UNiFi – A Community Portal Solution

Most organizations have a corporate website, which would contain information that targets multiple audiences – investors, customers, general public, jobseekers, etc. The content may not change frequently, could remain static and would largely be the company’s voice.

Need for a Community Portal

A community portal solution would contribute significantly towards bringing employees, customers, dealers, franchisees, agents, vendors or other stakeholders, closer to the company. The portal would need to provide news and information that is relevant and is of interest to the community, apart from providing interactive content that engages the community. The company may also use this platform to keep in touch with the community, share achievements and initiatives, and provide updates and announcements.

To ensure that all members of the community are kept informed of the activities and exchanges on the portal, e-mailers and e-newsletters would need to be triggered to the members’ e-mail addresses. Notifications and updates would also need to be sent to their mobile phones, for encouraging activity among the community.

The print medium continues to be powerful. A monthly printed bulletin that uses the content from the community portal, may be sent to all the members of the community. This would be read by the member, his/her family and friends, and contribute towards cementing a sense of identity with the company.

Introducing UNiFi

UNiFi is a community portal solution aimed at bringing a community of interest closer to the company. For example, the portal could be aimed at employees, specific customers, dealer network, vendors, industrial users, etc.

UNiFi encompasses the following:

• Technology framework and content management system for creation and management of the community portal.

• Hosting the community portal on high-powered servers hosted at international quality data centres.

• Providing content editorial services to regulate the portal’s content and keep community interactions lively and current.

• Creation and emailing of periodic e-newsletters.

• Triggering updates and notifications through SMS to members’ mobile phones.

• Creation of print-ready community bulletins on a monthly basis, using content from the community portal.

• Printing of the community bulletins (optional).

Benefits of UNiFi

The community portal and associated activities would provide the following benefits:

• Creates a sense of belonging among the community and a strong sense of identity with the company.

• Ability to capture and listen to the 'voice of the community' and utilize it to enhance the quality of products, programs and services offered to the community.

• Ability to convert customers into brand ambassadors (“To know the road ahead, ask those coming back.” – Chinese proverb).

The UNiFi Community Portal Solution consists of the following key features to engage the users:

• News and Articles

  Everything about what is happening within the community, their activities and achievements. Members’ experiences on any aspect of being part of the community would be highlighted. Company announcements and updates would also get covered in this section.

• Events

  Timely updates of important activities and events that require the members to be actively involved.

• Discussion Forums

  A platform for the members to learn and contribute on various topics of interest, relevant to the community and its members. The forums would be interactive and beneficial to the participants and the entire community.

• Wisdom of the Crowd (Ask the Community)

  An informal platform for the members of the community, to gain from the collective knowledge of the members. Members may post any query on which they seek advice or opinions. For example: “Should I stock more this Christmas?”, “Where can I take my sales team for an off-site meeting?”. Many members of the community would be willing to contribute their wisdom, and would be recognized among the ‘Top contributors’.

• Announcements/Notice Board

  Get to know the upcoming activities in the campus and important information for the community members, with or without commercial interest. For example: “The Governing Council meeting is scheduled for Feb 17 at 11:00 am in the Corporate HQ. Office bearers to take note and confirm your attendance to the President”.

• Photo/Video Gallery

  No event/achievement is too small and members would be encouraged to upload photos and videos of all their special occasions. The company may also upload photos/videos that would be of interest to the community.

• Opinion Polls & Contests

  To create participation from all the community members and create a strong sense of belonging. Prizes may be awarded to winners/participants, to stimulate activity in these zones.

• Classifieds

  To allow the community to buy/sell/rent any of their products/services. This may also be opened out to external vendors who have products/services for the community, on a chargeable basis.

• E-Bulletins

  E-bulletins would be created on a monthly basis and would also be emailed to the members of the community. The members would be invited to visit the portal for detailed information.

• Mobile Updates and Notifications

  Periodic updates and notifications would be triggered using SMS and would be sent to the mobile phones of the members of the community. They would be invited to visit the portal for detailed information.

• Print-Ready Bulletin

  A print-ready bulletin would be created using the contents from the portal. The design of the bulletin, selection of content, content layout and formatting would be executed by a team of content editors and multimedia professionals from our company.