As I dutifully responded to the reporters story angle (unscrupulous or negligent web designers and how to avoid them), my inner marketer kept screaming inside my head to address the larger, and vastly more important issue, "Why would a business person consider their website as a separate, stand alone "thing" rather than the cornerstone of an integrated marketing strategy?" If a business person is considering a hired gun, spiffy web designer to place flashy bells and whistles along with the company logo on the Internet, the company surely must have a well researched web strategy integrated with a comprehensive marketing communications plan, right? Based solely on the MasterCard reporters story angle, apparently not.

So why is this such a big deal, anyway?

Every interaction is a brand transaction, and in particular, your website is probably the most frequently used vehicle of stakeholder interaction a business could have. Today, the business or corporate website Read more...Link