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Custom Web Site Planning
Building a Blueprint for Success
Larger and more sophisticated web sites need a different approach than small 5 five page brochure style websites.
Before any expensive design or programming work is done, you need to spend some time planning out how the site will be laid out
and what actions you would like your website visitors to take on each page.
Why You Need Our Site Planning Service
Most website projects start out with a written list of specifications either made up by the owner or as part of the bid or estimation
process. Most of the time just enough planning is done to make it possible to formulate a bid or an estimate.
The graphic design and programming of the site is thought of as the "real work" of creating the site so everyone is in a hurry to "get to work" on the project.
In reality all that has happened is that the planning has been added to the estimate or bid. You just don't see it as an individual
specification with a price set to it. The planning work is still done and you still pay for it; the truth is that it is impossible to
build a website or do custom programming work without planning.
This is at the heart of most of the problems with larger website projects. You may feel safe because you have a fixed bid which guarantees
how much you will pay but keep in mind that you will get ONLY and EXACTLY what was specified. Anything else will be extra to the
bid and will result either in additional charges and time or disappointment because you won't get quite you hoped for.
The same thing happens with estimates.
Every little thing that you realize you have overlooked in the specifications adds to what you will need to pay.
If a "little thing" means that programming or graphics work has to be redone or changed it can mean extensive changes not just on that one
"little thing" but on every programming and design feature it affects. This can skyrocket your costs. The alternative is that you have to cut
back on some other feature to stay within bid or estimate.
In the technology world this is called feature creep and it is why 70% of all website projects run over their
original bid or estimate.
The solution is to do site planning work as the separate and critical step it really is before any design or programming work is
done using methods that visually lay out the needs and expectations you have for your project. With visual based methods you can
actually see and click on the features and pages that will be on your finished site so those "little things" do not get overlooked.
It is extra work at the beginning but it pays off handsomely. Industry experts report that visually based site planning reduces costs by 25 - 50
percent and increases project success rates by as much as 80%.
How Much Does it Cost?:
Time for the design stage depends on the size and complexity of your project and can range from 3 to 10 hours for small to medium size projects. Large scale projects will require more time, especially if there is input required from two or more decision makers, vendors or professionals.
We require a three hour initial deposit at our standard programming rates to begin the planning process. After that we will bill you in three hour increments, with a final billing for any remaining hours that have not been paid.
Please Note: Even though we would love to win your business and have you continue with us for the development of your project,
it is your choice if you would like to continue with us and sign a development agreement or take your project plans elsewhere.
What is Included in the Website Planning Process:
- Types of Visitors
The first step is to work out all of the possible types of visitors that may come to your website. Examples: warm leads, visitors from your offline advertising media, prospects,
new customers, referrals, search engines, visitors from search engines, existing customers, vendors, affiliates, resellers, employees, investors, media and press, and so on.
We ask who is vistiing your site and where are they coming from?
- Visitor Priority
Each type of visitor is assigned a priority ranking on a scale of 1 to 10. The number one visitor type is the most important type
of visitor to your site. Priority rating helps to keep your website project on track, focusing on the most important visitors
and their features first.
- Visitor Goals and Actions
Starting with your highest priority visitors, list out the goals and actions your website should fulfill for each visitor type.
As an example, customers need to be able to contact us by phone, email, and live chat. They need to be able to find a product they are interested in,
read about the product, price the product, place an order, receive a receipt and track shipping. The press needs to be able to find our media contact information, download a press kit, and
see all of our recent press releases.
At this stage, you are focusing on what the goals and actions are, rather than the specifics of how they will be
accomplished.
We are asking where your important visitors are coming from, where they are going to and what they can see and do when they get there.
- Goals and Actions Priority
Each goal/action on your list is prioritized by importance and urgency.
Importance Rating:
A: Extremely important and must be done.
B: Less important and should be done.
C: Least important.
Urgency Rating:
0: No urgency
1: Immediate
6: Within 6 months
12: Within 12 months
24: Within 24 months
When this priortizing process is complete, you should have a list of objectives for your website in terms of importance and time frame.
This keeps your project on track and allows you to work out development stages and progress milestones.
- Wireframe Prototyping
On this step, we create an interactive wireframe prototype from your priortized list of goals and actions.
A wireframe is a simple grayscale model that you can see and click on. We work through the wireframe with you, analyzing and revising
it until it reflects what you really want. You can actually see your project taking shape as the wireframe prototype is developed.
See an example wireframe page
Each goal or action is translated into an online web page that shows:
a) Entry point(s): how the visitor arrives at the page
b) The goal(s) for the page
c) The action(s) the visitor can take on the page
c) Content & Design Notes: Brief descriptions of the content and supporting graphics
d) Exit point(s): where the visitor can go from the page
- Website Prototype
During this step of website planning the wireframe prototype is translated into the various types of page layouts that will be needed
to display the content on the website and the exact details of how the content will be presented is worked out. As an example, a dummy search box
would be created with its corresponding search results. No programming or expensive design work is done on this step so it is very easy and
inexpensive to change and refine the details of the site until it really reflects what is envisioned.
During this process various methods of managing information, custom programming needs, specialized interactive features such as flash,
and the possible use of pre-built scripts are reviewed and/or researched to come up with the most cost-effective means of
implementing the full website capability.
- Site Mapping
On this step the various pages are grouped in terms of menu items, navigation needs and website marketing optimization. From this
process the site's navigation system is developed. The results are worked into the website prototype.
- Site Phases
Depending on the size and scope of the website project and any budget constraints, the work to be done is organized into development phasaes
based on urgency and priority.
- Site Specifications
The completed prototype and its related notes and specifications are organized into a set of plans that can be sent to design and programming firms for
detailed estimates. If any questions come up, the prototypes are consulted and if need be, changed to accomodate any glitches found during the estimation process.
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