Our business & technology philosophies

Maybe it seems a little strange for us to be discussing our philosophies, but we want to give you an idea of how we conduct our business, interact with clients, and approach the use of computer technology. 

Here are the things we've learned from our experiences, which we'll keep in mind when working with you:

1. Keep it Simple!
   (or, Hey! Where are the animated fireworks, dancing babies, background music, etc.?)
   Unless there's a compelling reason, we've learned to do everything the most simple, basic way that meets the website's objectives. That way it'll be:
    
   • far easier to implement in the first place
   • easier to update
   • less likely to "break"
   • and far easier to update after some time has past and it's naturally become more complicated because of growth and age.
      
2. Cost/Benefit Analysis
   Sometimes people get caught up in what the hot, cool new thing is, and feel like they have to do what everybody else is doing or get left behind. But, frankly, there are times when the hassle, maintenance, and time it takes to computerize (and maintain) something just isn't worth it. If we spot this situation, we'll tell you. Yes we may lose some business in the short term, but it'll be worth it when you tell others that they can trust us!
   
   Oh, and in case it's starting to sound like we're anti-technology, rest assured that we aren't. We like playing with cutting edge websites and high-tech gadgets as much as the next techie, we just make sure not to kid ourselves as to how practical they really are.
    
3. Be Courteous, Respectful, and Honest
   We've all probably had the experience of hiring an expert to help us with something, but they seemed to spend more time "proving" to us how much they knew (and oftentimes belittling us for not also being an expert in their field) rather than actually helping us accomplish what we hired them for in the first place. And it seems that people in the computer industry tend to be guilty of this a lot. Regardless, it's not pleasant, necessary, or, well, very nice. We promise to keep this in mind, being sure to respect you for your talents while being courteous when we are explaining the things we're experts in.
    
4. Appropriate Level of Technical Explanation
   Some clients want to learn all the ins and outs of the computer technology we're using on their project. But others would rather concentrate on their core business, give us the goals for the project, and then not be distracted by the details of how we implement it. Whatever your preference of interaction, we'll cater to it.
    
5. Informal But Professional
   We're pretty articulate (well, we like to think so anyway), well informed, and professional, but also informal. The informality comes both from working in the computer industry, as well as the fact that we moved to Coeur d'Alene for the purpose of living a simpler, "nicer" lifestyle.
    
6. Microsoft-Centric
   We tend to use Microsoft products and technologies. Why? Largely because of Kevin's nine years there and his resulting ability to tap into Microsoft's resources. Beyond that though, Microsoft really does a lot of things quite well, despite what some headlines like to proclaim these days. (If you want to hear Kevin explain what he really thinks of some of those headlines, just ask, he's usually more than glad to give his two cents' worth on this topic!). Microsoft also has a history of providing extensive support resources and a huge array of complementary products. So if you're one of those "anybody but Microsoft" types, be forewarned!