When you are in a transactional business, the lines between the beginning and the end of the sale are a lot clearer than when you are in a service business. We design a website. We review the site with the client throughout the process. We proofread and trouble shoot and then we launch.
If we find a glitch after we launch, sure, we will go back and fix it. If the site has been up a week or two and the client asks us to swap out a picture or make a small edit, we are happy to.
But when does the project end? A month or two after the site goes live is it still reasonable for a customer to say “Oh I changed my mind on the header,” is that still covered under the contract? What about three, four or even six months later?
At Roundpeg, we have built our reputation on being responsive and supportive to our clients. We work hard to go the extra mile, but when the extra mile becomes a road trip requiring an extra gallon of gas, it becomes a problem. And it is a problem because we never told them the rules.
As a service provider, the end of a project is fuzzy. One of the things we have added to our web design process is a launch meeting. We have always had a kick off meeting, which starts the project off right, reviewing the terms of the contract. The launch meeting does the same thing on the back end. Reviewing what we have done, and agreeing the site is complete and ready to launch. We spell out what comes next and clearly explain any additional changes (except for correcting errors on our part) will be at an additional cost.
It was hard for me to make this transition. I resisted for a long time because it didn’t feel as customer friendly, but as we add more and more web projects, I want to be able to take care of all of my customers so we have to find the end of the road for each project.
How do you define the end of the road for your clients?
Need help? Contact Roundpeg, an Indianapolis web design firm.