Running a Smart WCMS Evaluation and Procurement Process

Institutions of higher education have taken a bit of a beating the past few years; claims that some haven’t recognized and adapted to the changing expectations of the more discerning millennial student. They have more education choices than any generation before (domestically and internationally); they dictate how they consume, prioritize and weight information (curse the internet) and they’re holding universities and colleges more accountable for their post-graduation opportunities. This has created big recruitment and retention challenges for lots of institutions.

Credit due though, higher education is fighting back and communicating their visions and relevance in greater and more innovative ways. Their online presence has become their primary instrument of persuasion, message reinforcement and a genuine business driver. Hurray! They get it. Your online impact has measurable effects on university & college business goals. We’re all in agreement – marvellous. The next challenge is putting in place a marketing technology infrastructure that allows you to achieve the true potential of your online brand and digital marketing activities – eek.

For many the underlying technology platform is a digital engagement and web content management platform. Great, we know what we need. But some of the following statements might sound familiar to you: ‘We’ve about 15 different WCMSs we use’; ‘I inherited this system – I hate it but it’s all I have’; ‘The system we use was used on the Arc’; ‘My developers like the system we have; it doesn’t do everything we want but they’re used to it’; ‘I know I need a new system but I won’t get the budget’. There are many excuses but the reality is you need a powerful system in place that helps you manage measure, engage and transact.

Note: Imagine you had a new digital engagement and web content management system in place and it helped (and could be measured) with the recruitment of four additional students on previous years - $10,000 fees per student a year over 4 years: $160,000 (just a thought).

We need a new WCMS – that’s it we’ve decided. The next challenge is how to run a smart WCMS evaluation and procurement process. You’ve a busy job and can’t waste resources; how do I go about this mammoth undertaking and ensure value for money, project success and return on investment? And not to mention less stress (it’s very aging), admiration, career advancement and reputation. 

At TERMINALFOUR we’ve seen hundreds of these procurement processes; from the hugely proficient and successful to the other extreme (think breakdowns, Donald Trump style –You’re Fired). We’ve put together a webinar to help you on your procurement journey.

The webinar will cover the following: 

• Why is getting the process right so important
• How to run an effective evaluation and procurement process
• How to write an efficient RFT/RFP document
• Inside the mind of your vendor
• How to evaluate vendors efficiently
• The 10 golden rules you really need to follow

Watch the full webinar here and we wish you all the best on your project.

P.S. We also have produced a fully customizable Sample RFP which is free to download and use however you see fit!