Siletz Technologies Goes Live!
We’re excited to announce the launch of the new Siletz Technologies website, which focuses on the services and capabilities of this local software testing enterprise. We worked with Operations Manager Andy Still and his chief developer, Brian Doherty, to create a site that would represent the strengths of the company graphically and textually, while demonstrating the ways in which Siletz Technologies is unique in its field.
Although Siletz Tech is a new company, management and training team members have worked in diverse market segments on numerous software projects of varying size, type, and complexity, and we have experience ranging from small startups, to Fortune 100 companies. They’re backed by a supportive team of financial, administrative, and marketing support staff through their parent company, the Siletz Tribal Business Corporation, which serves as the economic development arm of the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians. And they’re a designated Rural American Software Testing (RAST) company, which creates sustainable, living-wage careers in communities that are traditionally economically-disadvantaged and under-represented in the high-technology industries. Andy and Terra Firma agreed that the website needed to reflect the core values of the company, and its staff’s dedication to and passion for software quality.
First up in the process was discovery, which revealed four main markets for Siletz Technologies: clients who are getting started with software design and need to start a testing environment; those in need of test team augmentation, or already use in-house testing staff, but have needs for particular projects or deadlines to meet; those who are currently outsourcing software testing but need more responsiveness and better communication; and those who need minority-certified testing to complete bid-based projects on time and within a budget.
In the initial design phase, we took as a departure point the existing logo, and designed graphics that reinforced the Siletz Technologies brand and allowed for access to one of the four main areas of expertise from the home page. Incorporating subtle gray tones so as not to direct attention away from the main navigation elements was key, as was maintaining readability and clarity for ease of use. She enjoyed great feedback from Siletz Technologies as she refined the design.
Next was the programming phase, which we executed while the Siletz Tech staff worked on content. Great input from the Siletz Tech staff yielded refinements and improvements to the presentation of the content. Brian also developed a full test suite for the website, and made good use of Rails’ built-in unit, functional and integration tests, incorporating a 1:1.6 code to test code ratio.
We also created a streamlined mobile version of the website, optimized for the iPhone and other smartphones. The mobile version is less graphics-heavy to allow for easy access to the content-centric areas, and was designed specifically as a tool for networking and at-a-glance information about the company.
The last phase incorporated a general review of the site and implementation of the custom content management system, which allows Siletz Tech’s staff to control the aspects of the website that they need to, without jeopardizing the integrity of the site. An intuitive interface facilitates changes to content, allows for posting case studies and testimonials, and collects email addresses for customers who want to receive e-newsletters.
We also knew that Siletz Technologies would need access to analytics and tracking, and as with every website we build, the new site includes an enterprise-level analytics solution that show how their clients are using their website, and make improvements. By measuring the performance of the site, Siletz Technologies will have concrete information about the site has increased traffic, facilitated contacts, and improved the company’s performance.
We love helping a great business succeed, and we’re so happy Terra Firma and Siletz Technologies worked so well together. We look forward to another successful relationship!
Published by Brian Getting on Wednesday, August 25, 2010.
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