Over the past 10 years, we’ve unearthed these five essential truths of web projects.

They don’t apply to every project, and they are not the only truths to be found… but we find that websites and web applications turn out better when these things are kept in mind.

1. Start simple, but not simplistic. The project scope has to be realistic. This realism must include deadlines and budget. The project scope cannot, however, be so stripped of complexity as to not provide any value above and beyond customer expectations, competitors, or the upheaval to your business as a result of new development.
2. Talk to your users, again and again. Without a User Centered Design program in place that regularly communicates with real site users, incorporates their feedback, and lets them shoot down ideas, the chances of project success are low. Don’t be afraid of the word “program”. This is easier than it sounds. It can be as simple as showing stuff to other staff members, family and friends—and being willing to listen.
3. Iterate often. Many small changes are far better than infrequent big changes. Don’t try to solve every conceivable problem at each release. Knock off the low-hanging fruit, release these changes, and then collect more data. In the next iteration, many of the smaller problems will likely have gone away—replaced by new ones, no doubt. Save your effort for the new problems.
4. Succeed quickly, then improve. This is related to the point above. Delaying the collection of essential data—upon which you can act with knowledge instead of guesswork—has spelled the end of many a great project. Get something up and running. Call it a pilot. Call it a beta release. Get it in front of real users so you can collect data quickly and move to address the issues you find.
5. Measure it! The web is built for measurement—take advantage of this and implement free web analytics packages such as Google Analytics to find out what folks are doing on your website or web application. Build additional reporting tools (e.g. to track database activity that website traffic analytics tools cannot access) into the project cost. This enables you to act on important information or trends more quickly and confidently.

Derek Olson - Vice President — For the past 10 years, Derek has been providing strategic advice to clients large and small—across a wide spectrum of industries and non-profit sectors. Derek is most passionate about the symbiotic relationship he observes between web usability, semantic markup, and marketing. He can often be cajoled into speaking at length on these matters.