Aligning Customer Expectations In the Complex World of Magento - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Aligning Customer Expectations

In the Complex World of Magento

Brent Peterson

Magento Evangelist Agency Coach Selfie Extraordinaire Wagento Commerce Email: brent@wagento.com Twitter: @brentwpeterson

Magento’s flexibility comes from its broad codebase and deep configuration scheme.

So how do we best educate the client?

The Challenge

To educate the client upfront what a successful project looks like.

The Solution : Client Education

• Two things to Focus on:
• Learn what the client has done in the past
• Create a clear statement of work

The Solution : Client Education

• Learn what the client has done in the past
• Creating a clear statement of work
• Adding work to a project will add time to the project.

The Solution : Client Education

• Learn what the client has done in the past
• Creating a clear statement of work
• Adding work to a project will add time to the project.
• A project can’t be done as soon as the designs are

complete.

The Solution : Client Education

• Learn what the client has done in the past
• Creating a clear statement of work
• Adding work to a project will add time to the project.
• A project can’t be done as soon as the designs are complete.
• Even when discovery is done surprises may occur.

How is education realized?

• Performing discovery on both the client and the project.

How is education realized?

• Managing the assumptions that are inherent in a Magento

project.

• Performing discovery on both the project and the client.

How is education realized?

• Communicating to the client how modules, products,

servers and traffic will impact the performance.

• Managing the assumptions that are inherent in a Magento

project.

• Performing discovery on both the project and the client.

How is education realized?

• Setting clear billing expectations.
• Communicating to the client how modules, products, servers and

traffic will impact the performance.

• Managing the assumptions that are inherent in a Magento

project.

• Performing discovery on both the project and the client.

How is education realized?

• Clear billing expectations.
• Communicating to the client how modules, products, servers and

traffic will impact the performance.

• Managing the assumptions that are inherent in a Magento

project.

• Discovery on both the project and the client.

Having a Trusting Relationship is Key

The Most Valuable Business Commodity: Trust

David K. William – Forbes.com

The Basic Contract

What a basic SLA looks like

Client asks for work. Agency does work. Client approves work. Client pays for work. - REPEAT.

• Start the conversation about expectations early on.
• Make it simple enough for everyone to understand.
• Reassure the client that we will fix bugs and errors.

The Good

Expectations

• The good is going to be realized by how each party member

manages the expectations of the project.

The Good

Expectations

• The agency’s ultimate responsibility is to manage the

expectations.

• The good is going to be realized by how each party member

manages the expectations of the project.

The Good

Expectations

• The client fully participates in the project
• The agency’s ultimate responsibility is to manage the expectations.
• The good is going to be realized by how each party member

manages the expectations of the project.

The Good

Constant Consistent Communication is Key

The Good “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” – George Bernard Shaw

Put it in writing!

The Good

Communicate Timelines

• Carefully explain the project process
• Communicate timelines upfront
• Explain why a delay is happening

The Good

Communication Quality

• Low quality communication may result in lost trust of the client

The Good

Always value ethical actions over expedient ones.

• Jean-Luc Picard

Communication Quality

• Balancing the Information
• Too much information may result in confusion.

The Good

• Calls and face to face meetings
• As often as needed during discovery
• Once a week with client during production
• Scheduled and impromptu after launch

The Good

• Emails
• Client would expect to see these frequently
• After launch a scheduled check in should be maintained

The Good

• Reporting
• Weekly timeline during production
• Daily status updates on tickets if needed
• Schedule delays
• Anything else the client needs to know!

The Good

• Changes
• During production changes need to be introduced immediately
• Add or remove items that will impact the timeline
• Discuss budget
• Post launch versus pre-launch

The Good

• Tools

Good Project Management tools will help move the project along for both the client and the agency. It is important to educate the client and engage them to use and learn the tools. As every client is different and every project is different each interaction will be different.

The Good

Respect Time

• Time is valuable
• Respect the time of others
• Ensure it is time well spent
• Deliver valuable content

The Good

The Bad

Sales and Accounting

• Giving quotes without proper discovery
• Poorly communicated time spent on issues
• Declaring “Yes we can do that!” (without discovery)

The Bad

Development and Technical

• Why something is a great idea but bad in practice. (200 store

views)

The Bad

Development and Technical

• Decision makers without the technical knowledge to make

technical decisions and not asking questions.

• Why something is a great idea but bad in practice. (200 store views)

The Bad

Development and Technical

• Magento projects taken by developers who know nothing

about Magento

• Decision makers without the technical knowledge to make technical

decisions and not asking questions.

• Why something is a great idea but bad in practice. (200 store views)

The Bad

Development and Technical

• Let the developer be the only one to communicate with the

client!

• Magento projects taken by developers who know nothing about

Magento

• Decision makers without the technical knowledge to make technical

decisions and not asking questions.

• Why something is a great idea but bad in practice. (200 store views)

The Bad

Project Management

• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

Project Management

• Letting the customer tell you when the project will be done.
• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

Project Management

• Waiting until the end of a project to communicate changes
• Letting the customer tell you when the project will be done.
• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

Project Management

• Project managers with too many projects
• Waiting until the end of a project to communicate changes
• Letting the customer tell you when the project will be done.
• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

Project Management

• Creating poor common practices: allowing phone calls to dictate the new work and

not following up in writing

• Project managers with too many projects
• Waiting until the end of a project to communicate changes
• Letting the customer tell you when the project will be done.
• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

Project Management

• Getting emotionally involved in a project
• Creating poor common practices: allowing phone calls to dictate the new work and not

following up in writing

• Project managers with too many projects
• Waiting until the end of a project to communicate changes
• Letting the customer tell you when the project will be done.
• Poorly communicated requirements

The Bad

The Ugly

The Ugly

At some point the client becomes frustrated because what they are expecting is different than what the Agency can or will deliver.

Client comes to a Magento Partner with performance issues after going through a non-Magento Agency. Problem: 200 store views 9000 categories… slow website. Someone without Magento experience may not know that loading up Magento with so many store views and categories will slow things down. Possible Solution: Reduce the amount of store views and categories as well as heavily caching the website.

Client in a rush has a questionable timeline. The client tells the agency it has to be done and agency agrees to do it without thinking…. Problem: Let the client dictate the entire project: Time line, delivery. Etc… Possible Solution: Say no. Full stop. Give the client a reasonable timeline

Customer comes to agency after dealing with another Magento developer or agency. New agency needs to both launch the project as well as fix and/or learn everything that has already been done. Problem: Recover a failed implementation: How do you deal with a project as the next developer or the sixth developer? Possible Solution: Be honest with the client and agree that you are not going to be able to know everything about the project. Let the client know that problems will come up and the agency will be there to help.

What did we learn?

• Communication is King
• Understanding what everyone wants and not assuming.
• Get it in writing
• Tell the client when something changes
• Be honest with the client

Having awkward conversations up-front.

Thank You

Email: brent@wagento.com Twitter: @brentwpeterson