Where are you trying to go, anyway?

The great philosopher Yogi Berra was quoted as saying, "You got to be very careful if you don't know where you're going, because you might not get there."

I was thinking about that the other day because a colleague had told a story about a key newspaper executive -- not one of ours, fortunately -- who admittedly had no goals or vision for that newspaper's website.

No goals. No vision. No strategy.

I wonder how widespread a problem that is.

Reading a blog item from Steve Duke at Northwestern University, I stumbled across this (emphasis added):

"But one [seminar] participant last week observed that 'maybe it's less a tech issue than a mission issue,' deftly linking the 'we suck' perception with the lack of a real audience strategy.

"We think he's right. It is less a tech issue and more an issue of not having a clear mission -- a strategy -- for how the Web site fits in with the print product to reach audiences and what audiences to target. Until newspapers can articulate a strategy, their Web sites will struggle.

Can you articulate the mission, vision and strategy for your newspaper's website? Can everyone on the team do the same?