Underutilized Websites

One of the most useful capabilities of the web for business is the use of extranets. Extranets allow companies to share protected information with business partners, clients, and special customers. Extranets are one of the few examples where using the web can show a clear and measurable return on investment. Extranets also take advantage of the web's ability to share information in ways that other mediums simply cannot. It is unfortunate that complex and expensive content management issues have made it unrealistic for many companies to effectively utilize extranets. We have been able to utilize our NewfangledCMS to overcome these barriers. This has introduced our clients to some of the exciting and practical ways the web can be used to facilitate and enhance the way they do business.

Extranets can be as simple as a password-protected area where reps or business partners can access and download documents. Such pages can drastically reduce the cost of printing and distributing pricing guides, technical manuals, or other information that tends to get updated and distributed frequently. Using the web for access to this kind of information is absolutely ideal. Extranets make it really easy to keep the information current. You don't have to print and distribute it, thus saving hard dollars, and users can be confident that they are accessing the most accurate information.

It is extremely easy to find opportunities where extranets can save time and money while improving the flow of information. Extranets can be relatively easy and inexpensive to implement. More companies should be considering how they could utilize extranets to maximize their use of the web.