My story
How I Became an Internet Project Manager.
For more than 30 years I have been working in the field of Information Technology. This area is constantly evolving and requires constant study.
In the 90s of the 20th century, I took up professional programming for various enterprises. I worked as: an editor of electronic databases, an engineer of Automated Control Systems, an engineer for automation of an information technology group, a programmer of a holding, automated at various enterprises accounting, human resources, office work, trade and warehouse.
For work, I needed knowledge in new programming languages. Which had to be studied at the place of work, as some enterprises used specific programs written in rare programming languages. So I learned the following programming languages and worked in them: Assembler, Algol, Basic, Pascal, QBASIC, Fortran, PHP, GNU bc, COBOL, C, C ++, Delphi, Java, JavaScript, Object Pascal, Objective-C, Visual Basic, 1C, FoxPro, SQL, dBase, etc.
In the early 2000s, I started programming at a low level. I participated in the programming of devices running on the chipsets of Fujitsu and Intel. All this time I was engaged in the repair of computers and office equipment, wrote programs for various enterprises, created the first sites for clients. Worked with Novell NetWare and Windows NT network operating systems. I worked with Cisco and Continental servers.
While developing and promoting websites, I started developing graphics and videos for websites and advertising. I started working professionally in such programs as: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects, CorelDRAW, 3D Max, Blender 3D, etc.
Over the past 10 years, I began to create websites for foreign companies and engage in their promotion. For me it was a wonderful experience and gaining new knowledge and customer requirements. I now did not just create sites. Now I was a person in one person who performs a bunch of different positions in one: Internet project manager, Programmer — system administrator, Internet marketer in e-commerce, Content manager, Web designer, SEO specialist, Copywriter — editor, Photographer, Contextual Advertising Specialist, SMM Specialist. For my own development, I began to pass certification exams. So I became a SEM (Search Engine Marketing) specialist.
For all the time of my work, I have launched and participated in the launch of more than 200 Internet projects. These projects were of different directions, many of these projects had their own interesting aspects. My main customers are start-up projects.
I began to constantly face an unpleasant tendency. The customer asks to make him a website. When asked why he needs it and what will happen to the site next. The customer cannot give a clear answer. The customer does not understand that the site is a living organism. Make a site is the smallest item in the whole chain of tasks. If you do not develop, do not promote, do not fill the site. He will die. 80 percent of customers do not understand this. The customer thinks that he can do everything himself. The client thinks that if the site is filled with product cards, the site will immediately enter the top 10 positions. But this is a big mistake! In my practice, almost 80% of sites die. It is painful to look at how you put your soul in, give all your strength and soul to the site, work with it all 48 hours a day. Constantly fill the site with information, register in search engines, take beautiful photos for it, develop an SEO strategy, optimize SEO for search engines, integrate it into social networks, and start advertising it. The customer takes and kills his site. After this, you experience a feeling of disappointment.
After another disappointment, I began to understand who I was all this time. All this time I was an Internet project manager. Having experience in all areas of the Internet business, I realized that I can use it to work in a team of interested people. I started looking for interested employers. Who needs their own internet project manager. Who want to develop their Internet (domain) name and that the name would be profitable. I completely changed my view of my work. Previously, I did all this alone, it is very difficult and not productive. Now I can create a team of people, and I know what to demand from them, since I have knowledge in their industry and fields of activity. I can set priorities and explain to the employer in which direction at the moment it is better to move the company. In which place is it better to save the budget, in which it is better to increase it. I know how to create a productive team and customize its work.
In large companies, an Internet company structure has already been created, in which departments have already been created: the Internet marketing department, the design department, the development department, the SEO department, the copywriting department, etc. A team of specialists works in each of these departments. Large companies rarely resort to working with Freelancers, they have their own staff, there are reasons for this.
There is an ancient wisdom. First, the person works for the name, then the name works for the person.
To promote a domain name (company website), a company’s brand, you need specialists in their fields. In my practice, sites that did not have an Internet project manager did not go into the TOP search position, and over time, errors appeared on them and they closed. Such sites did not bring fame to the company and did not bring new customers. Such sites are in a passive state, they are on the Internet, and no one knows about them. Search engines do not show them when you issue your request.
What employees are needed to maintain and promote the site?
Sooner or later, the issue of transferring the site into the hands of professionals (no matter how you like to delay this moment and save money) will be especially acute.
Therefore, at the start of the project you should understand what kind of specialists you will need, not only at the stage of its creation, but also in the future.
Internet Project Manager
This is the most responsible person for the entire project. The link between the company's management and performers. Deeply immersed in the project and the business as a whole. He leads the staff on the development and support of the site, or sets tasks for contractors and monitors the progress of their implementation. He understands e-commerce, Internet marketing, the creation and development of Internet sites and online stores. It has leadership qualities. He has experience in managing people. Able to set tasks for specialists and contractors, to demand their high-quality implementation. I will say right away, in my opinion, such a specialist should always be inside your company. Even if you plan to transfer the maintenance of the site to a third-party organization. Or maintain the site yourself.
Programmer System Administrator
A specialist who will not allow a failure on your site, and so that your site does not stop working. He will create and maintain the technical part of the site, write program code. He will add new functionality, carry out updates to site components. It will monitor the health of the site, hosting, domains, servers. Identify and correct errors in a timely manner, prevent failures.
Internet Marketer in E-commerce
This person develops and implements a set of marketing activities to promote the site, online store and individual products using Internet technologies. He conducts market research, looking for ways to attract and retain customers. He works to increase the attractiveness of products and create a positive image of the company. He makes suggestions for improving the site and optimizing advertising campaigns. He understands the nuances of promoting the project on the Internet, usability, contextual advertising, social networks, e-mail marketing, web analytics. It sets tasks for performers: programmers, designers, photographers, copywriters, advertisers. He may well work as a project manager.
Content Manager
This person is an assistant internet marketer. He is engaged in content development and site content. He has an idea of SEO promotion, he owns the skills of site layout. He interacts with copywriters, photographers, designers. In the absence of an Internet marketer (which is undesirable), he can independently set them the task of preparing the content. It can replace the e-mail manager and SMM-manager.
Web Designer
This specialist creates an attractive wrapper for your business. He is developing the web interface of the website or online store, its visual part. He creates the design of new pages of the site, advertising banners, processes images for product cards and more. He can be both in the company’s staff on an ongoing basis, and be attracted from the outside as necessary.
SEO Specialist
In order for your site to be displayed by search engines in a good and promising way, and it will confidently move up on SEO, you will need a specialist who will deal with SEO promotion. This specialist will make up the semantic core. He will give recommendations on the preparation of seo texts, etc. SEO-promotion of the site or online store should be carried out on a monthly basis with regular monitoring of the results.
Copywriter Editor
This specialist helps fill the site with text content. He writes SEO and advertising texts. Creates selling product descriptions. Prepares articles for blog and social networks. Collaborates with an Internet marketer and content manager. He may be on the staff of the company or he may be hired from another company or agency.
Photographer
This specialist conducts photo shoots for new arrivals of goods and services. It creates high-quality pictures of products and your services from beautiful angles. As a rule, he is hired for one-time jobs, but with frequent new arrivals and assortment updates, he can be hired for permanent work at your company.
Contextual Advertising Specialist
This specialist sets up, conducts and optimizes advertising campaigns in Yandex.Direct, Google AdWords, etc. He correctly selects phrases for which ads will be displayed. He composes the texts of the ads. It sets up the necessary parameters. It analyzes the effectiveness and optimizes advertising campaigns. You can entrust the setting of online advertising to a third-party organization or hire a contextual advertising specialist in your team, you decide. The main thing is that this is done by professionals who will responsibly approach the conduct of campaigns. This is one of the most important specialists, in order not to lose the advertising budget, you should entrust contextual advertising only to professionals in this field.
SMM Specialist
The specialist that you may need when promoting a website or online store is an SMM specialist. He manages the presence and promotion of the brand in social networks such as VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, Instagram, etc. He sets up and conducts advertising campaigns on social networks. His main efforts are aimed at: increasing the reach of the target audience; creating and strengthening a positive brand image.
I have listed the core team of any online project. If your website or online store cannot yet boast of a large turnover, hiring all of the above employees in the state is likely to be unprofitable. At this stage, you can periodically involve freelancers or web agency specialists in the work on the project.
At first, be sure to hire an Internet project manager in your company! He will lead the Internet project “from A to Z”. He will be engaged in the search and hiring of specialists. He will attract contractors. He will set goals, control deadlines, promptly provide information, give feedback, etc. And you do not have to be distracted from important business tasks.
I went through all the stages of creating and conducting Internet projects many times. I like to launch new projects. But over the past 20 years, I’m tired of giving finished projects. I’m not young anymore. I am looking for my latest, unique project. With whom I want to stay until the last day of my life. A project that will be final and very promising. For 20 years I learned to conduct this orchestra. I became the Best Internet Project Manager.
The last thing I would like to dwell on in this article is the pros and cons of various forms of cooperation.
If your website or online store cannot yet boast of a large turnover, hiring all of the above employees to work in your team is likely to be unprofitable. At this stage, you can periodically involve freelancers or web agency specialists in the work on the project.
I highlight the three main ones:
- Hiring employees in the company staff;
- Outsourcing of functions (freelance, web agencies);
- Mixed form.
Consider the pros and cons of each.
Hiring Employees in the Company Staff
Pros:
- Direct control. Your employees are only yours. All in one place and always at hand.
- Efficiency. Your orders are always a priority, therefore, they are executed faster.
- With knowledge of the matter. The full-time specialists are always deeper immersed in the business, they know it from the inside. And, therefore, complete tasks faster and better.
Minuses:
- Additional expenses. Salary, taxes and insurance premiums, sick leave, holidays, providing employees with everything necessary for work — and other expenses are borne by you.
- Staff turnover. The dismissal of specialists, the search for new employees, their adaptation, can become a cause of inhibition in business processes.
Recommendation:
The recruitment of employees in the company’s staff should first of all be justified financially: for example, if you are creating the Internet project AliExpress. If you have a multi-thousandth assortment and turnover from 100 thousand orders per day. Regular updating of the catalog, the addition of new functionality, round-the-clock technical assistance are provided. You are set to actively promote the brand, frequent marketing activities, etc.
In this case, you will definitely need employees who can quickly respond to your tasks and direct all efforts towards their solution, without being distracted by third-party projects.
Outsourcing of Functions (freelance, web agencies) Freelancers
Pros:
- Saving money is perhaps the main plus of this approach. On freelance exchanges for little money you can order texts, website design, graphics. But in this case, often low price = low quality.
- No long-term obligations. It is convenient to attract “free specialists” for one-time work and pay for the finished product. You do not bear any tax burden or other obligations.
Minuses:
- Low immersion in your business. In addition to setting the task, for a remote specialist you will have to draw up a detailed Terms of Reference, fill out briefs, provide the most detailed information about the project. But even this does not guarantee that the output you get the expected result.
- The lack of a team. If you hire several freelancers unfamiliar with each other to work on the same task (for example, a copywriter, designer, and layout designer), each of them may have a different vision of the final product, and they will not be able to discuss the project among themselves. The result will be like in a fable about a swan, cancer and a pike.
- High risks. A freelancer, not constrained by any obligations, may at a decisive moment fall ill, “break a computer” or completely disappear. Even if you agree to a 100% post-pay, you will still lose time.
Recommendation:
When deciding to work with freelancers, be vigilant. When hiring through the exchange, browse the portfolio, study profiles, take an interest in experience. Make payments through the «safe transaction» service. If you find a specialist outside the exchange, conclude a written agreement with him on the deadlines for the delivery and payment of the completed task. This will somehow discipline the performer.
Web Agency Team
Pros:
- Confidence in quality. You will receive a ready-made team of professionals that specializes in similar projects. Has relevant experience and best practices.
- Reliability. All interaction with the agency is based on a contractual basis. In addition, a significant role is played by such a factor as a business image. Therefore, the trustworthiness level of a web agency is an order of magnitude higher than that of freelancers.
- Saving money. Of course, agency services must be paid, but they will be cheaper than hiring the same employees in the state — you will save on taxes, salaries, job creation, etc.
- Personnel issues are not for you. Searching for specialists, training employees, providing jobs, salaries, taxes, controlling performers, etc., are all problems of the web agency management.
Minuses:
- Lack of direct access. And the possibility of direct instructions to specialists. Interaction is usually carried out through client managers.
- Priority. It is in every web agency. Since you are not the only client, the implementation of the current tasks of your project can be put in the queue.
Recommendation:
When choosing a contractor, ask him a question about loading an agency, how many projects are being conducted at a time. Pay attention to options with the possibility of an individual approach to your project.
Mixed option
With this approach, some of the specialists are on the staff of the company to carry out operational tasks (for example, project manager, Internet marketer, content manager). The remaining tasks (programming, design, advertising, smm, texts, photography) are outsourced.
Pros:
- Cost savings. No need to organize many jobs.
- Flexible format. To the services of remote specialists, you can resort if necessary and at any time to stop cooperation.
- Partial control and time saving. You set the task to the project manager and set breakpoints. And he, in turn, seeks out and controls the performers.
Minuses:
I did not find any special minuses in this format of cooperation. Efficiency in carrying out tasks and the level of control over performers can be partially reduced.
Recommendation:
The mixed version seems to me optimal in terms of cost, efficiency and quality of tasks. And it will be faster and easier for contractors to work on a project if you have a specialist who understands the features of e-commerce, knows the project thoroughly and is interested in its development.
I hope that I was able to convey to you the meaning of who is an Internet project manager, how many people are needed in a team to accompany a site or an online store.
When asked how much the Internet project manager earns, I modestly remain silent. It depends on how much the employer appreciates it.
With respect to you and your business.
