Want to propel your company beyond the competition? Analyze your core strengths - are your internal resources stretched too thin? Have you lost sight of what your organization does best in light of trying to do more with less in this highly competitive environment? Want to retool your Web strategy and focus more on customer relationship management (CRM) or extending your market reach without hiring more staff? 2003 is the year to think out of the box - the software box. Outsourcing appropriate processes to application service providers (ASP) may be your best way to save money, focus on core competencies and promote profit.

Wisdom and experience shows that outsourcing to ASPs in appropriate market segments is a smart growth strategy. It is one of the most effective ways for organizations to promote performance, enhance internal resources and implement leading technology while reducing costs.

Beyond traditional ASPs, which focus more on reducing deployment of management of complex enterprise solutions and retrofit packaged Internet software for Internet delivery, there has arisen a new breed of ASPs: Net-native ASPs, also called Internet business service providers (IBSPs).
IBSPs are built from the ground up using Web technologies and protocols such as Java and XML. Solutions are inherently structured to support one-to-many Web-services delivery, eliminate client-side management while providing superior upgrade cycles, diverse customization features, swift deployment, lower total cost of ownership (TCO) and more intuitive user interfacing. The upshot? To reduce and control costs.

IBSPs deliver their services via Web-browsers and therefore provide on-the-fly modifications wherever you are, whenever the need arises. IBSPs help companies accelerate growth, decrease learning curves and costs, boost employee intelligence while freeing up internal resources to better focus on core competencies. IBSPs deliver favorable return on investment (ROI) and attractive TCO through ease of implementation, rapid deployment and low-cost maintenance. They deliver a range of services, including content management, search, e-human resources management and CRM.

Where to begin? For quick wins, focus on your source of profit - your customers.

Business' awakening to the needs of the consumer has spurned an explosion of CRM-related software, consultancies, statistics, metrics and analytics tools. With tight budgets and tighter resources, this frenzied measure-or-die mentality thinks that IT spending must sharply increase to achieve customer-centric nirvana. That's not necessarily true. Rather, focus on the systems, products and services that will help you better service the customer.

The Internet is your customers' instant-delivery resource for answering their need for excellence. Statistics are heralding the continued explosion of the Web: 162 million users are estimated to be online in 2003, up almost 11% from 2002 (Media Spending Outlook 2003, eMarketer.com). So give your web site - your 24/7/365 face-to-the-world - another look. Could you better service your customers through their medium of choice for research and opinion-building? Chances are, you could.

A Clickstream data analysis of a major retailer's web site revealed that search was visitor's #1 destination and yet it wasn't performing as well as it should, delivering too many "no results found". A Forrester analyst said that search is fundamental to site success and should be focused upon. Too many companies assume that search is working just fine.

Lack of relevant search capabilities is one of the most detrimental mistakes a company can make when designing their website. It appears those CRM metrics have finally revealed what your users already know - focus on them, and you will more likely succeed.

You don't have to go it alone - outsource your search function and turn your attention to your company's core strengths and how you convey them through your website. Utilize the customization features of Net-native search software to save time, money, service customers, reduce internal burdens and propel yourself ahead of the competition. Outsource to focus. Search to win.

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