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Strategy Development Services Isolate Greatest Opportunities for Growth
WebMetro's consulting services help the Student Assistance Foundation use the Internet as a strategic business weapon to attract, convert, and retain their audience.
The Challenge
SAF was originally established as a state funding service to provide low cost loans to students in Montana, but has grown into a multi-disciplinary group that provides a number of services, including foundation related activities and student programs. As the organization grew, SAF realized that opportunities existed for them to sell other products and services that are complementary to their student loan packages.
This growth and diversification caused confusion among the employees and constituents of SAF. Their site had done very little for them, and if anything, was a cause of greater confusion than benefit to their targeted audiences and employees.
SAF contacted a Big 5 accounting firm to consult and make recommendations. The results of this process left them with more questions than answers and they decided that they needed to work with a strategic partner who understands not only the technical aspects of web development, but could examine their business and work with them on a practical level. They saw opportunities to both raise the profitability of their loan programs as well as raise money, through foundation related activities, to further enhance their ability to service the students within their target market. 
The Solution
In order to gain a better understanding of the business of SAF, WebMetro recommended a consulting phase for the project. Not only did we need to gain a better understanding of their business, but they needed to go through the mental process of uncovering the barriers that existed to success online. Throughout the research and discovery process, we helped them isolate where the greatest opportunities existed for them to grow using the internet as a strategic business weapon. Our resulting recommendation was not to create a single site, but to create a group of sites divided by the services provided and the goals to be met. The result is a cohesive group of sites that are perfectly positioned to attract, convert and retain their respective audiences. Additionally, we recommended the creation of a doorway site to give additional value-added services to their constituents and provide a gateway to the universe of SAF websites.
Subsequent to the consulting project, WebMetro provided design services for SAF and managed the entire integration process.
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