A Good Polish Helps a Lot
-
I having experiences that reinforce the notion that clients, any type of clients, will be more willing to accept minor bugs or omissions from at least an intermediate deliverable if it is neat and looks nice. Even my perfectionist technical director. I demoed a small web app tonight, and everything displays and looks nice (thanks to telerik, not my styling skills), but the Update buttons and the grid filtering don't work. The clients were a lot more than happy, they were plain excited, and they aren't goo-goo eyed end-users either. If you are going to ignore layout and styling, then you must deliver a functionally perfect application. If you want early, semi-functional prototypes, they should look almost as good as the end product.
If you want your customers to be happy, have something that doesn't look quite right which they can suggest as an improvement, and then say "Wow. You're right. That would be a real improvement. Thanks for that, we'll add this in before you next see it." This way, they get excited because you're listening to them and they've had input into the design - it's an easy win as far as you are concerned and it guarantees that they will be interested in your app.
"WPF has many lovers. It's a veritable porn star!" - Josh Smith
As Braveheart once said, "You can take our freedom but you'll never take our Hobnobs!" - Martin Hughes.
-
Looking at the title of your post I was thinking a good Polish sausage, they always help me. :)
I thought he was referring to someone from Poland :laugh: But you're right, polish sausage over sauerkraut is great!
Best wishes, Hans
[CodeProject Forum Guidelines] [How To Ask A Question] [My Articles]
-
Looking at the title of your post I was thinking a good Polish sausage, they always help me. :)
jeron1 wrote:
a good Polish sausage, they always help me
Is this kid sister safe? :suss:
-
If you want your customers to be happy, have something that doesn't look quite right which they can suggest as an improvement, and then say "Wow. You're right. That would be a real improvement. Thanks for that, we'll add this in before you next see it." This way, they get excited because you're listening to them and they've had input into the design - it's an easy win as far as you are concerned and it guarantees that they will be interested in your app.
"WPF has many lovers. It's a veritable porn star!" - Josh Smith
As Braveheart once said, "You can take our freedom but you'll never take our Hobnobs!" - Martin Hughes.
They are imaginative enough for me to code the whole world, and they'd still think of new features. This app reports on telephone usage, and in five minutes we moved on to bandwidth reporting and personnel profiles.
-
Yusuf wrote:
Then in the presentation, move over those functionality that are not done quickly.
They moved over it quickly. They almost dismissed the bugs over asking questions on could I do this or that with the grid and report filters. :cool:
I love it when you demo a prototype that has taken a week to put together and they use that as a starting point and end up with a completely different spec to what was discussed. One protoype out the window, rebuild almost from scratch. While I am used to this, being a corporate dev for decades, one poor junior was almost in tears seeing all that work thrown out. It was nice when they asked when we thought the next prototype will be available instead of dictating a timeframe.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH
-
They are imaginative enough for me to code the whole world, and they'd still think of new features. This app reports on telephone usage, and in five minutes we moved on to bandwidth reporting and personnel profiles.
Brady Kelly wrote:
in five minutes we moved on to bandwidth reporting and personnel profiles
These people are dead inside, Brady, dead.
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
-
Brady Kelly wrote:
in five minutes we moved on to bandwidth reporting and personnel profiles
These people are dead inside, Brady, dead.
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
I see dead people. Hell, I code for dead people. :-) No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
-
I see dead people. Hell, I code for dead people. :-) No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
Brady Kelly wrote:
No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
My god, you even speak the lingo! Get the to a nunnery, young Brady! Your soul is at risk!
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
-
Brady Kelly wrote:
No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
My god, you even speak the lingo! Get the to a nunnery, young Brady! Your soul is at risk!
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
martin_hughes wrote:
Your soul is at risk!
You reckon? Next year I resume my LLB studies. What then?
-
martin_hughes wrote:
Your soul is at risk!
You reckon? Next year I resume my LLB studies. What then?
Christ, what am I? Your personal forking soothsayer? Very well... The stars are aligned against you. Your favourite dangly bits will drop off by the end of the year due to a freak onanism incident. You will pass your LLB examinations, but will be roughly violated by a hyena. You will feel compelled to send cash to your personal soothsayer. Always the cash. To your personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer.
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
-
Christ, what am I? Your personal forking soothsayer? Very well... The stars are aligned against you. Your favourite dangly bits will drop off by the end of the year due to a freak onanism incident. You will pass your LLB examinations, but will be roughly violated by a hyena. You will feel compelled to send cash to your personal soothsayer. Always the cash. To your personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer. Cash. Personal soothsayer.
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
It was a rhetorical question[^]. I have no soul once I start practising law.
-
It was a rhetorical question[^]. I have no soul once I start practising law.
Oh, so that's what a rhetorical question is! Thank God you're here to tell me these things! Without you, I'd be lost - completely lost! But - happy day! - you're around to help me out! Hallelujah! PS Your knob is still going to fall off :)
print "http://www.codeproject.com".toURL().text Ain't that Groovy?
-
I love it when you demo a prototype that has taken a week to put together and they use that as a starting point and end up with a completely different spec to what was discussed. One protoype out the window, rebuild almost from scratch. While I am used to this, being a corporate dev for decades, one poor junior was almost in tears seeing all that work thrown out. It was nice when they asked when we thought the next prototype will be available instead of dictating a timeframe.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH
Good on you! There is a line of thought, to which I subscribe, that this is exactly what prototypes are for: to be thown out of the window once you got the feedback. After that, you can start for real - this time thinking about all the things that were the last on you mind when you were writing that prototype: about multi-threading, localization, data migration, etc.
-
Brady Kelly wrote:
willing to accept minor bugs or omissions from at least an intermediate deliverable
well it is not final deliverable. before the presentation set the tone and remind them this is intermediate, there may be some squeaking wheels. (tell them you forgot the oil in the office ;) ) Then in the presentation, move over those functionality that are not done quickly. :-D
Yusuf Oh didn't you notice, analogous to square roots, they recently introduced rectangular, circular, and diamond roots to determine the size of the corresponding shapes when given the area. Luc Pattyn[^]
-
Looking at the title of your post I was thinking a good Polish sausage, they always help me. :)
I was thinking of the reverse
-
I see dead people. Hell, I code for dead people. :-) No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
Hell, I code for people that make you long for death.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
-
martin_hughes wrote:
Your soul is at risk!
You reckon? Next year I resume my LLB studies. What then?
I'm all dead inside,up to the point of indifference... "so what" attitude:P naahh I still love it :cool:
-
I having experiences that reinforce the notion that clients, any type of clients, will be more willing to accept minor bugs or omissions from at least an intermediate deliverable if it is neat and looks nice. Even my perfectionist technical director. I demoed a small web app tonight, and everything displays and looks nice (thanks to telerik, not my styling skills), but the Update buttons and the grid filtering don't work. The clients were a lot more than happy, they were plain excited, and they aren't goo-goo eyed end-users either. If you are going to ignore layout and styling, then you must deliver a functionally perfect application. If you want early, semi-functional prototypes, they should look almost as good as the end product.
Your polished partially-complete product allows your client to psych themselves up for the finished product, but also (and probably more importantly) show it off to their coworkers, bosses or clients. The sonner they can start doing that, and the more polished the project is when they do show it around, the better they look to their coworkers/bosses/clients. Put simply, your polish makes them look good.
patbob
-
Your polished partially-complete product allows your client to psych themselves up for the finished product, but also (and probably more importantly) show it off to their coworkers, bosses or clients. The sonner they can start doing that, and the more polished the project is when they do show it around, the better they look to their coworkers/bosses/clients. Put simply, your polish makes them look good.
patbob
Very true, but I find the polish even works internally. A bad interface with serious functionality, but also serious omissions or bugs, psychs the boss up negatively. A polished interface immediately sets a positive frame of mind, and I get suggestions or criticism instead of reprimands.
