Patrick Bieser
President, Northwoods Software
1572 E. Capitol Drive, Shorewood
Industry: Web development, software engineering
Employees: 35
www.northwoodsoft.com
It can be time-consuming, confusing and frustrating to get the information you need. Northwoods Software president Patrick Bieser says it is OK not to understand it all. Just look for those with the best explanations.
“I recently met with a Milwaukee business looking for a website redesign. They wanted a better ‘look’ to help improve sales. They didn’t have a large budget.
“The president wanted a new look. The marketers wanted a better product list. The IT staff wanted an easy to use CMS. They showed me a huge website. ‘Can you make it look like this?’ they asked.
“They wanted to make a smart spend with their modest budget and had enrolled in the school of ‘Interview Vendors’ to learn more about web design and marketing.
“We don’t mind. It’s part of our job. But it is a bit like going to medical school by making appointments at the local urgent care center.
“A few years ago, I had a similar problem. Our phone system was dying, so we needed a new one. I’m pretty smart about technical stuff, but after three meetings with phone vendors, my head was spinning. Phone guys will VOIP your PBX if you’re not watching. There was much we didn’t know.
“In the end, we went with the vendor with the best explanations. We didn’t understand everything, but our vendor did, and we trusted them.
“But back to the original point.
“Usually, it’s not possible for us to share enough information or transfer enough knowledge for clients to make expert, likely-to-improve-leads, website redesign decisions. We spend a lot of time overcoming dark forces offering bad advice. At some point, our clients have to trust us.”
