It's not always true that good things come in small packages. One of the most valuable books Business Marketing has seen in a long time runs 372 pages and could go on that many more.
"Buying Web Services: The survival guide to outsourcing," by J.P. Frenza and 12 of his closest friends, is a fact-laden book that tells you how to out-source state-of-the-art Web sites. As such, it is a definitive guide to help you find expert Web developers, the kind who will produce a good-quality, workable site on time and within budget, all the while avoiding the mistakes made by those who just think they know it all.
Mr. Frenza compiled a massive amount of solid advice. As the chapters unfold, readers can find out how Web professionals deliver demonstrable benefits. Thirteen experts help you gain insight into the nuts and bolts of building a Web site.
Save time, money
"Buying Web Services" promises to save you time and money, helping you determine whether your company should build its site in-house or work with an contractor. It will also help you develop a concept for the site, evaluate proposals, understand design and site hosting, handle legal contracts, manage a large Web project, anticipate what might go wrong, work with subcontractors, manage future technology and, of course, market your site.
In the forward to the book, Web guru Jakob Nielsen, principal of the Nielsen Norman Group, says: "The Web will become the most important business tool of the twenty-first century. All companies need to build up internal expertise in Web strategy. Outsourcing is an opportunity to get advice from more experienced Internet experts, but no one can tell you how to run your business."
Web know-how
Two chapters of "Buying Web Services" are especially helpful. Ignoring their advice is an invitation to disaster.
Jerrold Spiegel of Frankfurt, Garbus, Klein & Selz P.C., one of the most accomplished attorneys in the new-media industry, wrote "Covering Your Legal Bases." The chapter, "When Things Go Wrong," is written by Julia Rubinic of R/GA Associates, a special-effects film, video and imaging company. She says if you're not careful when you embark on a Web project, you are risking a place in the history of great failed projects.
Matt Carmichael, contributing editor to NetMarketing, also wrote a chapter: "Working With Multiple Subcontractors."
Robert Mendenhall, a Chicago-based journalist and former executive editor of The Journal of American Insurance, reviews books for Business Marketing.
