Prior to approaching an ecommerce agency, it’s important that you do the groundwork so that a thorough and accurate quote can be provided. It is worthwhile getting your brief right at the start, to avoid unexpected surprises after the design has started. At Digital Six we normally provide our potential clients with a questionnaire to ensure that we understand their requirements. We have shared some of the main considerations below to get you started on writing your ecommerce brief.
Firstly, consider what you are expecting to achieve from the project.
Once you have identified your goals and objectives then you can consider what services will help you achieve these goals.
Often times, an ecommerce website is just one piece of the puzzle. If your aim is to become a major retailer, you will need to think about all aspects of the marketing mix. Digital Six offers various marketing packages you may want to consider such as tailor-made SEO strategies, paid media management, and social media advertising.
It is important to check that your budget matches your goals and objectives. In the world of ecommerce you normally get what you pay for. Designing and developing an ecommerce site is a time-consuming process and most agencies charge for their time. The longer the project takes, the more expensive.
If your company is just testing the water in ecommerce, with a budget that is less than £7,500, we would say that your best bet is to set up a template website on software such as Shopify.
Although Digital Six doesn’t take on projects within this budget range, there are designers that specialise in setting up templates on these platforms. It saves everyone a lot of time if you are open and honest about your budget from the start.
For a custom design on an advanced ecommerce platform such as Magento, you should expect to pay more than £15,000. These projects normally involve more than a week of designer’s time and at least a couple of months for development time.
It is important that you have a realistic budget set aside for the project as a whole along with ongoing hosting, maintenance, support and marketing.
At Digital Six we have a standard list of questions that we ask most potential clients, as we want to ensure that we have everything covered. These questions include the following:
What best describes your needs? (delete as appropriate)
When is your desired launch date?
Why this date?
What is your budget for this project? (delete as appropriate)
Have you already decided which platform you wish to use? (e.g. Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce etc)
Do you have any preference for a payment service provider? (e.g. Braintree, SagePay, Checkout.com, PayPal etc)
Do you have any requirements that might involve some custom development? (e.g. integration with Point Of Sale, separate wholesale pricelist, bespoke features etc)
Will you be targeting visitors outside the UK? Which countries?
Do you intend to have multi-level access for members of staff?
Do you require multiple domain names managed under the same ecommerce platform?
Have you considered additional sales and marketplaces, such as eBay and Amazon?
What are your key business needs you want your new website to address?
How do you want your visitors to perceive your business when they visit your website?
Besides your competitors, what websites do you like the look and feel of and why? (Please list website addresses)
What type of ongoing support and services do you require? (delete as appropriate)
Do you have a budget for ongoing maintenance and support?
Are you working with any other agencies for advertising and branding support?
Producing a thorough ecommerce brief can be a daunting task. However, with the information we have detailed you should be able to engage in a productive conversation with the ecommerce agencies of your choice. For more information, please get in touch with info@digitalsix.co.uk
– This article was last updated 1st October 2018 –
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