Steps in a project and costs of ecommerce (lecture)

Written by: Jonathan Briggs

December 2, 2005 [5698 views]

It is hard to estimate how much a project will cost without analysing the specific requirements and the environment in which the project is being implemented.

In this session we will explore the steps often found in a project and discuss the time involved in executing those steps

1. Project planning including creative, technical, integration, budgeting, testing and promotion
2. Setting and agreement of project goals and constraints
3. Assembling and briefing the project team
4. Brainstorming creative ideas
5. Competitor and market analysis
6. Analysis of business logic (selling, fulfilment, returns)
7. Wireframing/diagramming of processes and functionality
8. Agreement of functionality, specifications and plan within budget
9. Selection of platform, tools and hosting environment
10. Graphical design (within brand guidelines)
11. Conversion of design into templates and style sheets
12. Product modelling and database design
13. Promotion design and logic
14. Design of decision support tools to help shoppers select, choose and experience
15. Writing of all text pages (Terms & Conditions, Privacy)
16. Design and implementation of CRM integration
17. Design of customer service processes and systems
18. Design of testing regime and tools
19. Implementation within shopping software, CMS or from scratch
20. Integration with stock and ordering systems
21. Integration with payment partner
22. Photography
23. Collection and manipulation of content
24. Testing of business logic
25. Testing with users
26. Testing for DDA compliance
27. Cross browser and platform testing
28. Delivery and training (editorial and CMS)
29. Promotions and shop management
30. Design of reputation strategy
31. Implementation of reputation strategy
32. Design of PPC campaigns
33. Implementation of PPC campaigns
34. Integration of analytics and monitoring software
35. Monitoring of SERPS and PPC
36. Support and management of problems and issues
37. Changes in requirements following feedback and experience

Not included

1. Marketing
2. Selling
3. Contract negotiations
4. Project management
5. Meetings and reviews
6. Iterations
7. Client changes of requirements
8. Technical roadblocks

Questions about budgets

1. How long would you expect each of these steps to take?
2. How many people would you expect to be involved with each step?
3. Do less experienced people cost you less?
4. What would you expect each person to cost per day?
5. Is it possible to leave any of the steps out?
6. Which parts of the project could be outsourced?
7. How significant is the choice of software tools to this process?
8. Which of these steps would you expect to be the most expensive?
9. How can you make the project cheaper?
10. How can you ensure that you make money on each step (if you are a supplier) or keep the budget under control (if you are a client)?
11. What would be a typical budget for this sort of project?
12. Which parts of this process are omitted by clients who choose to use systems such as OScommerce, Actinic Catalog and Amazon Marketplace?

How accurate is this budget?

The following is a fictitious budget open for full discussion but assumes integration with moderately complex back-office systems, strong branding guidelines and the need for an excellent customer experience. No software, database or other licensing costs are included and ongoing costs have only been estimated for the first 2-3 months.

The budget is shown in person days.

Project planning including creative, technical, integration, budgeting, testing and promotion	4
Setting and agreement of project goals and constraints	1
Assembling and briefing the project team	1
Brainstorming creative ideas	3
Competitor and market analysis	3
Analysis of business logic (selling, fulfilment, returns)	4
Wireframing/diagramming of processes and functionality	2
Agreement of functionality, specifications and plan within budget	2
Selection of platform, tools and hosting environment	1
Graphical design (within brand guidelines)	10
Conversion of design into templates and style sheets	5
Product modelling and database design	2
Promotion design and logic	2
Design of decision support tools to help shoppers select, choose and experience	2
Writing of all text pages (Terms & Conditions, Privacy)	4
Design and implementation of CRM integration	5
Design of customer service processes and systems	5
Design of testing regime and tools	3
Implementation within shopping software, CMS or from scratch	15
Integration with stock and ordering systems	10
Integration with payment partner	5
Photography	5
Collection and manipulation of content	10
Testing of business logic	3
Testing with users	3
Testing for DDA compliance	3
Cross browser and platform testing	3
Delivery and training (editorial and CMS)	2
Promotions and shop management	3
Design of reputation strategy	1
Implementation of reputation strategy	5
Design of PPC campaigns	1
Implementation of PPC campaigns	5
Integration of analytics and monitoring software	1
Monitoring of SERPS and PPC	2
Support and management of problems and issues	4
Changes in requirements following feedback and experience	5
TOTAL person days	145

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