I write for a monthly real estate newsletter on topics relevant to small real estate agencies. My blog isn’t targeted at SME web development, though I thought I would repurpose my articles in any event.
No matter the size or the purpose, every website needs a business case, and then a plan. Even if the website has only one function – say signing users to a newsletter – there must exist a commercial case for the development of the website, and a plan for achieving it.
And yet even today, so many businesses develop their websites without any case or plan, the result being the thousands and thousands of websites lying throughout the Internet achieving effectively nothing for their owners. Quite simply and quite literally, any website developed without a business case and plan is a total waste of money; there no longer exists any argument for having a website for website’s sake.
Developing the business case need not be time-consuming nor complex, though it should be logical, the test being whether you would use or buy from the website. All too often, businesses develop ideas that sound too-good-to-be-true in theory, and that’s because they are.
The case needs to be commercial and this doesn’t mean selling online. It could be as simple as receiving online leads. Whatever the case, the website needs to exist for a reason and be able to achieve it. There must be a real, tangible benefit from the website to the business.
Once the case is developed, the plan aligns the interests of the business and the web developer. It allows the business to assess all development and ideas against the business case and ensure that what is developed is what is required to achieve the business case and business goals.
Without a plan, there exists the very real tendency – and likelihood – that website development will be undertaken that does not work towards the business case (and website goal); the tighter and more focused the development, the better the result will be and the less the cost of the website. It’s much the same as planning a house or a holiday.
Web development is a science, not an art. With the advent of powerful search engines, better technologies and broadband, websites can be perfectly aligned to achieve great results and outcomes for their owners.
Though it starts with a business case and plan.