Monday
Monday – The start of another week, another marathon. This is going to a be a good week. We have some new staff joining the development team, new projects starting and new releases. All in All, a lot to look forward to.
I started Bikram Yoga and choose the place because they were easily found on the Internet. I had heard about another, close place. But, after several searches I could not locate them. So, I went to the place I found easily, with good content so that I felt comfortable, directions and an online class schedule. The class was full. One more example of how a solid internet presence can help bring in the customers you need.
What did you do this weekend? Did you use the web? Get directions on Google?
Filed under General | Comment (0)I-Tul’s New Portal
Our new portal has been up for about a month now. Although there were a few bumps, the roll out has been great. Now, clients can manage their accounts online. No more faxing!
We have been getting some very good feedback but as the portal becomes less “new” and more standard, please don’t stop the feedback. Let me know what you like and what you don’t. That way, we can constantly improve and make sure we are providing the best service possible.
I-Tul Customer Portal: http://my.i-tul.com
Filed under I-Tul | Comment (0)How you want things…
I have been working in the tech field since 1993, 15 years. One of the things that has been a constant is the varying tastes, styles, preferences and mores of people. Some people want lots of detail, others high level only. Some people want to learn, others just want it done. Some want highly detailed sites, others minimalist.
With all the variations, there are definitely some camps. IE: for most options, people fall into 2-3 major categories. One of the main categories is uniqueness: Some people think their needs are utterly unique, others think their needs are representative of everybody else. Both are wrong.
The important thing is to know what you want. When it comes to web sites and custom software, our job is to take our client’s vision and turn it into reality. We do this by translating needs, vision and dreams into business requirements and then defining a programming spec to those requirements.
My job is translation. And, on good days, I think I am very good at it. 
Clients don’t need to worry about saying the wrong things or controlling the process. I can work through either very vague or quite detailed information and define the requirements in a logical, methodical way. Frankly, the only time it is hard is when a client tries to control the process too much. By that I mean that they won’t let the translation happen. They insist on their words, their work-flow. Often, the results are not very effective from an application stand-point. Luckily, that is very rare.
People want what they want. I know, I am the same way. When working with a web developer or application programmer, just tell them your needs and let them translate it into their own world. If someone says “I need to be able to step in, at any point, to an issue with my customers”, I will start designing a process that includes communication history, change auditing, and alert triggers.
No matter what camp you are in, finding a development team you can communicate with effectively will be the most important part of a successful project. As long as you know your business, we know how to build the infrastructure to support it.
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