Clear Channel

This information is great, but how do I explain what I want to my web guy?” I was in the audience at the non-profit conference when the attendee posed this simple question to the “Communicating on the Web” panelists; crickets chirped as the panelists squirmed and cleared their throats. “What I really need,” she added with a laugh, “is a panel called ‘Communicating With Your Web Guy.’”
It’s not always easy speaking and/or translating geek with your web folks, yet it’s imperative to nurture a healthy relationship with them. In an effort to help you foster that bond, I have compiled a few suggestions to help you create the web presence you need while maintaining a healthy and productive relationship with your web guy (or girl).

What To Do
Your homework. Only engage a web guy after you have complete and thoughtful answers to the following questions: Who is your audience? How much information do you need to communicate on the site? Who is going to write your web copy? What do you want visitors to be able to do on your site? What is your timeline? What is your budget? What are some examples of websites you love/hate? Do you need a mobile version of your site? What are your search engine optimization goals? Are you seeking social media integration? Do you want to make your own website edits? Sure, it’s a lot to think about, but your answers help the web person build the most appropriate product.

Designate one point of contact. Too many cooks in your digital kitchen leads to miscommunication, conflicting direction, and often a disgruntled stuck-in-the-middle-of-office-politics web guy. Although several team members should be involved in brainstorming, copy writing, etc., only one should be the designer’s primary contact.

Develop purposeful content. Your site needs succinct, grammatically correct, keyword-filled copy. It’s rare to find a web designer who has the skills (or desire) to write the copy for you. If you are averse to the written word, hire someone to do it for you. Your website may be beautiful, but if it doesn’t really say anything and lacks a call to action, it’s nothing more than a very expensive business card.

Communicate via email. One of the primary reasons you may think you’re saying one thing and your web guy is hearing another is because that is exactly what’s happening. He hears what you say, not what you mean, are implying, or are hoping he’ll understand. The best way to communicate your needs and desires is via email. You’ll likely recognize incomplete or conflicting direction when you write it down. Sure, it may take you 20 minutes to type the email, but it will only take your web guy three minutes to understand what you want, and since he’s billing you by the hour, that works in your favor, right?

Understand the consequence of your declarations. Feel free to declare your desires — it is your website, after all — but also ask and allow your web guy to respond by telling you what user functionality or search engine optimization may be affected by your decision to use specific technologies. For example, you said you wanted your entire site to be interactive and “move around,” and you asked your web guy to build it in Adobe Flash, a multimedia platform often used for adding animation and interactivity to web pages. What you did not know is that although Flash looks cool, you won’t be able to view it on an iPhone or iPad. And unless your web guy is a Flash guru, Google won’t be able to index your Flash content. To top it off, your final project cost with Flash will increase substantially.

What Not To Do
Engage in condescending bargaining. “My cousin says he can do this for free” is never a good way to start a web guy relationship. If the web guy is smart, he’ll tell you to go hire your cousin, and he’ll likely mutter something about another place you can go.

Provide vague feedback. Web folks are very literal, so unless you’re looking for sequins and saxophone clip art, never say, “Can you jazz it up a bit?” Your web guy doesn’t know what that means. Also, when you ask for a feature, be able to show your web guy an example of what you’re talking about. For instance, there are a million ways to “add Twitter” to your website, so you need to be more specific about the way you want to do that. Email him screen shots, print off a copy of a web page and mark it up with a Sharpie, whatever. Just do your homework. If you aren’t willing to put some effort into your editing and feedback, you can’t be upset when Web Guy misses the mark.

Design by committee. I strongly encourage you to avoid saying things to your web guy like, “I passed your design around my Sunday School class, and they have some suggestions.” You picked the web guy because he is a web designer who knows what he is doing; there’s no need to bring 15 other people who aren’t designers into the fray. It’s rarely helpful, often causes you to second guess yourself, and nearly always results in missed deadlines and busted budgets.  
Remember, like in any good relationship, it takes two to tango. If you’re willing to do your homework, communicate in specifics, and be open to learning a thing or two, a solid web guy rapport and fabulous new website are in your future.