Marketing Project Leadership We Interpret the Scope | Guide the Project | Coordinate Vendors | Take It Live
"A website is a sales engine on a marketing platform." - Daniel DiGriz
Why Have Someone Lead the Project
When you're under the gun, get the website done.
It's shocking how many projects don't make it to completion. The #1 cause is misalignment between client expectations and vendor obligations under the scope of the contract. A 3rd party who can understand the one and scrutinize or make recommendations regarding the other is invaluable.
Problem
Despite best intentions, projects that need consensus between internal stakeholders & third parties tends to go past schedule or over budget.
Hurdle
You could push onward, damn the roadblocks, but your wish list will get slimmer, balls will get dropped, and long-term goals will fall off the table.
Solution
MadPipe will direct the project, get everyone aligned around the goals of your collateral, and stay 3-steps ahead with science-based input on UX, SEO, & content strategy.
Mandate
You can't compromise on a site that has internal support & nurtures prospects at each stage of the sales funnel—from ideation to negotiation.
With MadPipe, "done" is a constant refrain. With expert guidance, you'll know you're succeeding by feeling the increased collaboration, hearing growing consensus, and seeing steady incremental progress—but most of all, by putting things continually in the "done" column.
TO DO
Server Setup
🕓Nov 15
Forms Setup
🕓Nov 15
IN PROGRESS
Home Page Copy
🕓Oct 31
Site Map
🕓Oct 31
Home Page Layout
🕓Nov 1
DONE
Color Palette
🕓Oct 1
Font Set
🕓Oct 15
GoLive Plan
🕓Dec 31
Your project won't stall
if we've got the ball.
"Done" counts because, while we have all the ideas, opportunity has moved on.
Free Advice
For your website project.
Beware of portfolio-driven decisions.
A lot of vendor selection begins with studying portfolios; that may not be the most fruitful approach. Anyone (yes, we're saying anyone) can build a website that looks good in a couple of hours. Really good, in fact. A superb looking site can be spun up overnight in India. That isn't widely admitted (we like to think there's a secret sauce), but it's true. Design conventions are mostly a product of trend, and web dev is a commodity service. There's barely any website design we can find that we or anyone can't duplicate quickly and easily. On look and feel, it's a given that every brand is going to be unique, and looking for "There! That! That's what I want!" is a recipe for a clone that'll feel like a clone when it serves as the setting for your brand message.
Treat it as a full-fledged project.
A LOT of excellent visual studios are terrible at development (and only a developer would know), at project management (getting to 'done' is a skill), and at ensuring a website serves as a marketing engine. Those are where MadPipe excels. If you're needing proof of design capability, MadPipe probably isn't your best fit. However, when MadPipe takes on such website projects, sometimes we're both developer and designer, sometimes we're neither, and sometimes the roles are split, with a designer handing us mockups. We'll work with any vendor(s) you choose. Where MadPipe adds value is ensuring a site project with multiple moving parts gets completed to spec, that the spec makes sense, and owner goals are served.
Be cautious of specialists.
MadPipe is industry and business model agnostic. The knee jerk impulse to find a legal vendor because you're in law (or ecommerce b/c you're in ecommerce) is one reason law sites (for instance) are so similar and boring. MadPipe refuses to specialize, because the best insight on user experience (UX) comes from inputs occurring across multiple industries. Specialist work tends to mirror existing examples while struggling to differentiate. That tension produces a less effective competitive footprint. MadPipe isn't thinking about a website in a vacuum, but as collateral in a larger effort by a firm to channel its voice and message in a way that competitors don't, recruiting enthusiasts in a way people who think in silos can't. If that's not a fit for you, no sweat—there are LOTS of specialists you can find.
Don't let the platform drive.
MadPipe is platform agnostic. It's not very hard for anyone in this business to make a given platform do what you want. Nearly every vendor has a preferred 'stack'. MadPipe is comfortable with most of them, but does have opinions about some. E.g. Shopify is one of the most impressive eCommerce toolsets. WordPress is an incredibly flexible canvas for any design. New (and current) platforms evolve over time to accommodate UI trends that stick. If we don't use yours (fooCommerce, StunningBuilder, gooberHost, or whatever), it's just because no one bothers to track them all. Owning a couple of brands of hammer is enough. When something truly innovative occurs in this industry, most of us are aware of it.
Various Thoughts
Because you're still here, so . . .
