Express Yourself Online...

Steps for a web project (The Contract) [Part II]

2008-09-08T07:01:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: My advice is to find an attorney to create a contact. I am not an attorney nor am I trying to provide ANY legal advice. This is just information I want to share from my experience.

My Basic Contract Checklist

Extent of Work to be completed
Specify exactly what is and is not included the main contract. Additionally, stipulate what you charge for the additional work that the scope of main contract does not cover.

Scope Creep, generally considered a negative occurrence that is to be avoided. Scope Creep in project management refers to uncontrolled changes in a project's scope. This trend can occur when the scope of a project is not properly defined, documented, or controlled.

Client Amendments and Revisions
One of the most common misjudgments inexperienced freelancer designers make is not requiring a limit of the number of changes the client is allowed to request.

Handling Client Delays
The wait for a client to provide content can be one of the most disturbing aspects of any project. Your contract should deal with the issue of what will happen if the client delays. One approach is to specify any timelines are contingent on receiving the material from the client.
- Example:
  The project shall be completed and online within 45 days of the client agreeing with design concept, receipt of all content, and Client’s participation.

Legal Clauses
Legal type clauses such as Limitation of Liability gives you the chance to limit the amount of risk and liability that can occur with the project.
- Limited Liability
  A standard limitation in your contract should be the exclusion of resulting damages. Damages or losses can occur from the act of one of the parties. In the lack of such a phrase, your financial liability can be substantial.
  - Example
    Web Designer will not be liable to the client, or to anyone who may claim any right due to a relationship with the client, for any acts of omissions in the performance of services under the terms of the Agreement or on the part of employees or agents of Web Designer unless such acts or omissions are due to willful misconduct. Client will indemnify and hold Web Designer free and harmless from any obligations, costs, claims, judgments, attorney's fees, and attachments arising from, growing out of, or in any way connected with the services rendered to client under the terms of this Agreement, unless Web Designer is judged by a court of competent jurisdiction to be guilty of willful misconduct.
- Copyright Assignment
  Whether or not to transfer copyright to the client is probably the most controversial subject among Web professionals. It will aid you to understand how the copyright laws work.
  - If the client is paying you, they will likely assume they own the web site once it is paid for. Your client may be taken aback when they find out they do not own all the web site copyrights. Some clients require you add a clause to assign them full ownership of the web site.
  - If you decide to assign ownership to the client, then you, as the copyright owner, must specifically transfer ownership to the other party in writing. Be very clear which portions you are transferring and which you are not.
    - Example:
      Any and all graphic and HTML layouts and supporting navigational icons completed by Web Designer for the client's web site shall be considered "Work For Hire" and will be the sole property of the client. Any scripts or programs shall remain the property of Web Designer, and the client shall have “Inclusive User Rights.”
  - Description of “Work For Hire”
    As default, contractors own their work. If a written agreement with a contractor sets forth that the work is “Work For Hire,” then the person paying for the work in most cases will own the work.
  - Description of “Inclusive User Rights”
    A client on a limited basis can use services and copyrighted material. Client cannot delegate user rights to another without written authorization by owner of property and/or services.

Client and/or Third Party Page Modifications
Be sure your contract states that you are not responsible to repair any damage done to the site by the client or any other party if they attempt to modify it (at least, not for free).

Maintenance and Technical Support
Limit the time the client can requests maintenance and technical support, like two weeks after launch. Unless you enjoy repeated calls from clients who have forgotten their passwords, again.

Payment Terms
You do not want to be vague about when and how often you will get paid. A percentage up front (down payment) and the balance on or near completion date are standard practices.

Steps for a web project (Before) [Part I]

2008-09-06T11:53:00.000-07:00

Before you start any web project. [I discussed these in earlier posts]

Establish your business ethics (rules)

Evaluate your skills and anyone that will be involved

Know your strengths and limitations

Establish a network of others that have skills to make up for your limitations

NOTE: Are you a specialist in:

Accessibility

Databases like mySQL

Interfacing to databases (PHP/PERL/ASP)

FLASH and ActionScript

JavaScript

Video for the web

Of course you are not an authority of all these.

Rest assured, a client will expect you to be an expert on everything you offer, especially if you use a “third-party” application on their web site.

This is why it is so important to establish a network of others that can make available the needed skills for a project.

Now you know what you have to offer a potential client. Let us move on to when a potential client contacts you to create a new web site or renovate an existing web site.

Make sure you and the client are “On The Same Page.” Never ASSUME they know what you mean and DO NOT ASSUME you know what they are thinking.

This will come back and haunt you and could costs you much. Yes, I said costs YOU. I have known other web designers having to pay for a former client’s new web site because the designer ASSUMED wrong.

The following is before any agreement or contract is made and signed.

Provide the client a list of questions (Preliminary Information/Questionnaire).

This lets you and the client be aware of what is wanted

This preliminary information takes much of the ASSUME factor out

This allows you to bring others in from your network

This will tell you if the client’s project is beyond your scope of
skill sets, timeline too tight, etc.

Once you have the Questionnaire and discussed all the answers the client provided:

Create a proposal for the client. This serves three purposes.

Allows the client know (without ASSUMING) you understand what they want

Provides valuable information of what the project is. This prevents any change of the client’s expectations later.

This gives you the information and groundwork for your contract with the client

Web Site Usability

2008-09-06T01:56:00.000-07:00

I can easily write a book on this subject. Here is just a "tid-bit" of Web Site Usability.

Web site usability is the condition of a user's dealings with a web site or, in other words, how usable a web site is to the user. Users want to be able to easily access a web site and decide how to use it within seconds. Usability sways whether many users will return to a web site, how often they will use the web site, and how satisfied they are with their experience at the web site.

A mixture of factors determines a web site's usability:

Ease of learning how to use the website - The time it takes a new user to find out how to use a web site to do basic tasks.

Efficiency of use - Once a user learns how to use a web site, the time it takes to do a task.

Loading - The speed of loading for a web site greatly impacts how much time a user will have to spend at the site. Slow loading web sites can easily cause user annoyance.

Memorability – What will a return user remember about how to use a web site?

Frequency of errors and severity - The number of errors that occur during use, the effect of the errors, and time for recovery from the errors.

Satisfaction of users - How well the user likes the web site?

Once users cannot find information they look for on a web site, this can lead to wasted time and increased frustration. Additionally, this can lead to the loss of repeat visits, and in some cases, a loss of money. Most users have a low patience for slow loading web sites and difficult to understand designs.

Business Ethics

2008-09-05T23:19:00.000-07:00

Let us discuss setting up your own business ethics. You have rules that steers your family life, rules for your personal life, rules for work. It is important that you establish a set of rules (or ethics) for doing business.

My definition of ethics is YOUR RULES , not morals; those are the rules set by society (usually the social group, family, etc. you might belong to).

In my opinion, you should NEVER break (or bend) your OWN RULES. This is what a potential client and others will see you as.

Once you decide on the ethics (rules) for your business, no matter how temping something is (like an offer for some big money), DO NOT BREAK YOUR OWN RULES. I cannot stress this enough.

The key to this business is your REPUTATION. Stay CONSISTENT and do not stretch or make exceptions to YOUR RULES.

A Visual-Spatial Approach

2008-08-30T09:19:00.000-07:00

A Visual-Spatial Approach helps the user create a mental type of the web site or web page. This type of arrangement can help the user expect the result(s) of their actions while using the web site. Significant parts (especially as those that aid the navigation) should be clear. The user should be able to tell from a glance what they can and cannot do with the web page.

My Philosophy with Any Business Relationship

2008-08-22T13:20:00.000-07:00

I cannot tell you how many times I had a call from people saying their web person did not have the capability they claimed to do the job. I know how difficult it can be when a potential client asks you, “Can you do this?”

If you are totally honest and say you cannot, you risk losing the job. Too often, I have heard, “Sure, I can do that.” In reality they cannot. This business is not like being in school, cramming for big test the night before.

Three Elements Are A Must In Any Business Relationship:

1. TRUST

2. COMMUNICATION

3. HONESTY

You MUST have ALL three for any relation to survive. Let me clarify: A healthy relationship. Lose any one of these characteristics and the relationship will eventually erode away to something not as you expected.

One may ask “What about respect, etc.?” You need TRUST, COMMUNICATION, and HONESTY before any other element can really take hold. For example you may say someone respects you but they show you very little or no trust. Ask yourself, “How can that be?”

Never more so in this business is TRUST, COMMUNICATION, and HONESTY essential.

You need to evaluate yourself and what you can offer. Be honest with yourself and know your limitations. I suggest making list of what skills you have, a separate list for skills that need to be improved upon, and those skills you do not have.

This sounds like a simple undertaking, but it is not. You must be COMPLETELY honest with yourself. It is more difficult than you believe. Let me gave you an example how this assessment of yourself can be accomplished.

Let us say you are good in HTML and basic Dreamweaver. You are familiar with Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and basic FLASH. You do not know about PHP, MySQL, and ActionScript for FLASH.

So, you start your lists similar to this:
Skills I have:

HTML/XHTML – I can meet the standards established by the W3C.

Dreamweaver – I understand the basic features Dreamweaver to create a functioning web site.

Skills I need to improve upon:

CSS – I understand the basics of CSS, but not much of the advanced features for creating a web site in pure CSS.

FLASH – I can use the basic FLASH to create animations and simple web sites.

Skills I do not have yet:

PHP

MySQL

ActionScript for FLASH

My goals and things I need:

CSS

I need to practice using more CSS when creating web pages

View online tutorials and books on CSS

FLASH

Take class in future

Network with some who knows MySQL

Maybe Joe

ActionScript for FLASH

Take class in future

Network with some who knows ActionScript
- Maybe Jane

This is only a simple example, but I you get the general idea.

My most paramount rule in conducting yourself with a client or potential client is ALWAYS BE HONEST with them.

If cannot do something, no matter have difficult it might be, say so. That is why I say evaluating your skill level is essential. If are not strong or do not have that skill, find somebody who is.

This will increase your reputation and creditability when you say; “We can do that for you.”

I want to pass along a quote said to me when I first started:

“You cannot wear all the hats in this business.” ~ Professor Al Fichera

You cannot be an expert at everything. Find areas that you are strong and find somebody else to network who is strong areas you might be. You will find this a “Win-Win” situation.

Since I broached this topic, I might discuss Business Ethics during my next post.

Welcome to Express Yourself Online...

2008-08-21T13:02:00.000-07:00

Here we will discuss developing web site projects from a "Real World" view. Feel free to share your thoughts and views.

Interesting enough, over the years some of the best ideas came from students who did not believe their method deserve any consideration.

You all have heard the old phrase - "The only dumb question is the one not asked." Well, let me take that a bit further - "Share what you are thinking and question everything until you understand."

In other words, do not be the "Wall Flower" that does not ever say anything. Please, do not take it wrong that it seems I am focused on you if I "prod" you for your thoughts. Anyhow, it is usually the quiet ones who have good ideas to add to a discuss.

My philosophy is everyone has something to contribute. Everybody knows something that others do not.

I have found over my life and especially, in this business that sharing ideas, thoughts, and maybe a different way of doing things that everyone gets wiser and more knowable.

Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.
~ Einstein

I invite everyone to participate. If you have a subject or a thought that you would like discussed, go a head throw that out there. You are, probably, not the only one who wondered about it. I love sharing ideas and thoughts.

Over time, I might even share with you folks some of my trade secrets.

My main rule here: HAVE FUN...