WebProject Costing - Help!

geanfranco

Hi Guys i've just been approached by a client to convert their static HTML site to a Dynamic DB based one.

I'm actually a full time web developer with a 9-5 so this is a job on the side.
I'm going to be using SQL server back end developed in ASP with business logic developer in VB COM+

Its actually a rather large sporting site from which they are looking for tons of functionality.

Heres a break down of what is required.

1. Spec out system requirements.
1. Design DB schema for web application.
2. Populate the DB with current site data.
3. Create a back end system where only site admins can enter in sporting fixtures times leagues etc.This will also comprise a search fature for these admins so they can look for existing fixtures and either update,delete or insert new ones. On top if this this should be able to change/add new leagues, regions,teams, fixtures etc Additionally there will be a login screen + various levels of access to the users ranging from superuser to editor/ author.

4. Modify existing site template so content is now rendered dynamically from Db. Probably looking at about 30-35 pages.

5. Deploying the site on a suitable hosting service.

This is really phase one of the project..other projects will follow to include a search engine + a complete site redesign.

Right the burning question here is how much i should be charging for this project and how i should structure the costing. I've been burnt before with a similar project where i ended up gettin nothing as company went bust

So i really want to stage payment this time. I'm really a crap businessman when i think of it so, if anyone could give me tips on how to cost it and how much i should be charging in this phase of the project i'd be very grateful.

Cheers
Tim.

Chardee MacDennis

why dont you ring a web design company and get a quote from them and then make your price based on that?

Hobbes

think there was a similar question before. While cost wasn't mentioned it did go into detail on how to word your contract what to expect. Was a good post. Think it was Corinthian that may of wrote it. Either this forum or the work forum.

frost

Hi Tim,

My bias: I use an iterative development approach (like Rational Unified Process or eXtreme Programming without as many test harnesses).

In order to cost this, I would suggest you first need to invest some time doing a high level project/iteration plan. If you can get the customer to agree to use the system in phases, as you develop it, you can structure your project around many small deliverables (iterations) which build on each other.

The benefit for both you and the customer is that he uses the system from the beginning, so he will tell you much sooner what he doesn't like, or wants extra. This will happen with any customer with even the most detailed specs, so it's better to hear it at a stage where change is much easier for you and impacts the project a lot less. That doesn't mean you don't still charge them extra if they go out of scope, and of course you have to be absolutely clear with your quote and when handling feedback, about what is in scope, what is out of scope, and what the impact (cost and/or time) any change will have.

Take the usual project management precautions about conservative estimates, building in contingency, adding in extra time for higher risk areas of the project (ie those where you have less experience, are more complicated or are difficult to understand the requirement). Allow for delays in getting feedback from one iteration which might delay the start of the next iteration. Also be aware of the difference between how long it takes to develop something at work, and how long it will take when trying to fit it into your "spare" time -- I always allow some extra "warmup" time to compensate for the time it takes getting my head back around a task I had left incomplete a day or more before.

You will have some test time (whether or not you do formal unit/system testing) and user accceptance time (even if you don't have a formal user acceptance phase), so allow for those too. Also, if you are including any Support you would want to allow for those hours.

Finally although you will charge for items that are out of spec, you will probably have some things they ask for during the project that are fuzzy that you will decide to include at no extra charge, so you may want to include an extra amount of time to cover yourself for these.

At this stage you have some rough idea of the total development hours you think this will take. You might decide to increase that by some factor, depending on your confidence in your own ability to estimate. Pick an hourly rate and multiply, then see if the figures seem commercially reasonable (don't worry if they sound big to you personally). Don't forgot about tax (if you're going to pay it ).

Once you have you development estimates and want to map them to calendar dates, be sure to allow some time for personal matters, holidays, getting sick, friends visiting, whatever, that might impact on your delivery schedule -- I think these things can have a greater impact on nixers than on office-based work.

I would recommend getting staged payments, with something up front. In my current project I got 25% up front, 25% at an agreed milestone roughly halfway through, and the balance on delivery/acceptance (for smaller projects, I wouldn't bother with the halfway milestone). This approach shows trust on both sides and means that the risk isn't all in one court.

Also I would recommend you address SUPPORT in your quote up front so they know how much you will cover as part of the devlopment and at what stage it becomes chargable, and at what rate (usually a percentage of the total cost of the software - varies, my last employer charge 15%-18%).

Sorry I can't just give a figure but hope some of this is helpful.