It has occurred to me that I have posted very little on digital publishing recently. The main reason for this is that my digital role has not been very active this summer – ok, that’s not totally true, I have been spending the summer trying to fine tune most aspects of my digital role.
What I have learned from this process?
I won't go into too much detail in relation to the CMS system but I will say that if you are developing a digital product that is meant to be used on a frequent basis by customers involve them (or at least a sample) in the process. It will ensure a much smoother ride once things get going and they will be able to identify issues that you didn't even know existed. My experience in sales and marketing has taught me many things but a key lesson has been the importance of customer communication and high quality service. You may think it's a no brainer but many people can forget that identifying your customer and ensuring you have a good relationship is key in any business.
I've not been involved in much website development (I'm not sure creating geocities sites back in the late nineties/early noughties really counts) but it is something that I've been training myself up on and been very eager to be involved in. Even if websites are becoming a bit 'last season' they are still very important tools for profile building and business (yes yes, I know it's all facebook pages, twitter accounts, LinkedIn profiles and whatnot these days). So I've been involved in helping develop a new ecommerce website and it is taking a good bit longer than I had anticipated.
The reason said website might be taking a bit longer than anticipated is because the plan was a bit rudimentary. There were outlines and I had an idea of what needed doing - I now realise time lines would have made things run a fair bit faster. That and better/faster communication from the developers.
I'd assumed the website would be pretty fast to set up because it was based on a template of another website we have. Even the developers assured me it wouldn't take more than a week (two months ago) as it turns out a direct copy of the template wasn't quite right for the new website and new design standards were implemented and there was a fair bit of trial and error. Key point - trial and error is part of the digital process.
Specs kind of come into the planning side of thing but can also be applicable to eBooks. We've slowly been building up out eBook style guide. For format it can sometimes seem redundant given that the reader has a great deal of control over this aspect of eBooks but it can still be a massive help and avoid a lot of time wasting back and forth between yourself and the converter/designer. The same is true of any digital project ... or even non-digital project. A clear outline as part of an overall plan is crucial - for yourself but especially for anyone else who is involved in the project.
I would have always classed myself as organised, and I am.* I have spreadsheets and plans for everything but even my slightly nut-ball standards of planning and preparation weren't enough on when diving in to digital development. From now on I'm upping my game on the organisational front.
It seems good organisation is key to long term smooth running (but I kinda knew that already).
What I have learned from this process?
- Designing your own CMS (content management system) without a full appreciation of the user interface is a bit of a waste of time and money.
- Designing a website will always take longer than you originally think.
- There is no such thing as too much planning.
- No matter how eager you are to get things up and running as quickly as possible quality takes time - plan for it.
- If you can put together a clear spec that includes a style guide for any digital project.
I won't go into too much detail in relation to the CMS system but I will say that if you are developing a digital product that is meant to be used on a frequent basis by customers involve them (or at least a sample) in the process. It will ensure a much smoother ride once things get going and they will be able to identify issues that you didn't even know existed. My experience in sales and marketing has taught me many things but a key lesson has been the importance of customer communication and high quality service. You may think it's a no brainer but many people can forget that identifying your customer and ensuring you have a good relationship is key in any business.
I've not been involved in much website development (I'm not sure creating geocities sites back in the late nineties/early noughties really counts) but it is something that I've been training myself up on and been very eager to be involved in. Even if websites are becoming a bit 'last season' they are still very important tools for profile building and business (yes yes, I know it's all facebook pages, twitter accounts, LinkedIn profiles and whatnot these days). So I've been involved in helping develop a new ecommerce website and it is taking a good bit longer than I had anticipated.
The reason said website might be taking a bit longer than anticipated is because the plan was a bit rudimentary. There were outlines and I had an idea of what needed doing - I now realise time lines would have made things run a fair bit faster. That and better/faster communication from the developers.
I'd assumed the website would be pretty fast to set up because it was based on a template of another website we have. Even the developers assured me it wouldn't take more than a week (two months ago) as it turns out a direct copy of the template wasn't quite right for the new website and new design standards were implemented and there was a fair bit of trial and error. Key point - trial and error is part of the digital process.
Specs kind of come into the planning side of thing but can also be applicable to eBooks. We've slowly been building up out eBook style guide. For format it can sometimes seem redundant given that the reader has a great deal of control over this aspect of eBooks but it can still be a massive help and avoid a lot of time wasting back and forth between yourself and the converter/designer. The same is true of any digital project ... or even non-digital project. A clear outline as part of an overall plan is crucial - for yourself but especially for anyone else who is involved in the project.
I would have always classed myself as organised, and I am.* I have spreadsheets and plans for everything but even my slightly nut-ball standards of planning and preparation weren't enough on when diving in to digital development. From now on I'm upping my game on the organisational front.
It seems good organisation is key to long term smooth running (but I kinda knew that already).
Great Information Thanks for Sharing
ReplyDeleteJust fab!
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