Last year Mequoda launched seven new systems, went agile, and upgraded fulfillment options for our state-of-the-art CXMS
The history books will never look back at 2016 as an uneventful year. We elected Donald Trump as POTUS. Britain left the European Union. An ebola vaccine that’s 70-100% effective was invented. The Cubs broke their World Series curse. David Bowie and other great music legends passed on. The Giant Panda was finally taken off the endangered species list. I mean, 2016 was surely an energetic shift of change and adjustment in the world and it was no different here at Mequoda.
And as I look back on 2016, I am amazed at all the things our service teams and our clients jointly accomplished.
Here’s a summary of our 2016 highlights:
We planned, developed and launched seven very robust subscription website systems that encompass more than 30 media brands. When you have a chance check them out:
- Indian Country Media Network
- Cabot Wealth Network
- New England Network
- B the Change Media
- TSI Wealth Network
- University Health News
- Countryside Network
The common theme for six of our seven launches is the evolution of one or more successful legacy media brands. While some are based on a single successful brand, two of them represent more than a dozen successful subscription products.
Another thing they all share in common is the sale of premium subscription content. While a number of our clients have historically used an exclusively sponsor-driven business model, the class of 2016 is all about premium content.
As a lifelong subscription marketer and seller of premium content, I like the trend very much.
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Our new agile organization
In addition to growing our team from 31 to 40 last year, we have undergone a transformational reorganization. Our 40 team members are now organized into eight agile service teams.
One of the goals for the reorganization was a desire to provide faster and more responsive services for the systems we manage which we internally refer to as our growth clients. We entered 2017 with 19 growth client systems under management and two agile development teams dedicated to support and enhancements.
A third service team is now dedicated to technology operations, which is no small task when you’re talking about 19 very sophisticated subscription website systems that must be up and running 24/7/365.
We also now have a dedicated implementation team for our development clients and their new systems which is already working on two launches for 2017. There is also now a platform engineering team whose first priority is research and development. We retained our two consulting service teams and included them in the agile training and certification programs.
It would be an understatement to say that the impact of the reorganization is impressive. We all look forward to spending 2017 growing into our new structure and systems.
New fulfillment partners
As our subscription websites have grown more sophisticated, so have our partners. We have partnered with several new tier 1 technology partners including Strategic Fulfillment Group, Palm Coast Data, THINK Subscription and Recurly. When added to the existing relationships with CDS Global and Quickfill, we exited 2016 with six phenomenal subscription fulfillment software and service partners.
2017 and beyond
We have entered 2017 with a feeling of renewed ambition. The systems we will build and launch in 2017 will leverage the massive investment in software development that was made last year. Our platform engineering team is working diligently to standardize and document Mequoda best practices across all 19 subscription website systems… a task that will go on forever, as it always has.
We currently have openings for up to four more clients in 2017. If you’re interested in learning more about our subscription website planning, development, management and optimization services, Kim and I would love to discuss your needs and opportunities. Schedule a no obligation chat by clicking here.
Here’s looking forward to a great 2017!
