We are often asked to build intranet sites but more and more of our clients are also asking us to manage and maintain their intranets for them. It may sound like an odd thing to do. Surely intranet content needs to come from internal staff who have the knowledge and expertise? True. But companies are starting to realize that just because their staff are experts in their areas, it does not necessarily follow that they are also experts at writing and publishing high quality intranet content. In fact, what so often happens is that the real experts in the company who have the knowledge to share are too busy to share it. Or if they do get around to publishing it online, it is done in a rushed and amateurish way and therefore leads to fewer users reading it. This is where we come in. We can help unlock the knowledge in you people’s heads and get it published professionally onto your intranet.

How does it work?

All the best intranets have a clear and documented strategy. We can help you develop an intranet plan that is aligned with your business objectives. Typically, this plan identifies three key things: one, the messages that need to be communicated to staff; two, the subject matter experts and leaders in the organization who have the knowledge; and three, the projects and initiatives which are in place to drive the organization forward. The plan also comprises other details but this is the core on which we really focus.

We operate like journalists

Once the plan is in place, we can deliver against it. Like journalists, we network within your organization (mostly over the phone and email). We interview your staff, your subject matter experts and your leaders and ask also them to send us “raw content” like powerpoint documents and other collateral. We then craft web-friendly articles that grab intranet visitors and keeps them reading. Like journalists and editors, we worry about things like headlines, summaries, body copy, paragraphs, sub-heads, images, thumbnails and layout.

Getting access to your network

After the article has been through an approvals process, we publish it. To do this, we need access to your intranet content management system – most of our clients provide us with a laptop with secured access into the corporate network (we’re happy to sign non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements).

Driving traffic and usage

But our work does not end there. We’re interested in ensuring that the content is targeted and is read by its intended audience. We use a variety of techniques to do this but the most common and effective is to send a regular newsletter to your target audience. Usually this includes all the latest articles to have been posted on the site as well as other key links and tools.

How do you charge for this service?

Most of our intranet clients have a retained contract with us. We deliver a set number of hours of intranet site management every month. This covers all work whether it’s writing, publishing, design, housekeeping and technical work. At the end of each month, we provide a dashboard that shows the activity on the site (great for showing to senior management) and a timesheet that details how the contract time was spent.

If you want to learn more, please get in touch!

Summary of service:

Content Formula is expert in the ongoing management of intranet sites and provides the following services:

Skilled staff trained in communications and intranet technologies
Best practice techniques for keeping sites active with lots of new content
Best practice techniques for driving targeted traffic to your site
Best practice community management techniques and tools to encourage interactivity, data gathering and content submissions
Regular email newsletters
Professional copywriting, article writing and editorial
Professional graphics, multi-media and video
Privacy and accessibility compliance
Mailing list management
Security policy and access list management