“Making websites is a team game: let’s show team spirit, work together and collect a trophy”

The purpose of this article is to bring the understanding of client and designer closer together with the end goal of a better website and a more prosperous relationship. So I’ll break it down into two parts: Part One will provide some advice for the designer whilst Part Two will pinpoint some guidelines for the client.

The content of the ihm blog is purposefully written around core web design / development topics and principles; often written with experts in mind. The question is often asked: “Why write a blog?”…there are a multitude of reasons for this but the primary reason is to give clients a base grounding in the principles of web design / development. It may appear that Designers / Developers are the primary target audience of this blog but this really couldn’t be further from the truth. The blog is fundamentally a tool to educate clients and help give them a basic understanding of the web design process. The main reason for the design process not running smoothly is often misunderstanding…by educating clients at a base level we can help bridge the gap resulting in a smoother process and a better website.

For Clients

Make Big Decisions early on in the design / development process

Make big decisions early in the Design Process
Force big decisions to be made early in the design process. The later you leave big changes the harder they become to implement. There is nothing worse or more stupid than putting lots of time, energy and resources into a project just for a client to change their mind at the last minute! Have a clear vision of what you want from the website and this will not be a problem.

Foster innovation
Encourage your designer to innovate. By fostering innovation you will get a better website…FACT (sorry to phrase Mr. Benitez). By curbing innovation you will limit the chance of your site becoming unique and successful, so encourage your designer to be creative.

Set realistic goals, what do you want from your website….what is its purpose?

Your knowledge of the business is obviously vital to producing a productive website but your ability to respect the expertise of our designers is imperative to successful collaboration; remember design is a two way process designer and client both need each other to succeed…lets work in harmony sing from the same hymn sheet (aka this article!) and produce an amazing website.

Simplify your content, once, twice thrice…
When setting out your initial agenda try to simplify the content as much as possible. If the content is not valid or doesn’t help the user (aka marketing speak etc) it could actually have a detrimental effect on your site. If you insist on mass content however at least keep the homepage simple and use it as a gateway to more substantial content.

Content is King, Design is Queen…
On the subject of copy, it is an area which invariably doesn’t get enough attention and it is often the case that a website is pushed back from its deadline as we wait for copy from the client. It may be an old cliché but content is king…. and design is queen. The content should dictate the design, so by denying your designer content in the initial stages you are starving him / her of the key to the sites design. Also try to provide relevant content which is written in as simple a language as possible, aka keywords, short sentences. See my previous article “Site Content: How to design gold medal winning copy” for more advise on this area.

Leave that brochure well alone please
A massive no no is to take copy straight from a brochure, this is copy that is written for someone who already knows about the product / service and therefore it is irrelevant. You should be writing as if you are meeting your client for the first time and direct your user as succinctly as possible to the areas they want to arrive at.We’re all aware that some rules will have to be adhered to. To make the process straightforward specify rules which can and can’t be broken. Obviously things like corporate guidelines and other little quirks will dictate this.

Concede personal taste to the designer
If you have a great reason for changing the size of the logo, that’s fine, otherwise trust in the expertise of your designer rather than basing your decision on personal preference.

Educate your designer
Share your knowledge of the business with your designer. Education is a two way process. The more your designer understands about the business the more likely he is to provide a great solution. Ask your designer difficult questions; by pushing each other you will provide a superior solution.

For Designers

Get to know your client
During the design process explain your reasoning on the phone rather than by email. Try to explain why you have taken this course of action; if the client understands your reasoning and realises it will directly benefit them, then they are far more likely to be receptive. Please don’t give a reason that it looks funky or similar flaky responses, you need to talk in terms of business to business people….this isn’t art it is art and design.

Educate your client
Another key reason why we should educate our clients is because it is great technique to foster relationships. Education means spending time with your client discussing and debating issues as well getting to know them. Ultimately educating your client can lead to a long lasting relationship which should also enhance your reputation; Your reputation is invaluable.

Don’t be put off by the complaining client
I would rather work with Clients whom have an opinion rather than clients who have no opinion. This may seem a controversial stance but over the past year my way of thinking has changed. A client who complains allows you to get to the root of the problem and also is someone who is prepared to talk directly to you rather than go behind your back and seek other opinions. Design by committee equals compromise. Compromise equals death of design. One more thing don’t take criticism personally instead see if there is a valid point within that criticism and use it to improve the design.

Contextualise: prepare the ground rather than just handing over the design to the client and simply saying “what do you think?” (You will sound simple!). Put the design in context and explain the rationale behind your actions.

Conclusion
I guess if you’ve got to this stage then we’ve taken the first step in bridging the gap of understanding between designer / developer and the client. I think basically I’ll use this as the beginnings of my client guidelines and once I’ve received more feedback I’ll produce a second iteration.…so please just drop us a line at chris@ihm.co.uk if you think I’ve missed anything or would like to add additional points. Lets be as a team…no quitting at halftime…spread the word.

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