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A successful Web initiative is directly related to an Internet Agency's experience, track record, and demonstrated ability to efficiently and effectively solve business challenges. In today's economic climate, clients demand streamlined costs matched with quality deliverables. In order to achieve success, White Lion follows the following ten-step process.
step one / discovery
Getting to know our clients - understanding how they conduct business and helping them define specific goals and objectives - constitutes the first step in our process. White Lion's discovery team is on the front line identifying challenges and providing clear direction to the approach and implementation of a solution.
The discovery team leads prospective clients toward a new online business model and workable Internet solutions that address the target audience and primary user tasks, while supporting each company's long-term business goals.
All knowledge captured by the discovery team is then transferred to a series of documented Briefs. Each member of the White Lion development team reviews the information collected in the Briefs, which helps ensure everyone is "up to speed."
With the deliverables clearly defined, White Lion will move into the Proposal development phase.
step two / proposal
Today's fast-paced and competitive market dictates the need for strategies that allow for scalability and flexibility. The White Lion discovery team — consisting of our Director of Account Services and an Information Architect — will work hand-in-hand with prospective clients to craft a series of documents that clearly spell out the deliverables for the project.
The discovery team will produce forward-thinking options that streamline processes from request through delivery. This ensures our clients continue to grow and succeed.
Project documentation directing the production of the web site can include a combination of the following:
- High-Level Site Map: A site map provides a snapshot of the primary and secondary navigation, along with all sub-navigation pages that comprise the site.
- Detailed Site Architecture: Site architecture represents the page-to-page interactions and includes:
- page notes and components
- page, footer and background functions
- integrated functionality
- back-end site administration tools
- identified options for current or future phases of development
- Project Specifications: The project specifications feature a list of important expectations and deliverables and include:
- technology requirements
- quality & usability testing
- content strategies
- accessibility standards
- Fixed-Price Estimate with Options: Estimates are provided as a fixed-price range with the range being derived from a menu list of options. Each option features its own line item price, and corresponds to an identified module within the site architecture. This approach enables clients to accurately budget and prioritize features for the project.
step three / timeline workplan
Once a client accepts the proposal and selects White Lion to develop their project, an initial payment and signed contract is requested. Upon receipt, a Project Manager is assigned and an internal project kick-off meeting is scheduled to allocate team resources and initiate the next steps.
The project manager will create a workplan which will include:
- Full Project Schedule from Start to Launch
- Detailed list of key steps and meetings
- All Client Sign-Off Points
- Invoice Milestones
step four / engineering
From start to finish, engineering documents map out every key component of the site. To that end, the Project Manager will coordinate with a Project Engineer to develop the engineering for every page of the site.
Engineering is a blueprint used to ensure efficient design and programming of the site. Each web page is carefully laid out on paper so functionality and usability can be scrutinized.
When complete, the engineering documents are reviewed by an internal White Lion team consisting of the project manager, an information architect, programmer, designer, and a usability expert.
As a final step, clients are walked through the engineering page by page. Feedback and modifications are encouraged and integrated into the final document which guides the development of the site.
step five / design
Visitors quickly evaluate a site by visual design alone. When designing a site, it's imperative to pay attention to layout, typography, images, consistency issues, and way finding elements. The visual design should reflect both the site's functional purpose, as well as its organization's identity.
To minimize cognitive overhead and maximize the efficiency of user task execution, White Lion tailors Web interfaces to provide simple to understand, information-rich visual cues. Such elements include link-marking file type icons, new window icons, and back to top arrows, among others. Strategic use of bread crumbing, page titling, and navigation marking, also aids users in navigating the site.
Client interviews, creative briefs, and creative meetings are used to capture the tone and spirit of the organization. White Lion has a series of refined processes ensuring the final design captures the client's vision for the feel of the site.
The final product is always a unique interface which leverages our expert knowledge of web design best practices and marries it with our client's unique purpose and target audience
step six / programming
White Lion has standardized on open-source technologies of PHP and MySQL to power our developments and to provide our clients with maximum value and flexibility. White Lion's programmers routinely research and incorporate the latest best practices and leverage a variety of programming tools (including JavaScript, jQuery, AJAX, DHTML, XML, and others) to ensure every new development reflects our passion for quality craftsmanship.
Our completed sites and applications can be easily managed by client in-house resources or by White Lion programmers. Our process includes publishing a descriptive data model and noting all code. The system is designed to accommodate further enhancements as new functionality is required and seeks to provide the greatest possible life span.
The programming phase consists of the following components:
- Data Model: The data model outlines the project's database tables, associated fields, and data relationships. An effective data model is crucial to effective development and future scalability.
- Page Templates: With completed and approved designs, White Lion will cut and code graphics to create standard first and second-level page templates.
- Site Skeleton: The site skeleton represents a content-free draft of the site with integrated global navigation and page component elements.
- Finish-Out: When the skeleton is complete, White Lion will proceed to integrate all of the client's static content into the final draft of the site.
- Secure Administration: White Lion's optional secure back-end browser interfaces are designed for easy manipulation of content. Our clients demand processes that are simple to use allowing key personnel to instantaneously make changes and updates without any knowledge of code.
step seven / quality & usability testing
Attention to detail is essential. White Lion has perfected a system to thoroughly test performance, browser idiosyncrasies, usability and accessibility. Leveraging published usability and accessibility research techniques, we create solutions that are as intuitive as they are creative and strategic.
Following the development stage, each member of the White Lion team is tasked with testing and reviewing the final website prior for usability and functionality. From content review to graphics compression, each member employs their own expertise in reviewing the site. When the site meets our standards and is operating according to specifications, it is passed to the client for a final review prior to launch.
step eight / hosting
White Lion has partnered with and recommends Rackspace for both Shared and Dedicated hosting options. The infrastructure and the tools offered in the hosting environment deliver cost-effective and powerful performance for web and email hosting. With the depth of Rackspace's expertise, custom solutions can be explored for even the most complicated of environments.
If a client has an established hosting relationship and or in-house hosting resources, White Lion will provide a full copy of the site's files for installation.
step nine / site launch
What about results? White Lion's work is always delivered with immense pride. Our teams lead each project in an organized manner, while always keeping an eye on the timeline and bottom line.
Our solutions are forward-thinking to ensure clients can compete in today's, as well as tomorrow's, market. White Lion engineers sites to be easily expandable for future integration projects.
step ten / ongoing support
White Lion employees pride themselves on providing red-carpet customer service throughout the development of each project and beyond. White Lion will maintain a list of potential future phase enhancements which can be integrated at any time.
Following a project's completion, White Lion will be available for maintenance support on an as needed basis without retainer. Minor requested modifications can be billed on an hourly basis, while larger projects can be scoped out with a fixed price delivered.
White Lion also provides complimentary quarterly reviews to track site success and contribute to ongoing web strategy development.
