Praise uPortal!Evangelism, Strategic Planning,

and Marketing for a Successful uPortal Implementation

Chris StavrosWeb Strategist • California Polytechnic, San Luis Obispo

1. Engage Your Developers

• They validate the technology for others

• Send a clear message about cooperative development

• Promote the campus infrastructure

Cal Poly’sDeveloper Center

• About/History of the Cal Poly Portal Project

• How to contribute?

• Contacts

• Frequently Asked Questions

• Co-ops

Cal Poly’s Developer Centerhow to contribute

• Developer accounts & resources

• Access to core infrastructure and data

• Design and engineering assistance

• Standards and practices for development, documentation, build and deploy

2. EVANGELIZE

• Evangelize anyone

• Evangelize everyone

• Evangelize.

3. Killer Applications(a misnomer)

• Think Strategic Value

• How to secure users and contributors out of the shoot

• Sell high visibility, low barrier to entry

• Avoid policy goo

demo

4. Find early partners

• Library

• Admissions & Records

• Financial Aid

• Me too!: Residence Halls, HR & Finance, Foundation

demo

6. EVANGELIZE More!

• Visit everyone again!

• Push stats and success

• Reengage those who said “not now”

• Don’t forget about the early adopters!

7. Guerrilla Marketing

• Build your brand everywhere

• Advertise for cheap or free

• Make friends with those in touch with your audience

Schwag is Not a Dirty Word!

• Bookmarks

• Highlighters

• Tattoos

• Media ties

• More . . .

Questions?