Volkside project worksheet
Source: http://www.volkside.com/articles/project-worksheet/
Version 1.0, March 2009
Volkside  Interaction and Information Design, User Experience and Usability

Introduction
You can use this worksheet to capture your vision for the project and help us understand your needs.
You can have a go at this yourself first, or contact us to for a time to complete it together.
Please provide a concise response for those questions you feel are relevant to your project. Complete this as a group if you can so you’ll can collect ideas from the whole team.
You may be thinking of using our specialist services only for a specific part of your project. We would still like to understand the wider project and the context in which we will be working.
Once you have clearly described your project please send the answers to us by email at team@volkside.com, pretty much any format will do. We’ll have a look and get back to you with our ideas for the right solution for you. We’ll also ask further questions if there are any areas that need clarification.

Project and objectives
1. What is the name of your company? What products and services do you provide? Where are you based?

2. Are you planning on creating a completely new website or online service, or are you looking to improve an existing site?
If an existing site please include current web address

3. What are we creating? Please describe the concept, product or service your website does or will provide.
e.g. general company information, online product sales,  social networking service

4. List the top three business objectives for your website. What are your main reasons for running this project?
e.g. improve sales, increase customer satisfaction, reduce time spent looking for information

5. What results do you expect ? How will you know that the site is a success?
e.g. “20% increase in sales”, “70% of surveyed users expressing satisfaction”, “30% reduction in time staff spends on looking for information”

Project team and budget
6. Who are the main contacts for this project? Who has final approval? What’s the best way of working with this team?
Please list names, email addresses and phone numbers

7. When do you expect the project to start and when does it need to be completed? Are there specific reasons for these dates? Do you feel the timeframe is realistic?
e.g. tradeshow, product launch, end of quarter or financial year

8. Which aspects of your project would you like us to help you with?
e.g.  focus groups and research, web design, usability testing, end-to-end delivery

9. Budget will affect much time we can devote to your project. What is your expected budget for this project?

Current site, if you have one
10. What aspects of your current site work well? Why do you think that is? Do you have any statistics on this?

11. What aspects of your current site are unsuccessful? Why do you think that is? Do you have any statistics on this?

12. Do you update your current site using a content management system? Which one? Are you happy with the system?

Your audience
13. Who are we creating the website for? Who are the different types of visitors to your website?
e.g. first home buyers looking for mortgages

14. Who are the people in your team that know users the best?
e.g. customer service staff, sales team

15. How do you think your audience currently perceives your company?

16. What do you think are the goals of your users?  Why will people use this kind of website?

17. What can people do on your site?
e.g. find the most suitable mortgage, compare mortgage products from different banks

18. Why will people choose your site over others?
e.g. biggest choice of mortgages, easy to use, useful calculators, friendly advice etc.

Content and design
19. What are the objectives of the website design?
What are you hoping to see?

20. What is the key information content on the website? Is your team familiar in creating online content and writing for the web?
e.g. mortgage prices and features, advice on product selection, interest rates

21. What is your marketing proposition?
e.g. “do your banking when it suits you”

22. How you would like users to perceive the new site? How do you want them to feel about your company?
e.g. modern, professional, friendly, edgy, fun etc.

23. Please list websites of your closest competitors? What works? What doesn’t?
Include websites that inspire you

24. A content management system helps you maintain and update the content on your website. Do you have any specific features you will need?
e.g. company and product news, multiple authors,  product stock control, support for online payments, user moderation, etc.

Phew, that’s it. If you got this far you have done a great job in painting a picture of what your project is all about and we should have no dramas in coming up with the right solution for you. All you need to do is email us the answers at team@volkside.com and we’ll get back to you.

This worksheet is based on Clearleft’s Client Ideas Sheet so big thanks to Andy Budd and the Clearleft team for their hard work and ideas!