The Blue Zoo Process: Part I
Introduction
In our next series of posts, our team will share with you our ten week process of delivering websites to our clients. While the information in this blog series is not comprehensive, it will give you an overall view of our approach. The first blog will be on Initial Client Engagement. This will take you from first contact to the static design process.
Initial Client Engagement
Once we receive interest from a potential client (this could be a referral, chance meeting, someone filling out the GET STARTED PAGE on our website, etc.) we will schedule a call or face-to-face meeting to determine your basic needs/interests. This meeting usually lasts less than 45 minutes, but it allows us to determine what deliverable you are in need of. While we offer a variety of services, we never assume that our deliverables are what you need. Our goal during this stage is to determine what your needs are and discuss your options that may or may not include working with us. If you, as a client, are in need of a website, printed materials or video (photography) or all of the above, we can provide a solution for you. For this blog series, we’re going to assume that we are providing a website for you.
After the deliverable is determined – your website – we will then ask to have a discovery meeting between you and our team. This meeting allows us to fully understand the your needs and how best to deliver your message to customers through your online presence. The discovery meeting lasts for approximately two hours and we review the following items:
- Brand – What do you want people to feel or remember?
- Content – What do you want people to know?
- Function – What do you want people to do?
The answers to these three questions help us with:
- Design – layout, imagery, CTA’s (call to actions), USP (unique sales position), content, etc
- Development – user experience, responsiveness, functionality of actions, etc..
At the completion of the discovery meeting we will provide a comprehensive proposal to you within 3-5 business days. This document is yours to keep and it includes all the information we’ve gathered during the discovery meeting and lays out our plan for the deliverable. We will review the document with you to answer any questions that you may have.
The proposal covers the following information: 
- Client Overview
- Client Message
- Our Approach
- Our Deliverables
- Website
- Video/Photography
- Social Media
- Our Closing Remarks and Resources
After the proposal has been approved we then set up an internal meeting with our team to develop a sitemap (a flowchart of how the website functions) and design wireframes (a layout of each unique website page). This step moves the website from concept stage to early design and development stage. Our team will present the sitemap and wireframes to you for approval. Once approved (could take a couple of collaborative meetings) these pages go to the web design and web development team to be executed.
Our approach is to work in a collaborative manner with our clients. Before we’ve even began designing your website, it’s not unusual for us to spend 6-8 hours with you in collaborative meetings. By spending time with you and understanding your needs from the beginning, it allows us to better deliver the product you need and want.
Next up: Building Your Team
