DocumentationTraining

Documentation/Training

I have heard it said that when a person is leaving a job, he or she tends to be remembered more by the last two weeks at a position than the entire time employed. If an employee has a chip on his or her shoulder or sleep walks through the last two weeks of a job, often that is how the individual is remembered.

How your firm wraps up a project has a lot to do with how the client will view your firm. If the project team is in a hurry and skims over the appropriate steps to end a project nicely, the client can feel resentment. Sure, the project was finished on time. The graphics may have been done perfectly, and the database functionality top notch. However, if the client does not fully understand how to administer the site, it's doubtful that the site can live up to its potential. It's also doubtful that when the client is ready to do an upgrade or maintenance he or she will feel comfortable contacting your Web firm again.

Taking the time to educate the client about how the site works, what requires maintenance by the Web firm, and what kinds of things can be handled on the client side puts the realization of the Web site's potential directly into the client's hands.

If the Web site is database enabled, the client will need training in order to understand how to add, modify, delete, and search for records. Maybe there are password-protected areas that the client needs to be shown how to access.

If the client is planning on updating static pages on the Web with Front Page, some instruction will need to be given regarding connecting to the site. Depending on the level of Front Page ability, the firm may want to offer training hours on how to use Front Page, allowing the client to use his or her own site as a model. The firm should be careful to compensate itself for this type of training. There's a big difference between showing the client how to connect to his or her Web site and showing the client how to use Front Page.

Should the client wish to outsource management of the Web site, it makes sense for the firm to offer a maintenance agreement to the client. There are several models available for an agreement of this sort. Your firm may wish to evaluate several models and decide which one makes sense.

Making a formal plan for updating the site keeps the material fresh, allows the Web firm to schedule the work, and can cut the client a better deal on maintenance. A firm can offer discounted services for the guaranteed work from the client.

Often you go to a Web site and feel like you're looking at an old issue of a magazine. The material is obviously old, and thus it lacks credibility- similar to how one might read a dated article and wonder if the information was still valid.

Let's investigate some techniques through which to make your firm's last impression with a client a very excellent one.

Exercises

Supply Site Administration Documentation

a)How would you define site administration?

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b)What sort of information should be included in site administration documentation?

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Provide Training

a)What kinds of issues might a Web firm run into when trying to provide training to a client?

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b)How could the problems discussed in 13.2.2a be avoided?

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Develop a Maintenance Agreement

a)How can a maintenance agreement benefit both the client and the Web firm?

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b)Devise two plans through which a Web firm could offer regular maintenance.

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Exercise Answers

This section gives you some suggested answers to the questions in Lab 13.2 with discussion related to those answers. Please post any alternative answers to these questions at the companion Web site for this book, located at http://www.phptr.com/phptrinteractive.

Answers

a)How would you define site administration?

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Answer:Site administration involves the maintenance of an existing Web site and understanding the hosting and updating requirements that are necessary for its continued success. It also encompasses the follow-through of Web marketing initiatives, such as link exchanges and banner advertising.
b)What sort of information should be included in site administration documentation?

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Answer:The following information is key to site administration:

  • Hosting requirements (operating system, middleware, support for programming languages used to develop the site)
  • Step-by-step training materials that walk the site administrator through updating the database or online store through an administrative back room
  • Requirements for performing updates to static Web pages, based on a maintenance plan discussed prior to launch between the client and the Web firm
  • Contact information for the Web firm, additional vendors, and the hosting company
  • A troubleshooting section that specifies who to call if certain problems arise

Answers

a)What kinds of issues might a Web firm run into when trying to provide training to a client?

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Answer:The Web firm must really assess the computer skills of the client before setting up a maintenance and/or training agreement. If the client does not have computer-savvy people on staff, the Web firm may have to offer training on much more than just how to handle the Web application. Therefore, an estimated two hours of training can run into twenty. This is a burden that most Web firms cannot afford toabsorb. If the firm runs into this situation, it's best to write a new maintenance contract that allows the Web firm to handle all of the maintenance.

Client frustration is also a factor when doing training. Sometimes clients have anxiety when dealing with new computer applications. Try to use your most patient and mature people on staff to handle client training sessions.

b)How could the problems discussed in 13.2.2a be avoided?

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Answer:Try to assess up front what type of client you have and their capabilities. If the client is extremely computer literate and is not afraid of learning new things, it is probably a good bet that training can be successful. You can also get a feel for this during the Web build based on how open the client is to being educated about the process of building his or her Web site. If, after the Web site build, you feel that you will be showing the client where the "on" button is on the computer, you can best serve the client by setting up an agreement through which the client can outsource the maintenance to your firm.

Answers

a)How can a maintenance agreement benefit both the client and the Web firm?

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Answer:The client is assured of keeping the Web site updated and is usually offered discounted pricing, when signing a maintenance contract, versus calling the Web firm when an update is absolutely necessary. The client is also guaranteed a place in the production schedule, because the Web firm can schedule the work.

A maintenance agreement benefits the Web firm in that it can schedule the update, and it can rely on the regular cash flow.

b)Devise two plans through which a Web firm could offer regular maintenance.

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Answer:There are several different ways to offer regular maintenance. One option may be to sign an annual contract with a client firm that guarantees a defined number of updates on a weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. Another option involves collecting a monthly maintenance fee, and it is up to the client to provide update material. Some clients may send more than the firm expects and others may not send anything at all. Thus, the cash flow for the work tends to even out.

Self-Review Questions

In order to test your progress, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1)(True/False) Good site administration documentation should

  1. _____ Advise a client on how to use Front Page.
  2. _____ Explain FTP (file transfer protocol) in depth.
  3. _____ Offer alternative hosting options, should the client become dissatisfied with the current hosting company.
2)(True/False) A maintenance agreement should cover

  1. _____ HTML updates
  2. _____ Graphic design updates
  3. _____ Programming functionality upgrades


Exploring Web Marketing and Project Management
Exploring Web Marketing and Project Management
ISBN: 0130163961
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2000
Pages: 87

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