Project scoping is one of the scariest and hardest parts of the design process when you’re new to it. It takes time and practice to get right, and in this episode we’re sharing the best tips on project scoping from us and our listeners. You’ll also hear about some times when we got it wrong, so that you can learn from our project scoping mistakes.
Project scoping involves getting a full understanding of the project and how long it will take so you can figure out how to plan for it, how much to charge and manage expectations with the client.
Break down the process and think through how long you’d need to spend on each part. It will help you figure out how long the project will take as a whole - but always make sure you add an extra buffer just in case!
Track your time when you work on client projects. The client doesn’t need to see the breakdown of hours, but it’s important for you to be aware of so you can learn how long things take and improve your estimation skills.
To minimise delays in a project and stay on track, pay careful attention to what the ‘wild cards’ could be (the things that could add a lot of extra time if you’re not careful) and set mini-deadlines throughout for both you and your client to provide feedback.
00:00 - Intro and catch up
04:00 - The importance of scoping a project
07:30 - What to do when you’re new to project scoping
14:40 - Examples of when project scoping has gone wrong for us
22:00 - Charging per project vs per hour
23:15 - Thinking about the wild cards
28:30 - Asking questions while in the scoping phase
31:30 - Outside factors impacting time
