The day-to-day operations of a business can get in the way of succession planning. After all, it’s hard to think about the future when your daily to-do list never gets finished. But succession planning needs to be done well before you think you need it. 

In our work with small and family-owned businesses, we’ve seen a lot of transitions take place. One of the most likely things to be forgotten? 

Digital asset management. 

For many small businesses, the website and social platforms aren’t a top priority; however, just like to business valuation and purchase agreements, digital assets need to be included in the succession planning process. 

Working with an Agency: Who Owns Your Marketing Assets?

Digital Asset Must-Have: Website Ownership 

You should protect ownership of your website similar to how you protect your business’s office. Sure, employees can have access to the site — just like you’d give them keys to the office — but at the end of the day, primary ownership should be with the business owner. 

We’ve often seen businesses leave their web vendor in control of the site. This can happen for a lot of reasons, but most often, it’s because no one at the business knows how to manage it. 

We understand needing a partner to manage the site, but your website is a product you purchased, and you shouldn’t let someone else be in a position to lock you out. 

This is especially important when handing off the business to the next generation of leadership because the way websites work is rapidly changing. As we get closer to the end of third-party cookies, your website and the first-party information it collects becomes more and more valuable to your business. 

The next two assets are good to have, but your website is a must-have in digital asset management.

Don’t Neglect Google Analytics

We’ve been posting a lot about Google Analytics lately because the platform underwent a massive change on July 1, 2023. (Check out our posts if you want to catch up on all the changes.) 

For some businesses, this change means they may no longer be tracking website traffic and statistics. For others, it might be set up, but improperly. Some yet never had Universal Analytics installed, so they’re missing out on both historical and new data. 

After your website, Google Analytics ownership is the second most important asset for any business. The data in Google Analytics allows you to see the path to conversion for new and returning users on your website.

Marketing teams can use this information to better explain your product or service to potential customers. Sales teams can use this information to learn more about the people visiting your site and the questions future customers have about your business. 

Google Analytics allows you to use your website to your advantage and give you information about your leads and customers. Without it, your site isn’t providing any more value to your team than a static billboard. 

Confused by Google Analytics? Let us help you! »

Google Analytics GA4 Setup Package

Own Your Social Status

Lastly, any business should own their social media profiles. This is especially true if you plan to do any digital advertising. 

Unfortunately, this is also the asset we often find businesses have the least control over. It’s become such a common occurrence for us, we created a profile “untangling” package to help businesses get these profiles under control. 

(Need help? Get in touch. We love a puzzle, and these social platforms definitely qualify.) 

Because of how social networks started out, a lot of business profiles are owned by employees, rather than the business itself. Meta (aka Facebook and Instagram) is notoriously complicated, and pages set up before Business Manager was created are often set up incorrectly. 

Marketing ROI Packages: Don’t waste your budget.

Get Expert Help with Your Digital Presence

As older generations pass control over to new leadership, there are a lot of details to review. Don’t let digital asset management slip through the cracks. 

And if you need help ensuring ownership of your assets, we’re here. 9 Clouds is well versed in digital and can ensure your online resources are under control. 

We Do Digital So You Don’t Have To »