Empowering digital agencies in 2016

In true Lean/Agile style, this year we set out to learn all we could about how SilverStripe Platform could help digital agencies become more successful. We’ve spoken to hundreds of developers and gathered feedback from agencies across the world. Each month we’ve launched new features and then eagerly received feedback from users and potential users. We’ve launched and tested 8 feature releases and 20 infrastructure updates for SilverStripe Platform.

The result?

We’re more convinced than ever that SilverStripe Platform can help digital agencies be more successful.

What does success mean?

Unsurprisingly, preliminary results from our community survey indicate that happy clients are the number one way to measure success. But equally keeping clients happy and finding enough time is more challenging than ever.

There’s never enough time

Time is a finite resource and in 2016 successful agencies will look to spend most of their billable hours on the services that provide the most client value. The 2015 Digital Agency survey by Duffy Agency found that the top 5 services marketers value in digital agencies are:

• Creation of websites and apps (88%)
• Strategy for social media and content marketing (84%)
• Bridging brand strategy to online (82%)
• New content ideas (81%)
• Management of content marketing and social media programs (76%)

Clients value digital agencies that empower them to achieve their own business goals. The nuts & bolts creation of websites and apps is important, but complementing with strategy and management services for social media and content marketing adds value. This reflects a shift for websites to be more than online brochures that we’ve seen over the past few years. Marketers are looking for a strategic partner not just a delivery team. Increasingly a “successful” website is one that is closely aligned with brand strategy, offline communications and lead generation activities. 

While site up-times, security and keeping on top of software upgrades are vital, they’re not the things that keep your clients happy. SilverStripe Platform lets you outsource non-essential services and focus on delivering value to clients. Feedback from digital agencies using SilverStripe Platform has been extremely positive.

Some feedback from agencies using SilverStripe Platform 

But our work has only just begun!

Improving SilverStripe Platform for digital agencies

For every agency who our stack options already suit, there’s many more needing greater flexibility. If you have a number of smaller clients with tight hosting budgets, lower traffic and less often update their sites, then you may have found a whole SilverStripe stack frankly overkill.

For SilverStripe Platform to suit more agencies’ needs, we must provide greater flexibility. This will make it easier for you to silence your hosting, support and security distractions completely.

In order to make SilverStripe Platform more flexible, we’re introducing the ability to run more than 1 site on a single stack—”multi-tenancy”. This is targeted at Digital Agencies who run a number of smaller sites.

We will provide you with support for your stack, and as an agency, you will provide end-user support to each of your customers with sites on the stack. Although it doesn’t have the complete set of features that dedicated stacks provide, many of the benefits of SilverStripe Platform are still relevant:

• One-click deployments in an intuitive web-based tool
• Supported, maintained infrastructure complete with all the logging tools you need
• 24/7 support
• Backed by SilverStripe Limited

Multi-tenancy stacks will be Beta released early-2016 to agencies who have already evaluated SilverStripe Platform. If you want to be first to know, subscribe for the latest SilverStripe Platform news.