Virtual Digital Strategy: How we ran a fully remote strategy workshop for a small Midwest biz

When it comes to shaking things up and taking a deep dive into strategic planning, who says small businesses can't play in the big leagues? We just wrapped up a super cool strategy session, totally online, connecting our team in Vietnam with a fantastic small business in the Midwest. Despite the massive time zone difference, we managed to pull off what felt like a mini McKinsey makeover—for a fraction of the cost!

The Project Background

Meet our client: a seasoned player in the printing industry for the last 25 years. They have a big goal: revamp their website to 2-3x their digital sales. They chose us to redesign their e-commerce website and integrate it with multiple third-party services for a seamless web-to-print experience. It's about giving their digital storefront a major upgrade to keep pace with today’s fast-moving market.

A New Kind of Whiteboarding

In my product career, I’ve facilitated many white boarding sessions, collaborating with clients and teams to sketch out ideas and strategies. Traditionally, these strategic deep dives have always been in-person affairs reserved for big companies with big conference rooms. This time though, we took the digital leap, conducting our session entirely online—a first for us in terms of purely strategic sessions. And it worked beautifully.

How We Got Started

We used Mural for our session—a free user friendly tool that lets everyone throw their ideas into the mix with virtual sticky notes. It's perfect for brainstorming when you can't be in the same room, let alone the same continent! Teams joined from three different locations. On the client side, the founder and senior team from different divisions were all hands-on deck.

Laying the Groundwork

Before we even kicked off the virtual strategy session, it was important to do some homework. We had several chats with the founder, digging into what they envisioned for their business and what they were aiming to achieve. We researched industry trends, leading regional and global competitor websites, top SEO keywords and profiles of target customers (B2B). Without the business context, it is really not possible to be effective in these types of sessions. It's also tough to earn client respect if they feel you don't understand what they are talking about. 

Here’s What Went Down during the session

1. Spelling Out the Challenges

First up, we tackled the big, hairy challenges. Each team member popped their thoughts onto the virtual stickies for the first 10-15 mins. It was like watching a live feed of light bulbs going off as we grouped these into major themes. This was our starting point, laying everything on the table and seeing where the bumps were. 

2. Dreaming Up Business Goals

Next, we shifted gears to talk dreams—well, business goals, really (but hey, dreams sound more fun). Everyone shared their visions, from the quick wins they wanted soon to the moonshots they hoped for down the road. Our job? Help them sift through these and figure out which ones might take the lead. It was important to remember that our role was that of a facilitator. The clients know their business well, and the best ideas came from within their team. 

3. Zeroing In on Focus Areas

With our goals locked in, we pinpointed where to focus our energy. This part was all about choosing our battles wisely to make the most impact. The team really leaned in, picking out areas that needed the most love and could drive the best results. The scope ranged from improving their customer onboarding, to better internal project management.

4. Setting Up Success Metrics

To wrap up, we brainstormed how we'd know we were nailing our goals. What does success look like? We threw around some metrics (e.g. new revenue from online, conversion rates, time spent on website, most effective traffic sources etc.) chewed over them, and landed on the ones that made the most sense. These metrics were our roadmap, telling us if we were on track as we moved forward.

Identifying Key Themes

Throughout the exercise, four to five key themes emerged repeatedly, providing a consistent narrative for the challenges and focus areas. This repetition would shape the next phases of our strategy.

The Team’s Takeaway

The vibe was electric—everyone was buzzing, especially since they hadn't done something like this before. By the end, they were pumped, grateful for the clarity and direction we’d hashed out together. They walked away with a shared understanding of why this project was important, and what success would look like for them.

What’s Next?

The game plan now is to sketch out the customer journey, identify the target personas and start with the UI / UX designs. All of this will be the basis for the development stories. This groundwork is key as we gear up to redesign their website. It's about making sure the new design not only looks slick, but also is right for their target audience. 

Wrapping It Up

This whole experience was a blast and a solid reminder of how powerful good strategy can be—no matter where you are or how big your team is. If planned properly, this exercise should only take 1-1.5 hrs with a high ROI on breaking down team barriers, getting creative ideas and aligning everyone around the same goals. It wouldn't be "perfect" or tackle all the business issues. But it can be a lean, cheap and a quick way to start your digital project with a strategic grounding.