Hi. We’re Forty. Things will go wrong.

You know how a new project makes you feel? Blue skies, birds singing, anything is possible. Then something happens and it’s like the skies darken and the bird poops on your head.

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Recently we were reminded of an important step in a new project: explain to the client that there will be bumps in the road. The experience involved a web project that had a form error after launching, but it could have involved any unexpected and undesired issue that surfaced as a result of implementation.

Problems come up regardless of expertise, and they’re inevitable when creating something unique within tight constraints.

Originality on a Budget

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Testing is an important part of a project. It can involve getting feedback from people about visual design, such as a logo or packaging (think of the now-infamous Tropicana redesign), or it can be testing a web site for functionality. However, budgets don’t always allow for this testing. Time restraints are a factor in testing, too. Not enough time to test? Be prepared for glitches.

When originality is a project goal, there will be bumps in the road because that exact thing in that exact situation has never been done before. The technologies and techniques are repeated, but this combination of them is original and untested. It’s not that we’re sloppy, but limited time and budget mean that choices have to be made and it can be a better use of the client’s money to keep a project moving forward rather than get stuck resolving minor imperfections.

When You Spot Something, Jump on It

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Even with testing, it’s a fact of life that unfortunate things will happen. What matters is how people handle those situations. (Our recent issue was fortunately resolved within fifteen minutes.)

When hiring a marketing agency or design firm, don’t set out to find the company that will be problem-free. Find one that’s responsive to the problems that will come up. Since it won’t always be blue skies, it’s nice to know you’re part of a team that’ll give you their umbrella.