A good digital strategy plan shows what you want to do online and how you’ll do it. In this article, we’ll guide you on creating one.

A lot of companies tackle their digital ‘strategy’ like they’re playing a video game, hopping over obstacles and chasing after new shiny things. But that’s not really a strategy; it’s more like trying to survive. Then there are those who know where they want to go digitally but don’t have a clear plan to get there. That’s when a digital strategy plan becomes important.

What’s a Digital Strategy Plan?

A strategy plan is a roadmap for what you’re going to do. It helps connect your digital projects with your business goals. The plan mostly focuses on the near and mid-term future. It details your immediate plans and gives a broader view of what you’ll do later.

A digital strategy plan should answer these questions:

• What are our business goals?
• How can we use digital to achieve them?
• What are the main steps between where we are now and where we want to be?
• What projects do we need to carry out to reach these steps?
• How much will each project cost?
• What are the obstacles and things we depend on?
• How long will each project take?
• How do we measure success?
• What does success look like?

You’ll still need some flexibility because things change in business, but a digital strategy plan can be the difference between a bunch of unrelated projects and a clear strategy that makes your business goals happen.

Why Is a Digital Strategy Plan Important?

“Having a plan is like looking ahead and getting ready for what’s coming without being stuck to a set agenda.”

A digital strategy plan helps you:

• Get everyone on the same page.
• Choose which projects are most important.
• Avoid making big changes in direction.
• Prevent unexpected costs.
• Stay on schedule.
• Track and measure how well things are going.

Defining Your Digital Strategy

Before making a digital plan, you need a clear idea of where you want your online strategy to go. Start by figuring out your business goals and how much you’re willing to spend to achieve them. To do this, involve your marketing team and top executives. Think about all your digital assets, current and future (like websites and apps), and your digital marketing activities (such as email, mobile, social media, SEO, PPC).

Your digital plan should fit into your overall business plan. Use any other information you have, like your marketing plan, business plan, SWOT analysis, and KPIs.

Starting the Process and Making a Plan

Once you set your digital strategy goals, you need to involve the right people. Think broadly about this. It may take more time upfront, but it’s better than making costly changes later. Consider holding workshops to make sure you capture all the requirements and everyone is on the same page.

It’s a good idea to bring in a strategist at this point to review your current digital strategy compared to the market and customer expectations. A strategist can also estimate costs and dependencies that could affect your plan.

There’s no one way to structure a roadmap, but here’s a common approach:

Visual representation: A picture of the plan with numbered initiatives linked to streams.
Overview: Explaining what the document is for, who’s in charge, and when it will be reviewed. This section also summarizes the digital strategy.
Summary: A short description of initiatives, divided by years or milestone stages. It includes the main goals for each year or stage and initiative details like impact level and dependencies.
Detailed initiative description: More information on each initiative, split by relevant streams. This includes a more detailed explanation, current capabilities, barriers, requirements, intended outcomes, success metrics, the person in charge, resources (in-house or external), and budget.

The goal is not to create a huge document. You can have more detailed documents, but the roadmap should be a concise and accessible document for everyone in your organization.