Before a business orders a web project, there should always be proper preparatory work, this applies regardless of whether it is a website or a web system that is to be ordered. Insufficient preparatory work is the biggest reason for failed web projects according to both our own experience and research.

The purpose of the preparatory work is primarily to produce the necessary specifications in order to be able to order a successful web project. This requires a requirements specification and a technical solution proposal, in order to then be able to determine a schedule and budget.

It is in this process that the problem arises. Many companies order web projects based on incorrect specifications. We have previously written about inadequate requirements specifications här.

The technical solution proposals are developed based on the requirements specification and if this is not detailed enough, there is a great risk that the wrong web technology is chosen. In many cases, this can result in web solutions that need to be rebuilt or, in the worst case, scrapped.

Although it may sound unreasonable, it is common for web projects to end up in a situation where entire solutions have to be reworked or scrapped. An example would be when a CMS (Content Management System) is chosen to develop web systems.

After almost 10 years of experience in the industry, we have been contacted by many companies with deficient web solutions. This may be because web solutions are not fast enough or flexible enough.

At such a stage, companies usually want to repair the damage that occurred during the development work. But unfortunately, the answer is almost always the same, the web technology is incorrect and the entire web solution needs to be rebuilt.

What is going wrong?

As we mentioned earlier, it is difficult to do anything about the problem during the development work, but the main mistakes occur even before the project starts. This is because sufficiently well-written technical solution proposals are not produced.

A well-implemented technical solution proposal requires a methodical analysis to review suitable web technologies. Such an analysis requires a well-written requirements specification with clearly defined requirements for the intended web solution.

However, many suppliers ignore this aspect and choose to develop the web solution despite the inadequate requirements specification. The truth is that many suppliers are afraid of losing the customer if they emphasize the importance of a feasibility study, especially if the customer already believes that they have carried out preliminary work.

We ourselves have been stuck in such behavior for a long time. Web solutions were developed using the wrong technologies because the scope of the project was not determined and instead a diffuse requirement specification emerged during the course of the project. Such a work process results in unnecessarily expensive and inefficient web solutions, which is of course never desirable.

But we have thought again, and thought correctly. We realized that the only way to eliminate major risks in web projects is a properly carried out feasibility study. Without a well-written requirements specification, there is a risk that the wrong web technology is chosen, which usually results in the project being more expensive and taking longer than expected. As a client, you can avoid this by being well-informed about what a requirements specification should look like.

Learn more about requirements specifications in our white paper What web project clients must know about requirements specifications.

Once a well-written requirements specification has been developed, the preparatory work does not end, but a web technology should then be selected based on what is most suitable. The choice of web technology should always be based on the requirements specification, but also on three criteria; sustainability, flexibility and cost-effectiveness.

Sustainability

The definition of sustainability in relation to web technology is that a technology should be chosen that results in a sustainable web solution. The sustainability aspect should be analyzed based on the popularity of the web technology, for example how long a technology will continue to be maintained and therefore exist.

In commercial technologies that are license-based, the starting point is the company that provides the technology and answers questions such as:

  • How many people use the technology?
  • How long has the company been operating?
  • Is the technology used in business-critical solutions in businesses?

While a technical analysis of open source code, so-called open source, is based on both popularity and the size of its community. When it comes to technologies that are created in open source code, only the most well-known technologies are recommended because the organization that provides these does not guarantee future maintenance.

In addition, the issue of popularity is closely linked to competence. When analyzing web technology, the supply of competence in the technology should always be nearby geographical area to be investigated. Is there a risk that you will not find a supplier who offers the expertise?

Flexibility

The criterion of flexibility is about the chosen technology’s ability to further develop the web solution. This is an important aspect when choosing a technology, as there is a risk that an incorrect technology will limit the further development of the web solution.

There should always be the possibility of reworking and developing the web solution even after launch. This does not only mean developing more functions, but can also mean scaling down, i.e. reducing the scope of the web solution.

By analyzing the chosen technology’s ability to be flexible before development, you as a client can avoid technologies that make further development of the web solution difficult due to the technology’s architecture.

Cost-effectiveness

The third aspect is cost-effectiveness, which is always important in web projects. The choice of technology can have a major impact on both the development and management of the web solution, which ultimately affects the cost of the project.

An example of this is the license costs for commercial technologies, which can sometimes be as high as the cost of the development work. In addition, the cost of management, i.e. support and handling of future system errors and updates, can be more expensive than expected depending on the choice of technology.

Choosing technology for a web project

When choosing a web technology, you as a client should always analyze sustainability, flexibility and cost-effectiveness. Sustainability is about the security of the web technology, while flexibility is a prerequisite for the further development of the web solution. These two aspects also affect the project budget and the most cost-effective technology should therefore be chosen.

In addition to these three aspects, the most important parameter is the web solution’s technical platform. Either your intended web solution requires development in a CMS (Content Management System) or a web framework. As a basic rule, we always recommend that websites should be developed in a CMS and web systems in a framework.

You can read about CMS här and web frameworks här.

We hope that you have now gained a better understanding of choosing web technology before ordering a web project. Our advice is to always hire a technical partner who performs proper preparatory work and technical analysis before a technical solution proposal is established.