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Recommended Resources
· United State Patent Office (http://www.uspto.gov) Resources, forms and information for inventors and business owners
· Legal Zoom (http://www.legalzoom.com) Created by top attorneys, LegalZoom helps you create reliable legal documents from your home or office.
· Microsoft Project (http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX010857951033.aspx) Project Management software that allows you to set up projects quickly, keep project teams aligned, and efficiently track and analyze projects.
· Brand Week (http://www.brandweek.com) Leading source of news and information in the U.S. marketing and branding industry
· Advertising Age (http://www.adage.com) The most authoritative and complete source of information for advertising, marketing and media professionals.
· Create Magazine (http://www.createmagazine.com) Provides creative professionals with an insider's perspective on the people, news, trends and events that influence the local advertising and creative production industries
· Metropolis (http://www.metropolismag.com) Examines contemporary life through design: architecture, interior design, product design, graphic design, crafts, planning, and preservation
· Popular Science (http://www.popularscience.com) The "what's new" magazine of science and technology; covers energy, new products for the home, work and leisure, and provides blueprints for projects and test reports on new cars, electronics and cameras
PROJECT ADVICE FOR CLIENTS:
Typical Pitfalls
While each project presents a unique set of variables, there are consistent patterns to the flow of projects and productions. SR1 Consulting deploys proprietary development and ideation processes, checklists and tools to define the work to be performed and each participant’s role as precisely as possible. But while this essential prep work is helpful, many projects often go beyond simple work-for-hire. Creative give-and-take is to be expected, and potential pitfalls await the unguided Client at every turn in the road. Here are a few tips to make your path to success as smooth as possible.
1. Loss of Perspective
The people closest to a project often have the least perspective on the quality of the work. It is important to stop and test the "look and feel" of your project at several intervals in the development and production process. Does the project fulfill its purpose? Is it true to its concept? Is it aesthetic? Is it efficient and user-friendly? Unaffiliated testers can also help by being candidly objective about your project.
Our Clients at times will request changes toward the end of a project, simply because they are wary of seeing the same concept throughout the development process. These types of changes tend to be unnecessary and costly. Remember to check in with your project manager on a regular basis. Remind your team and yourself of the project's goals and the thought process behind its “look and feel”, and share the constructive feedback obtained from objective critics.
2. Content Dribbling
Before setting a project in motion, it is critical that you invest time in building a large collection of content. We encourage you to provide SR1 Consulting with the best and largest amount of content possible. Projects sometimes undergo an unexpected creative shift and it is essential for us to have access to a maximum quantity of content and background information to build upon. Additionally, projects lacking substantial content will not deliver the strongest impact - for example, a beautiful interface with little content behind it will leave the user disappointed.
In actuality, miscellaneous pieces of content always make their appearance near the end of the development process, and we can often work these in. But there comes of point in the process where, because of deadlines and requirements, additional items cannot be included. Ask SR1 Consulting to explain and clarify the content sharing process for you. Remember to let us know exactly when and in what format to expect content.
3. Scope Creep
Loss of perspective and content dribbling can both lead to the next pitfall: scope creep. Scope creep is an industry term for the dilemma that occurs when a Client requests items that were not in the original scope of work. Every project gets modified for artistic reasons as it progresses. Our experience is that the end product may change 30 percent from the original scope. "Change" is the key word, not "grow".
Changes past deadlines may add considerable expense; for example, additional features that were never discussed or changes to previously approved work. When agreeing on a scope with our Clients, we collaborate to define boundaries. We provide a list of deliverables and set expectations, then establish sign-off stages as the work progresses. Every project tends to creep, so it helps productivity to allow limited room for changes.
4. Design By Committee
It is quite a challenge to get a large group of people to agree on an artistic or creative direction for a project. SR1 Consulting suggests that you assign a small group of less than four people commissioned to sign off on the "look and feel" of your project. A larger group can participate in the content design phase. We also request that you assign one person to be the representative from your organization and our Point of Contact (POC). This greatly simplifies communications.
5. Missing Deadlines
At the start of the project, SR1 Consulting will coordinate with you to determine the deadlines for such milestones as content gathering, prototype versions and final version. We will slot each part of the project for the time period needed to finish the work. It is important to set realistic deadlines, and that both parties intend to meet them.
While you may be diligent about meeting deadlines, we sometimes find that a Client slows completion by taking too long to provide content or an approval. Slowing down the process throws off the slotting sequence, and the job is delayed. As a general rule: if a milestone is delayed by one week at the pre-production stage of a project, the resulting delay will be at least two weeks at the end of the production stage.
Efficiency is foremost in our process and we will remind you of milestones as they approach. Remember that any delays in the timeline will have consequences for the project.
Getting Started
Below is an excerpt of a questionnaire we have created to assist you in beginning a project with SR1 Consulting. The purpose of the questions is to assist you in defining your business, as well as the final product or project, and what it should accomplish.
Acquire input from any and all decision makers in completing the information here. The more details you provide, the more SR1 Consulting can help you, and the less misunderstandings will occur.
Questionnaire
1. When would you be ready to review a proposal?
2. When would you be ready to make a decision on a proposal?
3. What would you expect as an approximate budget?
4. When would you expect to see the finished product in operation?
5. Who is the final approval authority in your group, by name?
6. Who is the project point of contact person?
7. Tell us about your position with the company?
8. How would you describe your organization to a new acquaintance or employee?
9. What makes your organization unique in your industry?
10. What does your organization do best?
11. What are some of the biggest challenges your organization has faced?
12. What are some of the biggest successes your organization has enjoyed?
13. What are the future business goals for your organization?
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