Web development may not be as complex as app development, but that doesn’t mean developing a website doesn’t have its own challenges. There are still plenty of problems to solve before you can deploy a website that is both effective and pleasing in the eyes of users.
Web development is also far more complex, particularly because there are more stages to complete, more tools and frameworks to use, and more tasks to manage along the way. Careful planning becomes a necessity due to the increasing complexity of web development projects.
Similar to app development, there are ways you can optimize every web development project you run. The methodologies and simple tweaks we are about to discuss in this article will help you get started with optimizing your own web development project in no time.
Define the Process
The first thing you want to do – even before you start planning for a specific web development project – is dig deep into the development process. While there are process designs that you can adopt as your own, taking the time to define how a web development project should be managed – based on your specific limitations and requirements – is far more beneficial.
For example, some project managers prefer to handle UX, UI, and programming as separate stages. Others love to execute the three parts of web development alongside each other. The same is true with testing and deploying the new site. Testing can be an inseparable part of the development process or a task performed at the end of the development.
The approach you choose to implement – how you define your own development process – will dictate how each project is managed. The important thing isn’t the approach itself, but rather defining one that suits you best in a clear way. A clearly defined process can be repeated with minor adjustment or improvement and immediately act as the foundation for smooth development.
Set Objectives and Requirements
With the process clearly defined, the next challenge to overcome is defining the project objectives and requirements. The two are often seen as similar, but they are actually two different things. Project objectives focus more on the goals that need to be achieved by the end result of the project as well as the project itself. Completing the project within four weeks, for example, is an objective.
Project requirements, on the other hand, talk more about how the objectives can be achieved. You may come across requirements such as the need to use a specific programming language or mandatory integration with existing services as you begin your web development project. Requirements, however, lets you plan for the project better.
Never Underestimate Project Management
No matter how simple a web development project may be, good project management is still invaluable. In order to manage the project meticulously, you need to divide the project into tasks, and then make a real effort to manage those tasks properly.
Agile project management is a good approach to utilize in web development projects, especially when the website being developed needs to be maintained and improved continuously. There are a lot of benefits of agile project management, which will make your web development projects more effective.
Implementing an agile methodology isn’t as difficult as you think, especially since you can now use a digital Kanban board to manage tasks. Kanbanize, the leading Kanban platform on the market right now, offers a wide variety of tools and features that can be used to manage tasks associated with a web development project in great details.
Time and Money
Next, you want to make sure that the project gets completed on time and within budget. These two metrics are usually how a project is reviewed. To be able to complete the project in a timely manner and within budget, both metrics need to be predetermined.
Starting with a clear budget in mind is always a good idea. When you know exactly how much you can afford to invest in the project, you can be more careful with how you allocate that budget across the development project.
A clear timeframe, on the other hand, simplifies the planning process. If you know that the deadline is in four weeks, you can work backward and place milestones that need to be achieved at different times. All you need to do next is stick to the plan.
Assemble!
The last part of this series of tips is resource allocation, particularly the allocation of team members. Making sure that tasks get assigned to the right PICs is how you tie everything together in a web development project. When the right people are in charge, you know that you can achieve the project objectives with fewer issues.
These are the tips and tricks you can use to optimize your web development project. Once you have these tips implemented, you can stop worrying about project management and start focusing on the technical side of web development.
