What's changed in the last seven years?

Although Blackad has been around since 1999, it became a full-time operation in 2002. Which got me thinking: what's the one thing that should have changed in those seven years, but hasn't?

Easy - many clients still start with copy from a printed brochure, leaflet (or whatever) and try to massage it into a website. While it might be appropriate for some clients, for many this is an expensive way to create mediocre websites.

To create a killer website, you need a robust structure and endless discipline. You need to really understand the labels the customer needs to see, and the journeys they're going to take on your site. Not so on a brochure - which can often feel lacking in logic and coherence.

Obviously, some brochures are corking. But many are overly long - to me, they end up feeling like an answer in search of a question.

Start with the website, and you impose rigour - a steely minsdet that will help you create the offline material (like brochures) that needs to work alongside the website. Oh, and it tends to be cheaper too.