General
Goodbye to the static website
Early days of design
When I started designing websites a few years ago, I purchased Dreamweaver and used it to create html pages. I added styling to these pages via CSS, a navigation bar linking all of the pages together and moved the pages to a web server using FTP. Thus, my first client websites came to be. The process worked for the initial project and the clients were happy.
The ongoing relationship
For me though, ongoing relationships with clients was difficult as the more clients I added to my portfolio, the more difficult it became to project my workload due to client requested changes to web pages and requests for new pages. Since I typically moved from one site design to the next, when a change request came in, jumping back in to what I considered a “finished” project was not easy to do. In addition to reviewing the change request and doing the actual work, there were often questions for the website owner and the work often took more time than I projected.
It wasn’t long before I started to react to these maintenance requests somewhat warily and realized why some peers did not offer website maintenance at all. That did not seem like a good solution though as it left a client unfamiliar with web page design without a service provider.
A good website is never finished…
It was then I realized that I was fighting a losing battle and that a good website should never be finished. How then could I continue to design and still make money?
The answer lies in the death of the static website and turning publishing power over to the content provider. Of course not every client wants to update their own content but I made a decision then, that I would only accept work from those who wish to manage this portion of the process. If I am able to provide the site structure, design, initial content load and training, then it seems realistic to expect that the client would be able to update web copy and add pages using the guidelines that were established in the initial design.
The way out
This solution, a content management system, which can be as simple as a wordpress blog or one of the many open source or commercial options available, when properly implemented can give the website owner control of their website while still reaping the benefit of a professionally managed project, design and content structure. From this point forward, I will only offer this type of solution to prospects.
Don’t make me think!
If you read only one book about web design, it should be Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug. It is an easy read and applicable to website owners as well as designers. The book covers the basic principles of what makes a website work: how to designate links, organize content and create a visual hierarchy on a page. By using a significant number of before and after examples, Steve Krug is able to demonstrate how small changes can significantly impact the usability of a web page.
I especially liked the section of the book that covers user testing. Steve shatters the myth that usability testing needs to be expensive, in a sterile lab environment and with a large number of subjects. In fact, Steve suggests only a few users per test (to quickly correct the problems that come to light as a result of the test) and repeating a test often, until all problems are addressed. Steve does not even believe that test subjects need to be from the website’s primary user group, that generally, a test subject can be just an average website user.
As setting expectations with clients can be tough as well as at times needing to prove to clients that you, the designer, do in fact, know what you are doing, why not present each new client with this book at the time of contract signing? It can be a great tool to reference during the design process to help resolve design conflicts between client and designer. The information makes so much sense, it is hard to dispute.
When in doubt, send a survey
Online surveys are a quick and efficient way to obtain information from your prospects and customers.
There are both low cost and free online survey tools available.
For $20 per month ($200 per year), Survey Monkey offers unlimited surveys and responses (with annual plan) using a variety of question types and a web based interface for analyzing results. Surveys may be deployed via email or linked on a web page.
Feature packed Google Docs recently added the ability to add a form to a spreadsheet. After the spreadsheet is saved, one can design a basic form to collect spreadsheet data. The form is deployed via an email from the Google interface or embedded in a web page. Question types are limited but the web based interface allows for easy viewing by team members. Google Docs may suffice for basic information collection and best of all, it is free!
