyle and behavior of your target audience in an effort to deliver your products and services the way THEY expect. The mobile channel, in the past, was considered a complement to a company's web site offering. Now, the mobile platform may be the first point of interaction that customers have with your brand.

The key concept to grasp is that your content can be delivered via the internet to a variety of widely available and utilized platforms. The internet no longer equals a collection of web sites. Almost any appliance or electronic device, these days, is "connected to the cloud." It is a simple matter of understanding the context in which your services might be consumed across these cloud-based service platforms. First, you need to ask, which platforms are widely utilized by my target audience? Next, you'll investigate the trends in usage patterns. What are your end-users doing on their iPhones? Are they utilizing competitor services? Which competitor services? Etc. etc.

Ultimately, when planning a digital tactic, enhancement, or offering, the starting point does not always have to be your web site. The truth, as always, lies in understanding and anticipating your end-users' behavior. This understanding is the Rosetta Stone for developing and deploying successful digital tactics.