One of the reasons I love being in business for myself is that sometimes I get to have a little fun and push the boundaries a bit. Sometimes I do that just for the sake of doing it, and sometimes I actually have a purpose.

About 15 years ago I was having an absolute blast living in Florida and accomplishing absolutely nothing with my life, an adventure I recommend everyone in their twenties has in their own way before they get real about life. It’s great to look back and remember so many experiences, both good and bad.

About a mile from my apartment was a stretch of road loaded with everything from nightclubs, gyms, and fast food restaurants to every variation of a Comfort Inn that you can imagine. This was the road you drove on every day if you lived anywhere in the vicinity because it connected you to the major routes both into and out of Tampa. In other words, this road was seriously travelled.

One day after I first got into town, I was driving on this road with my buddy when I saw a line of cars pulled over to the shoulder of the road and a huge crowd of people gathering towards the first car. As we drove past I realized what the commotion was about: standing on the side of the road next to a hot dog cart was an absolutely gorgeous blond in a red bikini and high heels.

“What the hell is that all about?” I asked my friend. He laughed and said, “Oh, that’s Haley, she’s a hot dog girl.” He then explained what, in fact, a “hot dog standing on the side of the road next to a hot dog cart was an absolutely gorgeous blond in a red bikini and high heels.girl” was. A hot dog girl was a brilliant marketing ploy on a stretch of road where every possible fast food brand around fought for recognition with neon signs 50 feet off the ground. But there’s smoking hot Haley, 5’8” in heels, with a line of hungry guys (and a few girls, too) wrapped around her little cart buying hot dogs and sodas as fast as she could serve them up. Totally brilliant! I consider myself a fairly good salesperson, but there is no way I could have created that kind of a stir!

That scene, “hot girls in bikinis selling hot dogs”, played out all day every day the whole time I lived there. It really made an impression on me, because how much more attention-getting can you get than that?! Not very much, I would say. So like I do with most things I find fascinating, I filed it away and figured it might be something I could draw on in the future. And I was right.

We have all been in a situation where we were vying for someone’s attention, either for personal or business reasons. Anyone that has ever submitted a resume knows the odds of your pdf titled “myname-resume.pdf” standing out from countless other resumes are soul crushingly slim when kept within the boundaries of proper business etiquette. So one day I was sending an email to a potential client who hadn’t returned my calls or previous attempts to contact him, and I thought to myself, “Hmm…what would Haley the hot dog girl do?”

What happened next could have been one of the smartest or dumbest moves I could have made. I made one very important tweak to that perfectly crafted email I was preparing to send. I changed the subject line to “Hot girls in bikinis selling hot dogs!”

Now anyone who knows me would probably say I could get away with that…I believe in a good laugh in business as much as in my personal life. The problem was that this person didn’t know me. But I figured I hadn’t heard from him up to this point, so if I turned him off with this pretty brazen move I really hadn’t lost that much. Guess what? Not 20 minutes after I hit “send” the client called, laughing hysterically and agreeing to engage me for the project.

I firmly believe that in the field of web design and development, it’s safe to assume that most of my competitors are as good as, if not better, than we are, at leastI wanted to put something together that would almost burn into the viewer’s retinas not only with color and contrast, but with subject matter as well. in theory. But if you pull up a cross section of their websites, most sites don’t really have anything that makes them stand out. They may be fantastic standing alone, but when shuffled in a series of other sites from other firms, they all share the same general approach. digital reaction’s sites have historically been in that same boat, but not in 2012…

I wanted to put something together that would almost burn into the viewer’s retinas not only with color and contrast, but with subject matter as well. When I realized I wanted our own version of “Hot girls in bikinis selling hot dogs!”, I remembered the freaky redhead chick with a “d” tat on her arm. This was a piece of artwork I did months ago for an unrelated internal project that never got off the ground, but I always knew it would come in handy. It wasn’t just the sex factor I was going for (although she is a hottie), but more the attitude, the color, and the contrast. Of course, I got our “d” on her arm thanks to some old school Photoshop skills…

Obviously the more conservative folks out there could potentially take exception to my attention-grabbing method, but I assure you I mean no disrespect. It’s no different than Go Daddy using Danika Patrick and Jillian Michaels. They arguably all but cemented the Go Daddy brand into the minds of millions of would-be customers who wouldn’t have retained a second of their campaign if it were based on a guy standing in the middle of a server farm in a lab coat, which is really what their industry is about.

So now when a potential client is comparing us to the competition, not only do we stand out, but we also gain a competitive advantage because we have such a memorable visual in place. In fact, we have already been referred to as “the guys with that wild redhead on their site.” To that I say, “Mission accomplished!”

Thanks Haley, wherever you are–your hot dogs were terrible and your soda was warm, but your marketing presence was spectacular!

Cheers!

-rob

In this day and age, everyone in the creative industry knows that our own web presence is just as important as any other aspect of our business. Typically when I’m finishing the last 10% of a new site, I am obsessing, adjusting, polishing, getting feedback from the team, and making adjustments based on that feedback. But this time, I had nothing!Potential clients typically form their first impression of us by looking at our site.  They rightfully have really high expectations–after all, we are the creatives, right? As a result, those of us in the field usually give our sites a massive overhaul, if not a complete rebuild, about every year to year and a half. It’s actually kind of a pain–who has a chance to stop and allocate the time, resources, money, and energy to what is always a big undertaking? Nonetheless, the best in the business make the time and, as a result, have a competitive edge.

So…around late July 2011 my internal calendar slapped me with the yearly “time to redo the site” reminder and it was time to get things swinging.

Now the problem this year was that I really loved the site we launched last year. It had a lot of characteristics and style that proved to be very successful, so I wanted to keep as much of it as I could while still evolving it forward in the areas I felt were lacking.

If you read last year‘s post “Why digital reaction is down with theme based web design (sometimes)…” then you know that I love to base our own site on a “theme”, an existing framework designed by some of the very best developers in the field. This lets us take a huge chunk of the development cycle out of our internal timelines while still allowing us tons of flexibility from a design and content perspective.  That is how we make it our own, and that is something we can’t buy elsewhere.

So away we go–I’m working nights and weekends over the past several months, until it finally gets to the point where it’s within the 90% completion range.   This is usually about the time we are all really excited, but…this time, not so much…

Designers are a weird bunch–if we don’t keep ourselves in check we can get really stuck in cyclical patterns about the tiniest details. Typically when I’m finishing the last 10% of a new site, I am obsessing, adjusting, polishing, getting feedback from the team, and making adjustments based on that feedback. But this time, I had nothing! I looked at the site, and while it was good, it just didn’t move me. I don’t know what it was or what it wasn’t, I just knew I had no connection to it whatsoever and no amount of polish would change that. This was about early January, so I decided put it aside for a while and see what I thought when I came back to it. Then I’d address the intangibles, launch it, and finally get on with things…

But instead…

I stepped away from it, took a break, and then went back to see what I thought.   And what I thought was “this totally sucks”.  Our clients often hear me say that most of the time it is easier to start something over right than try to fix all the things that are wrong.  So I did what any other self-respecting designer would do–I dragged the whole damn thing to the trash!

I immediately began researching new developers, found the perfect theme to use as my base (hats off to Dynamix for building a hell of a framework) and away I went…again.  What previously took me almost six months to get to the point that I threw away the whole thing now went from concept to completion to live in just under two weeks! Mind you, it was a two-week bender for sure, but that’s the beauty of this whole thing–when something feels right you can just hop on a wave and ride it out and it’s a blast!

So I did what any other self-respecting designer would do–I dragged the whole damn thing to the trash!This might sound absolutely insane to some people, but to us it’s just a part of the process. It’s how we keep ourselves sharp, not only for us, but for our clients and partners as well. It’s far from the first time we’ve taken such extreme measures and it won’t be the last. Sometimes you have to build the wrong thing to know what’s right, which is why I dragged those six months of progress into the trash without a second’s hesitation.  Just like I knew so many times in the past, I knew the answer was on the other side of the trashcan and I couldn’t wait to discover what it was!

We hope you like what we came up with for 2012, and if you want your web presence handled by a team that literally stops at nothing to make sure every project is the best it can be, drop us a quick note and let’s chat.

And yeah, the freaky redhead chick with “d” tat was all me.  Stay tuned, because that’s the subject of a whole other post…

Cheers!

-rob

It was really interesting to actually sit down and think about this objectively, since the point wasn’t to purposely list self-serving questions.  It was a fun exercise, so we figured we would share it with the rest of the class.  Enjoy!

1. Will you own the site if you part ways with your web firm? This is not always a given, surprisingly.

2. Are sites built on a Content Management System (CMS), which allows users to update content without a webmaster? WordPress, the most widely adopted CMS platform, is extremely user-friendly. Obscure CMS platforms make it difficult to find a web developer to support your site.

3. How long has the firm been in business? Being a young company isn’t bad, but lack of web experience can lead to catastrophic results, so find out the history of the principals.

4. Does the firm have an up-to-date client list and online portfolio? Don’t let them tell you they are “too busy” to keep their own site current…that’s never a good sign.

5. What is their typical development turnaround time? Depending on the level of engagement, 45 days is a reasonable expectation for a basic CMS web site.

6. Do they offer support after the site is developed? If so, find out hourly rates for updates and/or enhancements.

7. How do they manage projects? A quality web development shop has a project management system, but the devil is in how they manage the details.

8. Do they arrange for hosting or do they expect you to handle it? Make sure you will get a detailed Admin document to access your hosting plan. Most small business sites perform adequately on a basic Linux plan, which starts at $5.00 per month for a basic plan and increases as necessary.

9. Will the web site company handle the roles of both designer AND developer? You don’t want a beautiful site that looks broken on an IPhone.

10. Do they use “off-shore” development services and, if so, why? If it’s strictly for cost savings, choose a different firm. If it’s because they have long-term relationship with their developers, that’s understandable. A great developer who makes sites work across all browsers and all platforms regardless of the level of customization is hard to find.

11. Can they provide you with strategic direction on how to best position your business on the web? An effective web presence is more than just throwing up a web site. Find out other areas of expertise they may have.

12. Do they have references you can talk to that can provide insight about working with their staff? Creating an effective web presence can be intimidating enough without dealing with tech snobbery or firms who are not easily accessible by phone or email before, during, or after a project. A good firm is easy to work with, organized, and responsive to your needs…sometimes even downright fun. Always call references.

Since the winter of 2008, Eat Cake! and Hilary have been fairly common topics of conversation here at digital reaction, because she is a perfect client and a fantastic friend.  People should know that Hilary not only makes phenomenal cakes, she also has mind-bending business sense. She personifies commitment, stamina, and raw determination. In the words of Hank Davis,  “Everything she does, she does at a Ninja level.” If I could hand pick a dream team, she would be one of my very first picks.

From the beginning of our business relationship, Eat Cake! rocked and Hilary rocked.  Plus she had this great logo (easily Liss Larsen’s best work in my opinion) with cool little stylistic cues we could build from. The site’s overall simple look was by design, because one of the great things about working with Hilary is that she does not get lazy with the details. No different than when she decorates a cake–details matter and there is very little guesswork. I love that because it gives us the opportunity to deliver the complete vision.

Fast-forward through a cool life event or two (huge shout out to Charlie Mahar) and several anniversary cakes (my wife and I have a standing order with Eat Cake! until… forever).  Then Hilary opens the incredible Prince Place cake studio and starts killing it instantly.

We actually laughed about the cupcake thing a bit because we had talked about it a couple times conceptually, so it was no surprise she went there and it was even less a surprise how incredibly successful they have been. I knew she needed her version of our “d-page” (our inexpensive basic template-based site) as an affordable way to connect with people–and what better way to connect than with THE BEST cupcake they would likely ever eat. She loved the idea from the start and we still laugh about the day at the Roasters that we first talked about it.

Because the developers I work with are just monsters (HUMONGOUS shout out to Forward, Inc.) the ability to build the new site however we wanted already existed. I’ll talk about working with Otto, Ian, and their insane wrecking crew of developers in another post because trust me, these guys are the real deal …

So when the time came to prepare eatcakeonline.com for the inevitable flood of traffic I knew it would get from the show, I knew we were going to build something great.  I actually remember Hilary saying at one point, “I like being at the cutting edge of the internet; I’m mad that we aren’t right now”, which totally set the tone for exactly what kind of site we would build.

The new Eat Cake! site would need some really cool things that we thought were really important:

• Big on Pictures: one of the biggest complaints about the old site was the number of pictures so we customized a gallery that is super easy to use and equally as easy to update and manage.
• Ease of Use: Hilary wanted some very focused areas of customer interaction and insisted that they be easy to use for everyone.
• Style: We already had great colors and a fantastic logo, plus one or two other design cues (upside-down scallops were a great nod) we could use with the new site in a similar but evolved way.
• Blog:  This was the big thing for me initially, “Hilary you have to have a blog!” She was a bit reluctant (time-management concerns) but gave me the green light to build her an awesome blog.

We based the blog off of the digital reaction.net blog, which is a slightly modified blog from the inFocus theme (nearly perfect in my opinion) so we didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. Hilary was mainly looking forward to interacting with her customers and friends in an open and loose forum. So far it looks like a hit, with a few good posts and an absolutely adorable comment by an 8-year-old girl. The initial few posts confirmed that the blog was going to be huge, just as I suspected all along.hi. i am amanda and i am 8. i just watched my favorite show cupcake wars and you were on it so i asked my mom to find you. i thought you did the best and i hope my mom brings me to your store so i can see you. you did awesome. amanda

We are still smoothing out a few bumps and re-thinking a few technical choices, but the site in general is performing great and getting a TON of traffic and great feedback all around.

So what about the future? I love that question because we are already in discussions with Hilary about integrating the site with some really powerful marketing automation tools that are super interesting and should provide impressive results. We had some pretty crazy secrets under the hood for a few months leading up to all this and we couldn’t be happier for Hilary and Eat Cake!.  It’s awesome to be this close to something so cool.

So there you have it–my version of a case study. As for the thoughts and ideas that came to mind when thinking back on a few years of working with someone and being able to share in her success?  Cool doesn’t quite describe it…

Client focus is where we are at our best and having great clients like Eat Cake! kicks it into the stratosphere. Their success is our success, and we love to be able to thrive off of that kind of synergy.

To see the fruits of our labor, visit eatcakeonline.com, check out Hilary and Aubree kicking major butt on Cupcake Wars and of course make a trip to the Prince Place cake studio for what I guarantee will be THE BEST cupcake you ever ate…

digital reaction…now accepting great clients!

Cheers!

-rob

Agreement # 1 – We both came to the agreement that we wanted to define customer experience as just that: everything a customer experiences while dealing with a specific company.

Agreement # 2 – We agreed we wanted to define customer service as all of the human-to-human interaction between customers and the representatives of the company they are dealing with.

Agreement # 3 – We agreed customer service and customer experience are two very different things.  Customer service is a component of overall customer experience just like products, locations, technology, etc.

Agreement # 4 – We agreed we consider the “human-to-human” customer service components to be incredibly important and controllable elements of the customer experience.

Agreement # 5 – Last but not least, we agreed that too many people seem to have forgotten about good old-fashioned human-to-human customer service.  Nowadays, people seem to be so very excited about doing everything electronically and, unfortunately, many of the core, personalized, high-touch business and customer service skills and practices seem to be falling by the wayside.

This last conclusion is troubling!  As the Dalai Lama says: “social interaction between human beings is the essence of our existence.”  Last time I checked, saying something is the “essence of human existence” means it is probably pretty important.  He did not say email is the essence of human existence, he did not say product quality is the essence of human existence, he did not say best price is the essence of human existence.  He said: “social interaction between human beings is the essence of human existence.”  Pretty powerful stuff I think.  Unfortunately, too many executives do not see how this plugs in to their business model.  The best ones not only see how it fits in, they embrace it and are passionate about it.

We are not suggesting product, price, technology, facilities, etc. are not important components of the customer experience.  Of course they are!  They are all incredibly important!  We are suggesting you make sure you maintain a strong human component to your business.  People are sometimes loyal to products, but most of the time they are loyal to people and they will drive past two stores to get to a third to see people they like dealing with and they like doing business with.

Here is how we define the key components of a great human-to-human customer service interaction:

We use the term G.E.A.R.S. when we talk about the key phases of great customer service:

Greet – The first step in any great interaction is the first impression.  The greeting considers everything from the way you are dressed, your body language, facial expression, handshake, smile, and first words.  There is something to be said for making the first few seconds warm, comfortable, and welcoming.  There is also something to be said for demonstrating to the customer that you are actually genuinely interested in helping them out.

Engage – Once the greetings are done and you have made the person feel welcome it is time to engage them in a deeper conversation.  Engaging somebody has a lot to do with asking questions and effective active listening.  As a general rule a great conversation is typically the result of great questions and great listening skills.  This is the phase where the CSR ventures to learn as much possible about what the customer need is.  They have to ask base questions and in many cases continue to dig deeper to fully understand the customer’s needs.  In this phase they should also be reading body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice. At the same time they should be in full control of their own as they listen to the customer explain their need or situation.

Advise – Ahh!  Here it is!  The holy grail of customer service excellence.  Being able to deliver tailored advice that works backward from the information shared in the engage phase is the pinnacle of high-value customer service.  Being able to suggest specific products and services and, in some cases, suggest a lower cost alternative is what this model is all about.  Believe it or not, I might want to be talked out of buying that blue shirt when you think the green one looks better on me.  It is sincere advice and not “sales hook” advice that I want.

Resolve – In this stage we help the customer resolve to move forward.  We answer any questions they might have, deal with objections and, if there are any terms to negotiate, we do that as well.  Finally, we resolve their problem and make a decision on the right solution for them.  The sale is made and I went with the green shirt because the CSR told me it matched my eyes and the colors of the season.

Service – Once the the person we are dealing with becomes a customer now it is up to us to make them a repeat customer who is likely to recommend our company to others.  We do this by doing all of the little things well.  We need to be responsive, proactive, easy to work with, energetic, and very knowledgeable.  We also need to start the G.E.A.R.S process all over again the next time they come in.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could get everybody to do this during every business interaction?

Wouldn’t it be great if these were the rules for every form of customer interaction?  Maybe our electronic presence should be a bit more human as well.  Maybe our web sites should employ the G.E.A.R.S approach.  Why shouldn’t a site greet, engage, advise, resolve and service?

Come to think of it maybe they can.

So the question is this:  What are the characteristics of a great (flowing, natural, successful) customer service interaction?

The answer is this:  The best customer service interactions are CRISP!

First of all, let’s quickly look at the definition of the word “crisp” before we move on to the actual components of the acronym CRISP.

As defined by my trusted online dictionary, the word “crisp” means a way of speaking, interacting or writing briefly, decisively and concisely, without hesitation and/or unnecessary detail. I think that is a pretty accurate description of how I would like my customer service interactions to flow.

Now let’s look at the acronym CRISP because I think you will all agree that these are exactly the types of interactions you would like to have but, too often, do not participate in:

The C in CRISP = Compassion – Feeling or showing concern or sympathy for others.

The R in CRISP = Rewarding – Providing satisfaction; gratifying.

The I in CRISP = Interactive – Two or more people influencing and having an effect on each other.

The S in CRISP = Simple – Easily understood and done with limited to no difficulty.

The P in CRISP = Personalized – Interact in such a way as to design or customize to meet a person’s individual requirements, needs or preferences.

Sometimes I am still amazed by the power of the average dictionary. A big shout out to Dr. Samuel Johnson for giving the English language it’s first really kick-ass dictionary. If more people read to truly understand the contents of the average dictionary we would have a much better world to live in.

This acronym above clearly defines for me exactly what I am looking for in most interactions with customer service professionals. And I really want to emphasize the personalization piece. We have to allow our interactions with customers to flow and take on a shape, texture and life of their own. People are different and unique and we want to be treated as such. We want to be heard by somebody who will react to us and not to the next box in their customer interaction flow chart! We want our interactions with a CSR to be CRISP! Compassionate, Rewarding, Interactive, Simple and Personalized.

If your team cannot move away from “strict adherence” to rigid and consistent scripting for every call you are going to have a tough time competing with those companies who have the ability to conduct unique, customized, CRISP conversations.

Are you a CRISP conversationalist or are you a robotic script reader? Where do you rank on the CRISP Olympic Scale (1 to 10)? How CRISP are your leadership conversations and how CRISP are your CSR teams conversations with customers? Move these scores as close to a 10 as possible and you will have very loyal customers!

Have a great weekend everybody.

Hank!

We realize that a solid hosting plan is the backbone of any great website, so digital reaction total web solutions has launched digitalreactionhosting.com, our all-new hosting service portal.

This comprehensive site addresses all of your hosting needs, including the following products and services:

• hosting packages for every need
• full-service domain registration
• simple-to-use SEO tools
• email plans
• Email Marketing
• 24×7 tech support

So, who better to do that than digital reaction total web solutions?

We invite you to visit the new site, see what we have to offer, and let us know what you think.

We already put that big orange “d” on there so we know it better be good…

Cheers!

-rob

A: Because Ferrari realizes that Bridgestone makes the best tires, so they use Bridgestone tires to make their Ferrari a better Ferrari.

Q: Why do countless top-notch game developers license the Unreal Engine from Epic Games?

A: Because it’s the best game engine out there, so People Can Fly used the Unreal Engine for their forthcoming blockbuster video game “Bulletstorm”.

Q: Why did digital reaction start offering ThemeForest’s templates sites in addition to our custom sites?

A: Because ThemeForest has some of the best-developed themes and developers on the planet, so our theme-based sites rock.

Those of you in the design industry are likely aware of the ongoing debates and forum riots regarding the use of themes in the design field.  For those new to the concept, a theme is a pre-built website available for purchase and then modified by developers to better reflect individual project needs.  One side of the argument has purists who are against them and the other side has designers who support them.

We actually understand both arguments, but we realize that sometimes the benefits are just too strong to ignore.  So as we strive to remain competitive and provide our clients with the latest and best web offerings available, it’s impossible for us to dismiss this growing trend.

Now let me just get this out of the way…digitalreaction.net is actually a heavily- customized THEME!

“What?!  A designer using a theme for his own site? What’s up with that?!”

Allow me to explain:

As a web designer/developer, one of the single most important things we do for our business is ensure that we have a STRONG website–visually compelling, technically sound, and showcasing the latest and greatest technologies–so our clients can get a feel for what we are all about.

However, this just so happens to be the most EXPENSIVE thing we can possibly do. Allocating our time and resources to re-imaging our own website takes us away from working on revenue-generating projects for our clients. In other words, our capacity to work with our clients during internal development cycles is drastically reduced.

And…we are absolutely brutal on ourselves.  When designers/developers work on their own stuff it’s incredibly painful and time consuming—talk about setting the bar high and endlessly obsessing over minutiae!  The project becomes the quintessential moving target and always winds up taking months longer than originally intended, which becomes very expensive for us and causes delays for our clients.

Remember, Ferrari doesn’t make their own tires, they buy them from Bridgestone, the company that actually does make the best tires!
Fortunately, for developers like us who use WordPress, some amazing templates created by some of the best in the business are available.  There are themes out there that are freakin’ spectacular, plain and simple. I challenge any design professional to walk through ThemeForest.net and tell me that some of these guys aren’t at the top of their game.  I’m talking top-notch designs with amazing features and new technology sets perfectly built in, but without the months of internal resources it would take us to literally reinvent that wheel—which, in my opinion, is a poor use of our time.  Remember, Ferrari doesn’t make their own tires, they buy them from Bridgestone, the company that actually does make the best tires!

“But what about the customization?”

Well, that’s the best part. By the time we finished writing the content, designing the individual design elements, and customizing the CSS, Jquery, and other components to better reflect the digital reaction brand, we still had invested more than 5 weeks internal time with our principal team. If we did all of that from scratch, we would have spent the better part of 3 months just to get our new site off the ground, cutting our client projects by two-thirds!

As of November 2010, we have been working theme customization into our offerings and are just getting ready to launch our first round of client projects. For a fraction of the cost of our straight-up custom work, you can have a strong, CMS-driven website that will look super professional while meeting most of your small-business needs.  The theme we are presently leveraging is called Industry, a fantastic, flexible, and powerful theme that’s easily customized to reflect most business types.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some drawbacks and limitations–most notably the layout and overall structure, more generic design elements, and other items that benefit more custom sites. However, that doesn’t mean you don’t end up with a great site; in fact, our most recent projects are pretty impressive and surpass most, if not all, offerings at the same price point.

The bottom line is this—in today’s day and age, a polished and professional web presence is an absolute necessity for all businesses, no matter how large or small. We recognize this, so we have always done our best to offer entry-level solutions for our clients working with smaller budgets–without them looking like small-budget projects.

So although theme-based sites may not be right for every project, they are certainly a compelling choice for a lot of small businesses.  And if a theme is good enough for our own site, it’s possible that it could be right for yours. Sure, there will be some limitations and some businesses with the same theme, but the internet is a big place. How else could you get all the benefits of a content-managed, WordPress-driven site, designed by some of the top industry professionals, and implemented and customized by yours truly?

Cheers!

-rob

*Image courtesy of EGMCARTECH

This is written from a designer/developer perspective, but you can substitute your profession and related tasks.

Some of these ideas might be a variation of what you do already, but you might get some new ideas, so here you go:

1. Get the “inbox” down to 30 messages
   This one is huge for me.  Although “30” seems to be an arbitrary number, it actually has an interesting story of form following function. My main development rig (a 24” souped-up iMac) displays exactly 30 emails while leaving an equal amount of room underneath for a preview pane.   I never want to have more emails in my inbox than can fit in my window without scrolling. That way I can always see exactly what’s going on and nothing gets lost. It just so happens that 30 is a very manageable number for me, so it works.  Bottom line is that the first thing I do when the smoke clears is clean out the inbox to prepare for the next barrage from the new projects.
2. Clean up my desktop
   This is another big one, because during every project I accumulate all sorts of files, images, documents, design iterations, and everything else you can imagine.  Everything just keeps piling up, but eventually each item needs to be either kept or tossed.  I take a few minutes to review each file because an idea that wasn’t necessarily right for one project might be a great source of inspiration for a future project. I like to keep my “ideas and resources” folder stocked with pieces that once wound up on the cutting-room floor.  As an interesting note, I would say that 7 out of 10 projects are influenced in some way, shape, or form by the contents of this folder!
3. Update your portfolio
   This is funny because although it’s a no-brainer, it tends to fall by the wayside as soon as the action picks up.  Our portfolio, obviously a key element in our field, should accurately represent work we have done not only in the past, but also what we have done recently!  For most industries, a general rule of thumb is an extensive revamp every three years. If you’re a design and development professional, you need a new design every year and a half tops before you start to look like you’re no longer relevant…
   Last year we began developing projects heavily around WordPress, but our portfolio didn’t actually reflect any of those projects.   When we discussed this new direction with current or potential clients and partners, we couldn’t even direct them to our site for examples. Even more ridiculous, our own site was still built using our former approach, which was totally inexcusable. So don’t be a cobbler with a hole in your shoe–get your latest work up there.   And if your site is showing its age, now is the time to start those napkin sketches for its successor. For most industries, a general rule of thumb is an extensive revamp every three years.  If you’re a design and development professional, you need a new design every year and a half tops before you start to look like you’re no longer relevant…
4. Work on your processes and paperwork
   This might be the most important task you can assign yourself during downtime. The business world in general is constantly evolving and morphing. Client expectations, development trends, pricing models, and everything in between probably evolved considerably since the last time you looked, so you really need to take notice. We’ve found that one of our biggest areas for improvement is our documentation. It’s boring, it’s tedious, and it’s difficult, but believe me–it is so necessary. Most of us started out as creative geniuses, so this aspect of owning a business is often particularly difficult for us.  But experience has shown me that falling behind the times on industry trends or having contracts and estimates that aren’t in line with what’s going on out there will cost you deals and create issues.
5. Play a lot of XBOX!
   Seriously, that’s what works for me, but you can insert whatever counterproductive hobby that works for you into the above statement. My point is that when we are busy in front of the computer, or at a meeting, or on a conference call, we lose the opportunity to waste a little time doing the things we enjoy. Make sure you do them; it’s a great feeling to do something purely for enjoyment knowing that all the important stuff is handled…
6. Call your Mom!
   I know, I know…but listen.  If you’re like me, you love your Mom, but you need to be in a certain “headspace” to have a decent conversation with her for a reasonable amount of time. When I’m busy, I don’t have the energy and patience to wade through her sea of questions about what my kids had for dinner, or whether I’m being careful driving in the fog, or if everything is okay (because I haven’t called in a while) and all that other Mom stuff that she can’t help.   But I spent an hour on the phone with her yesterday talking about anything she wanted.  I was relaxed and enjoyed it almost as much as she did, which made us both feel like a million bucks…

So there you have it–6 easy and productive things to do in your downtime* that prepare you for the next wave of up time. You’ll feel more relaxed, better organized, and re-energized when it’s time to take on the next wave, and that is something you’ll thank yourself for time and time again…

Cheers!

-rob

*This blog post was conceived and written during downtime.

We recently met with one of our clients at the office of a collaborative partner. As we lounged on leather sofas and previewed the project on a huge flat panel while an assistant brought us coffee, it hit me again. That longing feeling I occasionally get for a big swanky office complete with a cool address, a huge orange “d” on the wall and lots of creature comforts to wow our clients and keep our staff entertained. But as quickly as the feeling came, it just as quickly left. Why in the world would I ever want to take on all of that?

You see, one of the biggest factors affecting the cost of web development has absolutely nothing to do with development, designing, photography, content development or anything else you would initially expect. Plain and simple, it’s overhead. That super cool office with lots of windows, Herman Miller chairs (although I confess I own one and it rocks), the pantry loaded with snacks, the conference room with the 60-inch flat screen for presentations—it’s all paid for by…your project. That doesn’t even take the staff salaries into account, but we’ll save that for a future post…we made the fundamental decision to always operate as lean as possible, to control unnecessary spending, and to therefore always have a competitive cost advantage…

So ask yourself, “How does any of that help me get a better website?” In most cases, the answer is…it doesn’t.

If you look a little closer, the core process involved in developing a website really only needs a few things:

1. A talented development team
2. A computer
3. An internet connection

I’m making light of it a bit, but the reality is that, for all intents and purposes, those are the three most important factors and they can exist without a traditional office space.

That works great for us because years ago, as we started to grow and really started to plan the future of digital reaction, we made the fundamental decision to always operate as lean as possible, to control unnecessary spending, and to therefore always have a competitive cost advantage. The key is allocating budgets to items that directly impact the client experience and the project itself. For us, that has always been investing time and energy into getting to know each client’s business and assembling the best team for bringing each project through all of its phases. So what if we do that from the comfort of our home office, or from the rooftop of a friend’s big-city townhouse, or, most recently for one of our developers, a vacation home in St Petersburg, Russia?

From a client standpoint, one of our larger clients said it best by stating, “We use digital reaction because we get big agency quality work without the big agency cost.” It’s not because we are cheaper, or have less-skilled team members, or use offshore developers, or[We use digital reaction because we get big agency quality work without the big agency cost.
because of any other short cuts. It’s because we found a smarter way to operate at a fundamental level. We, along with our clients, have found that to be a great formula…

I admit that a few times a year I find myself romanticizing what it would be like to have a big swanky office, but that feeling is quickly replaced with the confidence of knowing we don’t need that to succeed, and, more importantly, our clients don’t need to foot the bill.

So remember, if we meet over coffee or lunch in your office to discuss your project needs, aside from it being more convenient for you and allowing us a glimpse into how your business lives and breathes, it also just shaved about 40% off your project total…

Cheers!

-rob