How Healthy Is Your Website?
Mike goes to his doctor for a routine checkup and hears bad news. The doctor tells him he needs surgery and must change his diet and exercise habits immediately. He does as he’s told. He eats better. He goes to the gym. He takes his meds. Several months later, Mike has a follow-up with the same doctor, who now pronounces him healthy. “Mike, your cholesterol and blood pressure are down, and you’re healthier than I’ve seen you in years. Well done!” So,... Read More
A Website Is a Process, Not a Project
“A website is not a project but rather a process of continuous improvement.” – Gerry McGovern McGovern points out the hard truth that most companies completely budget their web efforts incorrectly; as projects and not as ongoing operations. A website is never finished, and individuals at most companies know this intuitively, but in many cases internal processes aren’t set up for proper funding. Read More Read More
Tell Me Your Budget Or You Get a Camry
I want a new car. An automatic. I want leather seats, a moonroof, and a built-in GPS. I want it to drive comfortably and last a long time. So… what’ll that cost me? What? You want to know my budget? Why? Read More Read More
Getting the Most Out of Your Online Marketing
Welcome! We’re so glad you’re here. In the eleven years we’ve been in the online marketing business, similar questions keep coming up from clients and prospects all throughout the arc of our relationship. In the early going, when companies are in their “online dating” phase, many of them are unsure how to even go about finding the right agency to work with. How should agencies best be evaluated? What are the right questions to ask? What are the pros... Read More
Fixed Price or Hourly: Is There a Better Way?
Previously we discussed the pros and cons of fixed price vs. hourly contracts. We followed up with a discussion about the difficulty of estimation, the importance of setting a “least acceptable outcome”, and budgeting well above that point. To recap: Fixed price contracts provide clients with the illusion of budget clarity, but at the cost of inflexibility. Hourly arrangements seem ideal… for the agency. After all, the longer the project takes, the more... Read More
Be An Airline Pilot, Not An Astronaut
Is your project like sending a rocket ship to the moon, requiring even the tiniest detail to be specified exactly up front? Or is it more like a flight from Los Angeles to New York, with a general and mostly accurate flight plan but with a human pilot capable of course correction during flight? Read More Read More
But Won’t You Bilk Me If I Pay By The Hour?
After a long search, you’ve finally found the perfect web designer. Her examples are beautiful, she has fantastic references, and her process looks great. But she bills by the hour, and that has you nervous. What if she takes way longer to design your site than she estimates? What happens if she gives you initial comps and you hate all of them – why should you have to pay her more money when she didn’t make you happy in the first place? Should you insist on... Read More
