Useful things to know

Small guides. Better decisions.

Open any guide to read it here.

Project planning

Give your idea a clear starting point.

A practical brief helps you and your development partner agree on what matters before design begins.

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  1. 01Name the problem and the people.

    Write one sentence describing who needs help and what they are trying to do. Start with a real task, such as letting parents check school notices, rather than a list of features.

  2. 02Choose the first useful outcome.

    List the essential steps a person needs to complete that task. Separate features required for launch from improvements that can wait. A smaller first release gives you something concrete to learn from.

  3. 03Collect the practical details.

    Bring examples, existing brand assets, content, required integrations, a target date, and a budget range. Note who will review the work and who will maintain it after launch.

  4. 04Agree on what done means.

    Define the pages or screens, acceptance criteria, review milestones, handover materials, and support expectations in writing. Decide how changes to scope will be handled.

Website launch

A calmer way to prepare for launch.

Walk through the experience as a visitor, then check the essentials behind the scenes.

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  1. 01Try the key journeys.

    Test navigation, forms, search, and checkout where relevant. Confirm that success and error messages are clear. Make sure each contact link opens the correct destination.

  2. 02Check different ways of browsing.

    Use a small phone screen, a larger desktop screen, and keyboard-only navigation. Look for clipped text, unexpected horizontal scrolling, missing focus indicators, and controls that are hard to reach.

  3. 03Review the content and search basics.

    Give each page a clear title and description, use meaningful headings, and describe useful images with alternative text. Check internal links, sitemap URLs, and whether public pages can be indexed.

  4. 04Plan the handover.

    Confirm access to the domain, hosting, analytics, and content tools. Document the deployment and rollback process, the person responsible for updates, and how problems will be reported.

Making decisions

Build something custom, or use an existing tool?

Start with your workflow and the long-term ownership costs, then compare the options fairly.

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  1. 01Map the work before comparing products.

    Write down your most frequent tasks, exceptions, reporting needs, and existing tools. Identify which requirements are essential and which are simply familiar habits.

  2. 02Test an existing solution first.

    An established product can be a good fit for common workflows and a quick start. Use a trial with representative data and ask the people doing the work to test it.

  3. 03Consider custom software when the gap matters.

    A custom product may be useful when an unusual workflow, integration, or customer experience is central to your business. Validate that need with a small prototype before committing to the full build.

  4. 04Compare the complete commitment.

    Include subscriptions, implementation, migration, training, maintenance, support, and the ability to export your data. Consider a combination of existing tools and a smaller custom integration.

IT housekeeping

Know where your business technology stands.

A starting-point checklist for a conversation with your IT provider, with no specialist knowledge needed.

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  1. 01Make an inventory.

    List the devices, software, domains, and cloud accounts your team relies on. Give each one an owner and record renewal dates. Store credentials in an appropriate password manager, not in the inventory.

  2. 02Review access and updates.

    Check that people have their own accounts, access matches their role, and former team members no longer have access. Enable multi-factor authentication where available and establish an update schedule.

  3. 03Check recovery, not just backups.

    Confirm what is backed up, how often, and who can restore it. Ask your provider to test restoring representative data. Agree on how much downtime and data loss the business could tolerate.

  4. 04Know who to call.

    Keep a simple incident contact list and document the first steps for a lost device, inaccessible account, or service outage. Review support coverage and escalation arrangements with your provider.

Before we get started

Questions, answered.

Every project is a little different. Here are a few things that can help you prepare.

Ask us something else
How do we get a project estimate?

Share your idea, the people it serves, your priorities, and any budget or timeline constraints. We discuss the scope before preparing a proposal with deliverables, assumptions, and milestones.

How long will our project take?

Timing depends on scope, integrations, content readiness, and feedback. We agree on an initial schedule after discovery and revisit it when priorities change.

Can you work with an existing product?

Yes. We can start by reviewing the code, user experience, and supporting systems, then agree on a practical plan for improvements or a handover.

Do you help after launch?

We offer ongoing development, maintenance, and technical support. Coverage, response expectations, and pricing are agreed as part of the support arrangement.

Can we start with design before development?

Yes. Research, wireframes, and a prototype can help you explore and test an idea before committing to a full build. We can then plan the development phase together.