7 secret problems with “off-the-shelf’ web solutions

Web designers often reach for ready-made products to solve business problems rather than building customised solutions. But in doing so they may be servicing their own needs more than yours. By CRAIG REARDON

By Craig Reardon

Web designers often reach for ready-made products to solve business problems rather than building customised solutions. But in doing so they may be servicing their own needs more than yours.

When it comes to technology, professionals working for larger firms are more than familiar with the notion of “build or buy” – a term that refers to the decision on the part of the organisation to either have a technology solution custom built by a developer or bought by an “off-the-shelf” solutions provider.

Off-the-shelf solutions generally cost a fraction of their custom-built equivalent, however can often contain hidden financial or productivity costs or never quite meet the requirement for which they are intended.

In recent years, the build or buy option has become available to smaller organisations when it comes to website and related solutions thanks to the rollout of a wide range of comprehensive yet affordable website and eMarketing solutions.

These solutions have superseded website design tools such as Dreamweaver and Frontpage by providing their customers with a designed and fully technically provisioned web solution that focuses their attention on individual page content enabled by a content management system instead of the entire website structure.

They are usually available via an application service provider (ASP) or “software as a service” (SaaS) arrangement, where the technology is bundled with design, hosting, support and other benefits and includes both of an upfront/establishment and ongoing fees.

In my experience, up to 90% of smaller organisations can have their online requirements met by these solutions, saving them up to 90% of an expensive technical development and putting them on par with much larger organisations.

But typical of any competitive environment, a number of important (and potentially costly) factors can get overlooked when it comes to providers espousing the virtues of their solutions.

Here are some that I’ve come across in recent years.

1. It’s actually half a website

You’ve probably seen the promotions – websites for as little $40 a year, or a certain low monthly fee. But don’t be fooled.

They’re not actually websites as we know them at all, but web tools bundled with hosting. What you are provided with is a bunch of (often great value) online tools to help you build your website and some hosting to store it on.

This is great if you have the writing, editing, design, usability, optimisation and layout skills to create a professional website. But very frustrating if, like most people, you don’t have the time to dedicate how to learn and perfect them to achieve the desired results.

Content management systems should definitely be a key ingredient of every smaller organisation’s website requirements. But before you spend the money you’ve saved on a website on a Hamilton Island conference, make sure that you or your staff have the skill to achieve a truly professional result or get some independent help.

The most cost-effective way to get a professional result is to have your initial site built and “populated” for you to specification, then get the training and support you need to maintain it affordably.

2. Easy to use – if you’re a computer science graduate

When most providers demonstrate how easy their system is to use, they show you their “Microsoft Word-style interface”, add some lorem ipsum and bingo – a web-page is born.

Which at its most basic is essentially true. But before long you will want to move beyond basic, and layout your page to include more than lorem ipsum gobbledegook and a model photo. It’s then that the “easy” can turn to frustration and worse – the realisation that the system you have committed to is going to cost you much more in time and/or money if you want to move beyond basic.

To ensure your ongoing requirements are covered, come up with a list of changes you are going to typically need, and have the vendor demonstrate how this is done right in front of you.

3. We charge like a wounded bull for platform or design changes

Provided you stick to the basics, your off-the-shelf solution can be a wonderful asset to your organisation.

But what happens if you want to change a small design element, or add some technology features to improve your site or its administration?

Some firms can charge like the proverbial if you want any changes to their standard “vanilla” system. You are then faced with paying the fee, have your website remain static, or change providers – all of which can be costly.

Again, this makes independent advice on your website solution essential.

4. You don’t own the website

Actually “ownership” of the website isn’t as critical as many would have you believe. After all, you don’t own MYOB, Word or any other software you haven’t had built yourself, you simply own a right to use it.

But if your business model dictates that you fully own your website and the technology it resides on, off-the-shelf solutions won’t be for you.

However you will always own your website content, and beware of anyone who tells you otherwise. You can also negotiate the ownership of the design that’s been applied to the website.

5. Our creative is offshore and doesn’t speak good English

When it comes to creativity, good English is not a pre-requisite. There is as much great design coming from North Korea as there is North Sydney.

However, when it comes to understanding a creative brief, not only good English but understanding local culture is imperative.

You don’t want to know how much time I’ve spent attempting to brief an offshore design team when a succinct local reference like “appeal to NRL followers” or “more Toorak than Thomastown” is immediately understood by a local designer.

Some firms make you jump hoops to fill in their “international” briefing requirements when a quick chat with a local human would easily suffice.

6. Our bureaucracy will drive you round the bend

I’ve been lucky enough to have worked in industries where creative, technical and management teams work together as a matter of course for many years.

But in a relatively new industry like the internet, this kind of collaboration can be quite new and perplexing to the uninitiated. Therefore relatively new players try and resolve simple communications issues with moribund, time-consuming processes and procedures when simply hiring the right people and empowering them to genuinely serve the customer would save us all time and money.

The general rule of thumb here is the bigger the provider, the bigger the bureaucracy and time-wasting capacity.

7. You’ll be charged a bomb for ‘excess data’

Hosting has probably become the most commoditised service around today. Notwithstanding the quality of service, security etc, you can now get terabytes of hosting for just a few dollars a month. In fact Microsoft has just released a package in the US that provides 500mb of hosting a month for no charge whatsoever!

So any plan that promises less than 100mb a month in traffic without good reason should be studiously avoided.

Solution plus service is the answer. But let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater. Smaller businesses should definitely take advantage of the massive savings and comprehensive features that off-the-shelf solutions provide.

But tread carefully, remember caveat emptor and where possible, get independent help.

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