Findings of the SINEOS QS website audits and why problems can occur.
Example 1
On the outside, many agencies sell themselves excellently and impress with their name, number of employees and presentable references, for example. SINEOS has made the experience that one should not be blinded by this, because in the background there can often be very different developers with very different experience.
As a result, the quality of implementation varies from project to project, which can lead to applications not being at the level they should be. This also has to do with the fact that everyone naturally has a certain ego and does not take advantage of networks to arrive at a more elegant solution.
At SINEOS, we know our employees and freelancers very well, are aware of their strengths and potential weaknesses and try to take this into account right from the design stage. This means that proposed solutions are always reviewed and discussed by at least two people. In this way, we ensure that development and implementation are targeted. In addition, we always try to think outside the box and also bring in external expertise if this makes sense. Our own wealth of experience should never be the limit when it comes to finding solutions.
Example 2
A client's team consists primarily of marketing experts. Nevertheless, the full responsibility lies in the commissioning and implementation of technical projects, such as the new development of the company portal. Here, the marketing department has to rely completely on the commissioned web agency.
At first glance, the implemented extensions work perfectly, but the necessary technical understanding is lacking for a more objective view. This makes it difficult to assess the quality of implementation or to suggest better solutions.
A second opinion from a second agency or a freelancer is therefore often of great value.
However, transparency at SINEOS also includes admitting your own mistakes, because we also have people working for us who are not immune to overlooking things, especially in the stress of everyday life. However, we are always looking for solutions to minimize these carelessnesses.
Example 3
Due to time pressure and budget bottlenecks, a very important aspect of extensive and complex online projects is often forgotten: solid documentation. It also often happens that the commissioning company does not have full access to its paid project - the issue is admin access to the CMS or store and an SFTP account.
However, the points mentioned here are absolutely essential for several reasons, especially if more than just information is offered via the website. In the worst case, this can lead to high losses for companies and threaten their existence.
Circumstances may mean that the lead developer is no longer available and therefore lacks important know-how for maintenance or further development. Or the client would like to obtain a second independent opinion, but his hands are tied here, because apart from access to an editor, nothing else is available. This scenario also occurs if you want to hand over a project to another Internet agency.
It is therefore essential to ensure that important project details are recorded from the outset and that documentation is created for all necessary modules to prevent a brain drain. Ideally in an internal company wiki. The manual should ensure that another person can familiarize themselves with it without having to ask too many questions.
Structured programs and clean, self-explanatory code that adheres to coding guidelines are major plus points for good documentation.
Of course, you may have concerns if you grant the customer admin access. But these can be eliminated by providing clear guidelines on how these are to be handled or that costs may be incurred if incorrect conditions occur.
