After you have a basic website, you may want to add some special functionality to your site, such as a slideshow, a shopping cart, a forum or a comment form. Each one of these is an example of a program you add to your website. Also called a “web app”, building these programs requires skills far beyond HTML or CSS. Luckily, it is very likely that someone has already written a web app that does what you need; so, you don’t have to build it, you just have to find it! And., you have to install it.

1. Figuring out what you want the software to do
The best case scenario in the short run is that you find this great web app on some other site, and you decide that you want it on your site, too. That is called “impulse buying” in the retail world. No planning; you just want it. It might be a great addition to your website, and it might end up being a headache. The problem is that you don’t have any criteria to judge the software against.

Normally, you should start by deciding what you want your software to do in detail. That’s more difficult than it may seem because success is in the details. You should write a document that describes what you want the software to do and how the system should respond to viewer actions, including what happens if a user makes an error. This is called a User Requirements document. An example of a User Requirement for slideshow software might be, “The viewer should be able to click thumbnail images to see the slideshow in the order he wants.”

I once worked for a company that wanted a classified ad type system on one of their websites. The description of what they wanted listed major features, but no specifics. After a couple of weeks of searching, I found one software package which had all the major functions at less than half their budgeted amount. Two years after the software was in use, they said, “This is stupid. People don’t understand the steps to creating the ads.” That was true, the system functioned, but the interface didn’t explain the steps graphically, only in text at the bottom of the forms, which the viewers didn’t notice.

The problem was that they didn’t think out each step of what the software should do. Then, they didn’t try the demo to see if the function worked the way they wanted it to. One of the items on their User Requirements should have been: “The site member should be able to see and click on tabs at the top of the page for each step of the classified ad submission process.”

2. Finding software that meets your User Requirements
Do a search for software that matches your plan. Try demos on each program. You will find that testing each demo will give you new ideas for your User Requirements. If they don’t have a demo, go somewhere else. Make a spreadsheet or other document that lists each piece of software you find and which requirements it meets.

It is very likely that no one piece of software will meet every requirement. You will also find that most packages add features you don’t need. Make a short list of software packages that meet the highest number of critical requirements.

In the search mentioned above, they wanted a short classified ad and a long classified ad. They also wanted an Events Calendar function and a News Function. Some packages had Classifieds but no Events. Others had two levels of Classifieds and Events, but no News.

3. Do some due diligence and check out the software companies
Any company can put up a great website and say that their software is wonderful. In fact, I can sit on a beach in Mexico and order a website from Vietnam for software that I don’t even understand very well. I worked for one company that expected me to create a user manual for software they were writing, but they didn’t want to tell me anything about how the software worked. When I tried to speak to the programmer to get some answers, the management got very angry. Figure that one out!

The point is that what they say the software can do and how well it does it – or how well they support it is questionable. Find out what people who have purchased and used their software are saying. On one software installation project, a software company listed some folks who used their programs. I called one of them. The gentleman who answered the phone said that was the worst software package they had ever used. Instead, they moved to a different product – and the first company listed them as a reference!

4. Finding out the technical considerations
In the previous steps, you may or may not have taken the fact that your web host servers will only be able to run certain software packages. Some web functions, like PayPal or Word Press, actually run on another server; so, you don’t have to think about the server specs. When you have transaction processing on PayPal, you have a link – usually a Buy Now button – that takes your viewer into the Pay Pal system. There are many services that work this way, including hotel reservation software and conference registration software.

However, if you are actually running software on your own web host, the servers have to be set up to run that application. For example, you may not be able to run a PHP application on a Windows server because Windows servers are typically set up for ASP. Your web host may be set up with servers that do both. Or, you may find that the database the application needs is a different version than the one running on your web host. Or, you may find that some quirky little setting is wrong on your web host. So, before you buy or spend a lot of time setting up an application, you should contact your webhost and find out if it will work!

Another issue is whether you will have someone available to make changes to your web app when you need it. You can expect to pay $50 – 120/hr for this type of work.

Conclusion
It may seem like it’s not worth the trouble to install software on your website. It is a definite leap, but if you count the costs ahead of time, it can cut many internal costs in employee hours and increase your sales, when done correctly.