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"AET are the most professional, focused, and on-task web
development professionals I've ever worked with. In the past five-plus years of our online presence, we've had many false starts and dead ends
with other vendors." Peggy Wynne Borgman, CEO,
Wynne Business, Saratoga, CA
www.prestonwynne.com
The Software Project Development Blueprint
"How much is this going to cost?"
Perhaps the most challenging part of any non-trivial web development project is the price question. At AET, we have developed a proprietary process that insures there are no surprises down the road when it comes to the budget you're allocating or the timeline on your project. There's nothing worse than finding out the cost of your project has doubled, tripled or quadrupled or waiting for something to be delivered today that was promised yesterday (or last month!)
The #1 Mistake Stakeholders Make
Soliciting bids from vendors prior to developing a requirements specification is the most common mistake that inexperienced web and software project stakeholders make. Naturally it's understandable that most people want to fast-forward the experience and get to something with which they feel comfortable -- negotiating a good price. But how does your developer know what to bid before they know what they're building? Sadly, many vendors will bid on a poorly-defined project and "figure out how to do it later". This modality nearly always leads to failed projects.
Our first word of advice is: do not solicit bids for your project until you've developed a complete project requirements specification.
What Is A Requirements Specification?
A software Requirements Specification (RS) is the document that describes the business model, user details, workflow and relevant technical details of the web or other software project you wish to create. The RS is the first document you need to create in order to communicate clearly with your software vendor. Your vendor needs to know the details of what they are expected to build.
This is a sample of a RS document. As you can see, the document itself contains many pages, and yet there are still a few outstanding questions (indicated in blue).
Many of the clients we see do not have the experience necessary to develop the kinds of specifications required. Some specifications include technical details that are impossible to sort out without knowledge of a particular piece of software and/or a technical background. For example, if your web software project is to make use of the Google Maps API, research may be required to know if a particular business requirement is technically feasible: "We want to display 10,000 map markers in 1.5 seconds max" While this may sound reasonable as a business requirement, the Google Maps API and a standard web browser would not be capable of this feat. Thus, the RS development process naturally involves some give-and-take on the part of the project stakeholders and the software vendor.
While some may consider the RS development process dry or academic, the fact is that a requirements specification is the first big step in the design of your project or website. And if you have not developed software before and/or are not a software expert, you absolutely need a technically-savvy partner to help you design and specify your project. Often this first partner is also a software vendor.
The AET Project Blueprint
The AET requirements specification development process is called the "Project Blueprint". Much like designing a home, spending an adequate amount of time developing your blueprint and imparting a complete understanding of your needs to your builder prevents surprises, disappointments and additional expense. Just like a good builder, we do our best develop a very clear understanding of what it is you'd like to accomplish.
Like any experienced architect, a software vendor's experience and knowledge is inherently valuable to your project. Since many clients try to "shop" for bids on their project prior to developing a RS, the distinction between specification "development" and "sales" can seem blurred. But until you've completed your RS, you should not be soliciting bids for your project!
Our Project Blueprint process insures there are no surprises down the road when it comes to the budget you're allocating for your project.
The Project Blueprint describes in detail the functionality and workflow of the proposed website or software, both on the consumer-facing side as well as the administrative side.
Following the development of your Project Blueprint, we guarantee that the price we quote and the timeline we quote will be achieved or we will continue to work AT NO CHARGE until your project is 100% complete according to the project specifications. Your project will never go "overbudget".
Following an initial complimentary 60-minute conference call, we will give you a quote for development of your blueprint.* Once your blueprint is developed via our collaboration and approved by you, we will be happy to give you an pinpoint-accurate quote on your project.
Should you decide to develop your project with AET, we will discount the cost of the Project Blueprint from the cost of developing your project.
When you're ready to get started, simply request a quote using our convenient online form, give us a call at 800.309.7298 or send us an email at info@acceleratoret.com.
*Quotes are based on an estimated number of hours of development time. Clearly, if it takes you two months to describe your project to us, development of your Project Blueprint will take a bit more time than that!