How to find and appoint a website development agency

Richard Johnson

Business Development Director

Worked in almost all roles within an agency...

...including

being the client!

Oxford UniversityVictorianoxUS Airtours

Action for Blind PeopleNicolas Wines

Feng Sushi

How to find and appoint a website

development agency

Ask questions throughout.

Don't save them to the end.

Part One

Defining your project & creating a brief

Part Two

Finding suitable web agencies

Part Three

Select and appoint the right agency

Part One

Defining your project

1. Planning and objectives2. Events, dates & people3. Who you are & your customers4. USP's / Reasons to buy5. Content & structure6. Budget planning7. Current website8. Technology & devices9. Design & Search Marketing

Get your business plan?

What's in your marketing plan?

What budget have you set?

Start your project brief.

What are the objectives of the website...

We want more customer enquiries from the website. We would like to cut down on the amount of internal paperwork. We would like to sell £1m worth of products online.

or...

my boss told me we need a website!

Are there any events or important dates that might affect the project?

trade show board meeting company re-branding exercise product launch

List out who might be involved in the project

You? Copywriters / website editor?

A designer? People from marketing?

The Managing Director?

If he/she wants to make decisions they need to be involved in this brief and the entire process of the project.

Explain who your company is and what you provide...

This is important for:

A. You. To make sure you can briefly describe your business and...

B. The website agency need to understand your business(and your customers)

Target audience / Your customers

Age ranges?

Type of job they hold? Do they spend a lot of time online? Are they very technical?

If you are selling a product online (ecommerce) then list what the products are and...

Type of products Costs of products

Average order value

Where you ship to / sell to

What are your USP's?

What makes your customers buy / use your services?

Cost?

Quality?

Speed of delivery?

You are the only company that offers X?

Do you have existing content available?

Are you planning to write / have written new content?

Have you drafted a site map?

What is your budget range for the project?

Don't put "as little as possible"

The good agency will tailor the solution to fit your budget.

A successful website needs attention and support from the agency. (unless you can provide a web team...)

Budget for:

Hosting

Technical support

Online Marketing

Training

Many of our clients spend between£600 - £2500 per month on ongoing Online Marketing.

Your current website...

What does it do well?

What does it do badly? Visitor statistics?Can you provide access to your Analytics package?

Don't make technology decisions yourself Ask the agency for advice

If you need integration with a CRM or stock management system list it.

You might already have a content management system...

You might have a document management system or a feed from somewhere that needs to be integrated.

A website can be optimised for many different devices

PCNetbookiPhoneiPadBlackberry and many other mobile devices...

and

Printers If you have info that usually gets printed out, it would make sense to add this.

Start with the minimum requirements. You can always add support for more devices later.

Provide examples of website design that you

LIKE and that you feel is APPROPRIATE for your business

Provide examples of website design that you

DISLIKE and that you feel is INAPPROPRIATE for your business.

The agency will go through a design brief with you.

Provide top 5 keyword phrases that you would like to target on search engines.

Don't put 'Holidays' or "Printing" Generic and take too much time and investment.

"content management agency london"

"website design and cms london"

"open source website agency london"

add anything else that is important?

1. Planning and objectives2. Events, dates & people3. Who you are & your customers4. USP's / Reasons to buy5. Content & structure6. Budget planning7. Current website8. Technology & devices9. Design & Search Marketing

Part Two

Finding web agencies

1. Find agencies2. Create a list3. Research the agencies4. Narrow down selection5. Talk to the remaining agencies6. Visit the remaining agecnies7. Get references

Make a list of websites that you like

See if you can find which agency built it.

Start a spread sheet...

...list the agencies you find.

Check out:

Econsultancy Supplier Directory for web agency lists.

Talk to peers and other directors

Ask questions on LinkedIn and other professional portals.

Twitter (and other social networks)

Every man and his...

Go through your list and read their websites...

Get the list down to 5 or 6

Now it's time for a conversation...

Give them a call See how you feel once you start talking with them.

You must feel comfortable. You could be working with them for...

5 years

When down to 3 meet with them

Visit their office and discuss your brief

This is called a chemistry meeting

The first meeting...

Ask them to introduce their business

Ask about the team

Ask them to run you through their latest work in detail.

Ask for some references...

But ask if you can pick some at random?

Call these clients and ask them:

What they think of AgencyX? Did they deliver everything that they proposed in the project?

1. Find agencies2. Create a list3. Research the agencies4. Narrow down selection5. Talk to the remaining agencies6. Visit the remaining agecnies7. Get references

Part Three

Appointing web agencies

1. Request proposal2. Read & mark-up proposals3. Update your agency list4. Make a educated decision5. Select your agency

If you're happy, ask for a proposal.

If they are happy, they will provide one.

Ideally the agency should talk you through it.

Once you have your copy follow these steps:

TIP: Use a highlighter.

Firstly, read the whole document from cover to cover.

Then do something else to clear your mind.

Read the second proposal from cover to cover.

Have a break and clear your mind.

Read the final proposal from cover to cover.

Now you have marked up each of the proposals and read them at least once.

Every good proposal should include all or at least most of these:

An executive summary

Introduction to the project (in plain English)

A proposed solution to your brief

Proposed timescales for the project

Phase one costs (there may be phase 2, 3 and so on...)

Any ongoing costs (hosting, support & training, online marketing?)

What are the next steps if you go forward?

Are there any contracts that you need to read?

Selecting the best proposal...

Add these columns to your spreadsheet:

Friendliness Professionalism Do I like them Cost vs Deliverables.

Rate each field between 1 and 10. (10 being the best)

This gives you a solid base to make your decision.

1. Request proposal2. Read & mark-up proposals3. Update your agency list4. Make an educated decision5. Select your agency

In my experience...

it's about

The People you work with.

Thank You

Slides and documents available at

gpmd.co.uk/talks

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