Movie fans out there might immediately recognize that quote from Pulp Fiction, arguably one of the most quoted and loved movies of the past 20 years. The quote happens when Marsellus and company are in the locker room after Butch was supposed to have thrown the fight. Instead he put a serious move on Marsellus, won, and made his escape to collect the winnings and leave town…

While Marsellus is asking his cronies for answers he gets the response “I think…” which prompts him to answer “No, we don’t wanna think, we wanna know”. I realized that quote pertains to Web Design and Development—and that simple statement can fundamentally change the way the project will end up.

Because we all “think”–we think this looks good or we think that looks bad, and we think we know what our audience wants to see, read, and hear. But in actuality, those thoughts are often nothing more than opinions, ideas, and our own beliefs. Sometimes our opinions are great and based on past experiences, so we call them educated guesses. The problem is that we are still guessing, or thinking, we know the answer to the problem we are trying to solve. That’s where we can get into trouble.[blockquote type="blockquote_line" align="right"]“No, we don’t wanna think, we wanna know”. I realized that quote pertains to Web Design and Development—and that simple statement can fundamentally change the way the project will end up.[/blockquote]

But what if we took that same project and actually knew the answers before starting? That’s the area of focus digital reaction has been investing a lot of time and effort into–actually “knowing”. Before doing anything we put time and effort into research, competitive comparative analysis, and research-based content strategies to act as our roadmap for when the pen finally hits the paper, or a finger finally clicks the mouse.

I’m not going to get too deep into what we did and are doing for the following projects (when they roll out in the coming months we’ll cover them individually in greater detail) but here are the cliff notes:

For Saturn Partners, a Boston-based Venture Capital firm looking to reimagine their web presence, we did an extensive Best in Breed analysis to ensure that the resulting site positions them right at the top of their field while separating them from the pack by giving them their own personality.

For Bella Bambolina, the amazing children’s book series, we are building mobile gaming apps and a virtual world on the web (humongous shout out to the boyz at Encogent). A comprehensive content delivery strategy ensures we will capture the audience’s imagination and push Bella Bambolina towards commercial success.

But it doesn’t stop there, because we are also working closely with many of our smaller clients to bring them the same level of focus on a scale that fits their marketing plans and budgets. We are testing our first ever “digital reaction small business theme” site based on responsive web design technology to ensure that no matter what device, platform, or screen size it’s viewed on, it will deliver the optimal experience to viewers.

Through our many partnerships, digital reaction is able to continually evolve and bring you the best the web has to offer, and we can’t wait to show you these awesome new projects as they start to roll out. The best part is we don’t think you are going to like them, we know you are…

Cheers!

-rob

The post “No, We Don’t Wanna Think, We Wanna Know.” –Marsellus Wallace appeared first on digital reaction.

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…[blockquote type="blockquote_line" align="right"]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…[/blockquote]

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?

[imageeffect type="frame" align="alignleft" width="300" height="225" alt="" url="http://www.digitalreaction.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/office_post_thumb.jpg" ]But make no mistake—my office is not a converted spare room or a basement corner with a rug and some pictures. My home office is an OFFICE, built from scratch to my specifications. I say this because I realize that “home office” often has negative connotations. Our good friend and business advisor jokingly stated, “To me, ‘home office’ means you are downstairs sitting in your underwear jammed in between the washer and dryer trying to crank out work on a Commodore 64. You are a different situation. You, literally, had your builder build you a REAL office to run a company out of. “

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[[blockquote type="blockquote_line" align="right"]We use digital reaction because we get big agency quality work without the big agency cost.[/blockquote]
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

The post Part 2: Why you don’t have to pay $25,000 for most websites appeared first on digital reaction.