It's not just about "getting on the web" anymore. Today, businesses are devoting their online budgets to quality improvement. Finding ways to more effectively reach their audiences. Moving away from outdated approaches and adopting new ones without creating similar problems for the future. Taking control of content and data in ways that will simplify management and allow for controlled expansion. Reducing dependency on third-party services and licensed technologies. And frankly, correcting mistakes of the past.
Redesign is only one small part of the overall process of re-engineering your approach to online communications. Without the right foundation, it's like a new coat of paint, and soon enough the cracks will start to show again.
Digital Wave works with clients seeking to protect their investment in web development. Our three-point analytical process addresses the following aspects of your initiative, which we consider to be critical to successful re-engineering:
- Presentation of content
- Application of technologies
- Management & administration
All of these factors are considered with respect to your specific objectives, audiences, capabilities, and vision. Our process is based on an assessment of your content and infrastructure, detailed discovery addressing points of view ranging from internal marketing and IT to end users and investors, evaluation of application solutions, application of Digital Wave Recommended Practices, and candid discussion of how such practices apply to your particular business and your particular content.
We know how to uncover the problems, identify the opportunities, and put together a plan to address them, while playing to your strengths and working with sensitivity to your limitations. We can oversee every aspect of the analytical process, and deliver a tangible plan for redevelopment, designed to protect your investment before you spend a penny on new technology or new designs.
End User Discovery
Your site's quality is measured by how it is accepted and appreciated by end users. In addition to the user discovery measures built into our design and development process, Digital Wave offers comprehensive end user discovery services to help validate and guide your redevelopment process.
Subjective discovery can range from focus group studies to one-on-one interviews with representative users. These studies help to ascertain the needs, habits, preferences and expectations that drive the end user browsing experience, not only at your site but with competitive sites and in their general use of the World Wide Web.
Focus groups can be the quickest and most economical way to gain insight into these factors within the course of a redevelopment project.
One-on-one interviews remove the group influence and give greater freedom for expansion on each individual's unique contributions. A variety of modeling and sorting exercises are employed for validation and comparison discovery.
Because people don't always do what they say, objective discovery is a critical part of the discovery process. Digital Wave provides comprehensive clinical testing services, using a series of task-based scenarios to identify problem areas and evaluate opportunities for improvement. This testing can be based on your own site, but can also be used to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of model sites, including those of your competitors.
Internal Discovery
In the process of optimizing a site for end users, it is too often overlooked that your success also depends on internal acceptance. Administrators and content contributors must be able to maintain and evolve the content without contradicting the new protocol you have established. Key stakeholders, from associates to executives, must see that their objectives are being addressed and that their vision for the company is being upheld.
Digital Wave emphasizes internal discovery, mainly in the form of interviews with key stakeholders, site administrators and content contributors.
Analytical Services
Digital Wave's discovery services are complemented and supported by a variety of analytical services, including...
- Assessment of current content, hosting and infrastructure as they pertain to your immediate and future objectives
- Client internal discovery and strategic planning to gain a more thorough understanding of your markets, audiences, competitive positioning, and applicable marketing initiatives
- Heuristic review of your current initiatives, employing the multi-disciplined perspective of our usability specialists to evaluate opportunities for improvement in structure, presentation of content, interface design and functionality
- Search engine optimization assessment and ongoing support to improve your search results placement according to the factors that drive today's search engines
- Content management evaluation to help you determine the size and scope of content management according to your staff and your business processes, not on someone else's pre-packaged, licensed solution
Reporting
All Digital Wave discovery services culminate in an action-oriented approach to reporting. Key discoveries are clearly identified and accompanied by specific recommendations for improvements. These key findings and recommendations are reported in plain English presentations to your invited stakeholders, and influence every subsequent stage in the development process.