Merge

For our first seven years of Merge’s existence, Merge has delivered web solutions a little differently than the industry. For instance, we’ve always insisted on delivering results instead of just a web site. And to consistently deliver results, we’ve developed a proprietary process called the M5 Digital Strategy that focuses on aligning web objectives with our clients’ business objectives. But we felt that these two factors weren’t enough and the project model the industry uses to deliver web sites is the wrong model. So for the past 12 months, Merge has been perfecting the Partnership Model for delivering our strategic, results oriented web solutions. As a partner, we become our clients “outsourced web division” so we can both build a new web site but then also execute their internet marketing strategy, as a partner, indefinitely.  

Learn why many of  Greenville’s top brands, such as FGP, OOBE, Clemson Alumni Association and T&S Brass have partnered with Merge and how the New Way to Web produces sustainable results for our clients.

Transcription:

Male Speaker 1:    A New Way to Web: Web Excellence. I’m Adam Landrum with Merge and let’s get going. For our first part we’ll have about 30 minutes of presentation and then we’ll have some questions. Everyone is muted so we don’t have distractions in the background and you can eat your lunch and you don’t have to worry about people hearing you. There is a question box so please go ahead and feel free to ask questions along the way and then I’ll try to make it somewhat interactive. As I see them if I can answer them, I will. If not, I’ll wait to the end of the presentation and answer them. But think about your questions throughout and hopefully we’ll have a good informative discussion.

So, with that, what we’re going to be looking at is really two different models for delivering web solutions. And there’s probably many different models, but there’s one predominant model that’s been used. Since we’ve been doing web development for a good eight years now, over the last 12 months or so, Merge has looked at the model and said based on the solutions that we provide, “Does this does really make sense?” And so we wanted to look at those two models and look at the differences. And really what our hope is that you’ll learn that there’s more than one model because really our experience is that we sort of assume that there’s only one way to do this and there really is more than one way.
 
And two, to take what you learned and go back to your organizations to get more results, because at the end of the day, it’s really about moving the needle and getting results. And you may not agree with everything or your organization may not be a perfect fit for the new model and what we’re discussing, but you may be able to take some good nuggets out of that and implement it back at your business or organization.

So let’s go ahead to have a look at the old or what we have called the current way and the old way is a project-based approach.  A project has a beginning and it has an end and it has a scope. And so we say “Hey you know, at the end of the day we’re going to deliver a website. And really from the client to, how the client views the web firm is their views as a vendor. You know, typically as a vendor the client is concerned with quality, price, and service. And we want, the client wants to tell the vendor what to do, maybe how to do it and how it should be done. Which is, you know, which is okay in and of itself and that sort of usually how the relationship is in the project-based environment.

Well, the problem that we have in doing web development as a whole is that the client really doesn’t know what they want. And this is true in anything project based. If you were remodeling your house, you probably don’t know exactly what you want and you’re counting on the architect or the general contractor to help show you the way.

And so the clients sort of discover their wants and needs throughout the project. Well, that poses a problem because that’s going to change the scope of the engagement. If I didn’t decide, I want something way bigger and better than what I already have then yeah I’m going to have to change the price of that or the time frame or something else in that regard. And also the client typically drives the requirements for the projects to the bidder because it’s more of vendor relationship. And again, I’m speaking in generalities. This isn’t always true. But they’re telling the web firm, “Hey you know, we want this, this, and this,” and it’s being dictated to the web firm instead of a collaborative approach.
 
And then the biggest distinction of a project model is that typically, the focus is on the website, and that is a very important distinction. But you know at the end of the project or at the end of the engagement, the deliverable is a website. So the client is buying a website. And, and we’ll talk a little bit later about the importance of that.