Building a New Website? Don’t Get Honey Dicked!
I know what you are thinking “What the hell is getting Honey Dicked?”. Unfortunately for me, it is a term I came across only after I experienced it first-hand.
Honey Dicked, in a nutshell, is a term used when you have paid a massively overpriced fee for a product or service based on the way that it was packaged and sold to you. The end result while not being weak, it is nowhere near worth what you paid for it.
Web development has come a long way over the last 5 or so years, especially when it comes to eCommerce sites, but unfortunately, people are still getting ‘Honey Dicked’ far too often. Why do people keep falling into this trap? The answer is simple, they get sold the promise of success. The more you spend, surely the better your site will be, and intern the more money you will make.
There are few industries in the world where the price of a job can vary so radically between different providers. The worst I have seen is a $50,000 difference between two various agencies quoting the exact same project.
So what are the warning signs and what can you do to make sure that you don’t get Honey Dicked when you go about either building a new website from scratch or adding to your current site:
1 - Create a Clear & Precise Brief
Interpretation is a constant struggle when dealing with external suppliers to your business. To ensure that you are on the same page, you can never be too pedantic. Create your brief highlighting each section of the website you need work done on. When possible, either supply screenshot examples of other sites you like, or take screenshots of your own site and mark out exactly where you want the changes to be. Do this for computer and mobile versions of your website.
I find a tool called ’Skitch’ handy for taking and editing screenshots.
Getting the agency on the same page as you will save you time and money. Never assume they know what you want, the more specific you can be, the better.
FYI: Just because they are nodding their head and saying they can do it, does not mean they actually have experience with what you are asking.
2 - Always Get at Least Three Quotes
There is no rhyme or reason for how you select the agencies you decide to work with. Google reviews, Companies they have worked with, Recommendations from contacts, Their Creative copy etc. Find the ones that tick the boxes for you and start booking meetings. If you are building an eCommerce website, make sure you pick a provider that specialises in eCommerce sites. There is a big difference between creating an efficient brochure site for a restaurant and an eCommerce site for selling footwear.
I would highly recommend that you consider at least three different agencies before making your decision.
If one is considerably cheaper than the others once you get your quotes, make sure that they haven’t overlooked something in your brief. There is nothing worse than having your developer coming back to you wanting more $$$ mid-job to complete what you thought you had already paid for. If your brief is detailed enough, you will be able to go back to the points that should have been included. Make it very clear that if they have under scoped the work, it’s their problem, not yours.
Under-pricing the work to get the job and then trying to sting you along the way is not acceptable if you have given a clear and precise brief. The brief will hold them accountable, so put the time into your planning.
You need to find that balance between price and the perceived ability of the agency. Not to low, not too high, just right.
3 - You Are Paying For Their Fancy Office
When you arrive to have your initial meetings with your chosen agencies, I have no doubt that at least one of them will have a fancy office on an even fancier street. They will have Espresso, Red Bull Fridge and Dr Feel Good Ice creams at the ready for your arrival.
Although the exposed brick walls and foosball table make everything looking pretty impressive, just remember that the cost of this office space is included in your bill and although it oozes a feeling of success and awesomeness. It has absolutely zero impact on the result that their team can produce for you. This is possibly one of the hardest things to get past. You are getting sold the idea of success without even realising it.
If the work you need doing isn’t extremely custom, keep in mind that the agencies that have high hourly rates will be charging you the same amount regardless if you have a first-year grad working on your site vs a seasoned vet.
Some of the best work that I have had done for me was by a one-person team that works remotely. I have literally never actually met her in person. Her rates are really sharp, and her work is of a really high standard. No need for the enormous overheads of office space in the virtual world, unless that is what you need to see to believe they can do the work. Just remember you are paying for it.
4 - Set Deadlines
Both parties need to have a clear understanding of when the job is meant to be delivered. This needs to be non-negotiable. The longer it takes for you to get your site or updates completed is costing you money in sales. When the updates need to be made for a specific season, e.g. Black Friday / Christmas, it’s much easier to gauge the go-live date as it can’t be pushed out.
5 - Rinse & Repeat
Using Shopify, you can add agencies that are Shopify Partners as collaborators to your Shopify account. For every site, I manage I have no less than three collaborators associated with the account.
I rinsed and repeated the steps above until I had three that I was happy to work with.
If you have three companies that you trust to do your work, it not only allows you to keep everyone’s prices honest, but it also gives you the freedom to get jobs done faster if any of your options have a large workload at the time of the request.
Having these businesses set up as collaborators will mean that they can pick up your work as soon as it’s available.
Conclusion
There are so many parts to developing a successful online strategy, and throwing large sums of money at your website does not mean that it is going to sell well. Build and develop your site over time, using the analytics, feedback and experiences you have had to make informed changes.
Since being Honey Dicked myself (possibly twice), I have now saved many businesses from experiencing the same fate, and with this post, I hope I can rescue a few more.
Key Take-Aways:
Create a detailed brief of your job. The more specific, the better. Never assume they know what you are talking about.
Get quotes from at least three agencies before deciding who is doing the work.
Always have at least three collaborators set up in your Shopify store at any one time.