The Importance of Discovery During Website Project Scoping

The Importance of the Discovery Process in Web Projects

When it comes to website projects, the importance of the discovery process cannot be overstated. In case you’re unfamiliar with the term, “discovery” refers to the process where an agency takes all necessary efforts to understand the overall scope and scale of a website project that a client has contacted them about.

A successful discovery process allows for a web design and development agency to provide a client with a solid service quote that accurately reflects the client’s needs and what it will take to deliver the finished product they’re looking for. If you’d like to learn more about how the discovery process works and why it’s vital to transparency between clients and agencies, please keep reading.

The Most Important Questions to Ask During Discovery

When it comes to discovery, the more information gathered, the better. This can create friction between a client and an agency, as clients will often be hoping to compare bids and therefore want a quote as soon as possible. However, while a longer wait time can be frustrating, the agency that’s being the most thorough and asking the most questions on the front end will probably be the one that delivers the most accurate estimate for a website project. When agencies rush through discovery to give a prospective client a quote ASAP, this can lead to unpleasant surprises in the middle of the project where it turns out that something might be more time-consuming than anticipated or may not be feasible at all.

Unfortunately, there’s no accurate way to package price website projects. Every client has completely unique needs, and asking the right questions is important for an agency to accurately assess these needs and price out the required work. Here are a few of the common questions that an agency may ask and why:

“If you already have a website, is your new site going to be larger or smaller?”

During discovery, it’s crucial for a web design and development agency to get an accurate sense of scale in terms of how many pages are on a client’s website and the development time necessary to create those pages in a new environment with a new design. When this question isn’t asked, it can result in an agency overpricing their services. Sometimes, a client may have a website that has grown so large, it’s become too labyrinthine for visitors. In these cases, it’s usually best to consolidate that website to half its existing size, which will require far less development work than creating multiple new pages.

“Do you want any new functionality added to your website?”

It’s important for a web agency to understand what functionality items – such as contact forms, calculators, and configurators – will be maintained, added or dropped as a client’s website is redesigned or rebuilt from scratch. These items can dramatically affect the scope of a web project, so it’s critical to have a full understanding of them on the front end.

“Will you be changing your web platform?”

When it comes to website projects, sticking to the same web platform is always easier. For example, transitioning one WordPress site to another will be simpler than transforming a WordPress site into a Squarespace site. A transition to a new platform will always require more development hours.

“Do you have a new brand?”

Clients often think of a new website as a rebrand, which is something that it’s crucial for a web design agency to know. If a client wants to incorporate new branding elements on their new website, this will generally take more than simply modernizing an existing site without changing the current brand.

“What integrations are on your website?”

Integrations on a website can include everything from simply linking a Pay Now button that goes to a third party payment system to fully integrating a CRM into all of the forms and contact points on the site. These integrations are easy to miss if discovery is rushed, and they can potentially have a huge impact on the scope of a web project depending on how complex they are. If you’re looking for a web design and development agency to create a new website, it would be wise to give them access to your current systems during the discovery process to ensure they understand your integrations and what it will take to transition them to a new site.

“How much analytics tracking does your website have?”

The scope and scale of analytics tracking can vary wildly between websites. Transferring analytics tracking over to a website can often be a time-consuming task. Because of this, it’s important for a web design agency to receive clarity on the amount of analytics tracking on a website before giving a quote for a project.

“What is your ecommerce like?”

Ecommerce is a crucial part of many websites which can have a huge impact on the overall scope of a web design project. Supplementary questions which can help an agency determine the specifics of a client’s ecommerce include:

• “How many products do you sell?”
• “How is your shipping handled?”
• “How do you calculate tax?”
• “How is your website collecting money and transferring it to your bank account?”

Asking the Most Questions Allows for the Best Solutions

If you’re a client who’s currently going through the discovery process with a web design and development agency, some patience may be required as the agency takes the time necessary to provide an accurate estimate for your project. At NorthWing Digital, asking all the right questions up front to provide the most accurate quote is always a priority. Connect with us today if you have any questions about the discovery process or would like our help with a web project.