Our team knows from decades of experience where web projects go well and how they can fall apart. Our fine-tuned process includes two important initial steps that are tempting to skip but are critical to the success of any web project. All web projects at VOLTAGE start with 1) Discovery and 2) Documentation.
Getting it right from the start.
We put a lot of work into understanding your brand, your goals, and working up the right scope prior to kicking off a web project. No one likes to have to go back to a contract months into a project to clarify the specifics of functionality or a page layout. We leverage two key steps in the first couple of weeks of any project to make sure we have the detail and foundation we need for a successful project. Discovery is also where we find what’s already working, so a new site builds on it instead of starting over.
Every project gets a plan before anyone designs or codes.
The first phase of any web project is where “talk is cheap”. Before we move any pixels or write any lines of code, we work through a structured process to make sure everyone is on the same page and approves of the plan to move forward. Discovery and documentation can also stand on their own as a project, when your team or another partner will handle the build.
Discovery
Our discovery process includes our initial kickoff meeting where we work through a structured conversation that allows us to define roles, milestones, and goals, and to start mapping out the overall project plan.
Documentation
The documentation phase is our team’s work to articulate goals, target audiences, functionality, and site requirements. It includes sitemaps, content planning, and low-fidelity wireframes, so you can see the site’s structure and content before design starts, and it fully details the technical specs.
Content and URL inventory
For sites being rebuilt, we review every existing page and decide whether to keep, merge, revise, or retire it. That inventory then guides the sitemap, the content migration, and a redirect plan to help protect your search visibility.
SRD
We organize all documentation into what we call a Site Requirements Document or “SRD”. This document is something we walk through with our clients, revise, and lock in as the meticulously detailed documentation from which we build the site. It covers templates, reusable patterns, integrations, plugins, and a production list of every page and post to build or migrate.