Podcast 23: Defining your project
Posted in Podcast on: Monday, February 13, 2006 by Paul Boag
This week on boagworld.com Paul and Marcus discuss the need to define clearly the scope of your web project before rushing into the build. They also review some great sites about website layout and gratuitously promote Practical web design magazine.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (18.8MB)
TechnoBuster: Semantic code
Semantic code is a term that is thrown around a lot at the moment, but what is it and why should you care? I try to explain to Marcus in very small words what it’s all about!
Check out our article on this subject
Main feature: Scoping your web project
Carefully planning your website before you start to build might not sound like the most exciting theme for a podcast but it is fundamental to a successful website project. I know from bitter experience that not doing so can lead to a world of pain for both the developer and the client. In this weeks show we share loads of tips that we have learnt over the years. Here are just a few of them:
Take the long view
Many clients force agencies to start projects before they are fully prepared, either because they are unwilling to pay for a scoping phase or because they have a tight deadline to meet. This kind of short-term view does nobody any favours. If a project is not properly defined at the outset, it will inevitably lead to slippages and additional expense. A developer needs time to understand the requirements before they begin to build. If they don’t, they will be unprepared when they encounter unforeseen technical issues.
Everybody has to sign off
Having a statement of work that everybody has signed off on is a great way to ensure client, developer and designer are all singing off of the same hymn sheet. It avoids miscommunication and misunderstanding by clearly defining what is going to be delivered.
Do you really need that?
The scoping phase should not only identify what tasks need to be done, it should also take a long hard look at what functionality is being considered. If you are not careful, your statement of work can turn into a wish list of functionality rather than a considered document which factors in return on investment. Ask yourself, if I spend all of this time building a certain piece of functionality, will it pay dividends for my organisation.
Be specific
It is easy to be vague about your scope, but if you do, there is room for confusion. The statement of work should cover everything from how many design iterations there should be, to what browsers the site is going to be tested on. Make sure your list of tasks is as detailed as possible, that way you will avoid any nasty surprises half way through the project.
Phased development
Don’t be afraid to phase a project especially when faced with a tight deadline. If your website has to be live by a certain date, it might be wise to leave out some of the "bells and whistles" until post launch. It is easy to forget that your website should be an evolving animal that can grow over time. After all, saving some of the functionality and rolling it out later gives you a good PR opportunity.
The hidden technology killers
Beware of those little technology issues that are so easy to overlook. For example, pay particular attention to which browsers you are going to support and what accessibility level you will be conforming to. Finally don’t forget to factor in time to deal with those extra style sheets for print, mobile or low vision users.
Web resources: Getting your layout right
This week I picked two sites that help designers develop the perfect layout.
Web Design Practices
A great site that shows you the trends in layout based on an analysis of several hundred websites. This site answers invaluable questions such as; "where does the search box normally appear" and "do most sites use side or top navigation?"
Although slightly out of date and centred largely on ecommerce sites, this is still an excellent resource. However, remember, just because a lot of sites do something a certain way doesn’t make it good practice!
Layout cookbooks
Have you ever had a client who knows what they like when they see it? If so, send them over to the layout cookbook and get them to look through the hundreds of different screen layouts available there. It’s also a great place to get some inspiration when you feel like all your designs are using the same basic layout!
11 Comments
Comments are for the discussion of this post. If you have other questions / comments then post them to the forum or send me an email
Should we tell Marcus how smokers don’t get over colds and stuff as quickly as nonsmokers?
“Tobacco smoking has also been linked with the weakening of the immune system, non-smokers are known on average to take fewer days off sick than the smoking population. Smokers on average take 25% more sick days a year.” – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_cold
So all together.
MARCUS STOP SMOKING!
Oh man I am at work… I will listen as soon as I can. yayayaa!
Another great podcast gentlemen! You guys are doing a great job – inspiring. I work all day designing and building e-commerce sites – then listen to your podcast on the commute home. Which inspires me to go in early the next day to work – excited to do research on a subject you may have discussed. A viscous circle!
I agree with Eric. I’m learning all kinds of stuff, and spending hours and hours doing it. Often way into the night. So thanks for that.
One suggestion: I think this week’s Web Resourse Review should’ve talked about scheduling software since it was discussed a bit.
What do some others out there use?
Sorry I am not sure I understand what you mean by scheduling software?
You had mentioned Gantt charts I believe, for project planning and establishing deadlines, etc. And I’ve just recently found out about GanttProject (if that’s what you were referring to).
Ah I see. When Marcus was talking about that he was referring to Microsoft Project which is pretty much industry standard for any kind of project planning.
Hey guys,
I think I would add this to your list of sample layout sites:
http://www.oswd.org/
This is great for customers!
Hello gentlemen…
You mentioned you were interested in learning of PHP based CMS systems. You didn’t say whether or not they have to be free…so I put forth ExpressionEngine from pMachine. Go to http://www.expressionengine.com to check it out. I’ve built a few client sites with it so far and it is relatively inexpensive (US$250) and very easy to install and customize. Totally template driven and very fast helpful support forum. Very good product. Check it out.
-Josh
Accession Media, LLC
Thanks for giving the feedback on FlashPaper. Marcus was right when he pronounced my name. Angel is pronounced: An-hell and yes I am a guy. I am hispanic and all ángel are guys
Hello lads,
In my company I am the Sales Guy, AKA General Leader of Kick-Assery, and therefor won’t even embarrass myself by trying to add HTML tags to this.
Anyways, here’s my thing about the Flash Paper vs. PDF. I am under the impression that for some things, especially highly stylized things like menu’s for restaurants, flash paper can serve a nice purpose. Most people have flash, and so you can present the menu to the customer just the way you want to, without it being all PDFish and opening in different looking environment.
Am I missing something?