Website development
Website development is a complex project which requires involvement from both the expert’s team as well as the client. Our expert teams can provide project guidance, technical knowledge and development services but the client insight into the business process organization and daily operations is of crucial importance for developing a website which represents an extension of the real world business.
To develop a website which provides ease of use for visitors and maintenance staff the following milestones in the project development process must be passed:
Platform selection
The creation of a website includes selecting a base software platform upon which the entire website is built. Modern web platforms are built as a combination of different computer languages like XHTML, CSS, ASP, JavaScript, PHP etc. This platform manages the relations between the website front-end (what the user can see online), the website back-end (website administrator’s tools and utilities for website maintenance) and the website database. Usually these platforms are called WCMS – Web Content Management System. A good WCMS allows a user with any level of IT readiness to publish and maintain content on the website.
4Ward has developed its own Web CMS named eazyio. The eazyio platform has modular built which allows easy upgrade, third party applications integration and remote database connections.
Architecture development
Website architecture can be described as the intellectual discipline of organizing website content.
Website Design
Web design describes the practical tasks, part-graphic and part-technical, of designing and publishing a website.
Content Management and workflow definitions
Content management, or CM, is a set of processes and technologies that support the evolutionary life cycle of digital information. This digital information is often referred to as content or, to be precise, digital content. Digital content may take the form of text, such as documents, multimedia files, such as audio or video files, or any other file type which follows a content lifecycle which requires management.
Defining a workflow requires identification of user roles, content creation and publishing rules and content versioning.
Platform custom configuration
Each module which represents a building block of the eazyio WCMS has a set of standard features integrated as a result of our experience with common client requirements, but there are no two business and thus clients with same requirements. So, the platform for maintaining the website must be configured based on the proposed website architecture and clients specific requirements for functionality.
Data creation and loading
Website data can appear in multiple forms (text, images, multimedia, information…). Using the WCMS and following the website’s architecture this set of data can be inputted into the website and presented to the user. Some clients already have prepared information that should go into the website, but sometimes this data has to be created.
Our experts and partners provide copywriting, technical writing and design services to assist our clients in the creation of the website data. We also provide services for input of large volumes of data, such as product lists or product details.
Hosting selection
Every website needs to be hosted (parked) on a hosting server (computer stored in a secure environment with a secure connection to the internet). Depending on the size of the website as well as the expected visitors number and frequency the hosting solution may vary from:
· shared hosting package
· dedicated hosting server
· multiple dedicated hosting servers system
· cloud hosting
Based on our clients input and the analysis of the target industry and audience our experts can develop projections about the hardware load and bandwidth demands for the website. Based on this expertise a hosting solution is proposed having in mind cost vs. effectiveness and scalability.
Integration with third party applications
In many situations it is required that a website receives or sends information from and to a third party system. In such a scenario a set of activities have to be executed to ensure proper data flow and resource utilization.
We have extensive experience in integrating eazyio WCMS with third party applications such as custom intranets, ERPs, CRMs, remote databases or other websites or social networking utilities (example: Facebook).