How to make the web work for your business
By Dermot Corrigan
Perhaps due to the novelty and rapid evolution of internet technologies and e-business trends, many businesses are not sure how to approach finding and dealing with a web development partner.
Given how important a company’s online presence is to its business success, it makes sense to treat your web development company as just as important a business partner as any other.
Joan Mulvihill, chief executive at the Irish Internet Assocation (IIA) said that checking the bona-fides of any potential web partner was a must for any business embarking on a web project.
“You need to exercise the same ‘caveat emptor’ approach as if you were buying any other professional service,” she said.
“Some companies get a friend to do it, or someone studying IT in college, but that might not be the best idea for your company. You should run an effective tender process and see what each company offers, look at their portfolios, do the reference checks and see what value for money is available.”
A good web development partner would bring both an understanding of a company’s business challenges and competitive advantages, but also excellent technical knowledge, said Ken Stanley, technical director, The Creative District.
“Your website’s success will be determined by your web or digital agency’s ability to understand your company and your business needs,” said Stanley. “However, you should always be wary of agencies which focus on client services, but seem light on production. If you are paying professional rates for your website, you should be working closely with experienced production people.”
Most companies will draw up a brief for their new website and send it to a couple of potential partners before deciding which solution to choose. It can be challenging, however, for companies without much internet experience or technical know-how to put together a best practice brief.
Stephen Murphy, communications director of Webfactory, said that companies compiling a brief for a new or upgraded website should not worry about which cutting edge elements or technologies to include. Instead, they should tell the web developer the benefits they wanted the site to deliver.
“The brief should include the business goals of the company and the objectives of its website, not just the need for podcasts or more video on our site,” said Murphy. “The agency should then be able to suggest a solution to meet those requirements. Our job is to develop a solution that dovetails into the client’s business strategy.”
The brief should be drawn up with your company’s customers in mind, said Maryrose Lyons, managing director of Brightspark Consulting.
“You should be looking at who are your customers, why do they come to you and what do you want them to buy more of, and who are other customers who do not come to you but you would like to,” said Lyons.
“The spec should be less prescriptive about how the solution will look. It should say these are who we want to reach and now, developer, tell me how I can do that.”
