The marketplace is swarming with new technologies and products that promise to make our frantic lives easier and more efficient so we can get more done in less time with less effort. Work less and get more. Talk less and say more. You get the picture. We’ve always got too much to do and too little time. So it’s only natural that we’re drawn to technology that makes our to-do list a little less daunting and life a bit more enjoyable.

And let me just say, thank goodness for these products. I mean, let’s be honest, few of us could survive without our cell phone or voice-command GPS or self-cleaning razor or remote control blinds or robotic vacuum, etc., etc., etc. These modern conveniences have made our lives more efficient to the point where we can hardly remember how we survived without them. For better or worse, they have completely revolutionized the way we live.

But they might not always work out as planned. I wanted a PDA for so long. I thought it would be such a great gadget to keep my life calendar in order. I expected that by syncing up all my information I would be able to keep track of my commitments with less time and clutter. Surprisingly, it didn’t quite work out that way. It turns out writing things down on a paper calendar with a regular pen works way better for me. And my fancy PDA with all its features sits, unused, on a shelf in my closet.

With a constant stream of new ideas and technologies being shoved down our throats, how can we judge what is the best solution for us before we make an investment that may turn out to be nothing but a closet accessory? In this information overload, technology-driven era, how can we separate the revolutionary from the useless?

One would think that we, working in a digital company, would be the ones preaching new solutions and always pushing the latest, greatest technology. The truth is that is not how we work. It wouldn’t be smart. Don’t get me wrong, we love innovation and new technologies and ideas, and in some cases that might be exactly what a client needs. But we make sure to ask for our clients, as we do for ourselves: what do you really need, and is the benefit worth the cost? Will it help reach your company’s goals? What hardware or software or hosting package or content management solution will make your jobs easier and the company better?

In this ever-changing landscape, it is imperative that we sit down side by side with our clients and ask questions and more questions until we come to a mutual understanding of the issues to address and the goals moving forward. Until we’ve done this, we could never help our clients sift through the mess, confusion, and promises of the available software, platforms, services, and mash-ups available out there to find the right fit for their goals.

For example, you can now buy golf binoculars that tell you the exact distance of a golf course hole, but if you can’t swing a club, it’s a wasted investment - just like our client could license a very robust, and very expensive, content management system with all the bells and whistles. But when it comes down to it, if the site only needs basic content changes, it’s probably a wasted investment. Why buy a $100 electric martini shaker when five flicks of the wrist does the same thing? The client may not really need all the fancy features, but does need the site to work for their specific needs and for their target audience.

The options are endless, but pockets aren’t bottomless, so we create strategies that ensure we’re building products that will revolutionize the way our clients’ work. We work to squeeze value out of our clients’ budgets by providing the right solution. We will help make their jobs (and lives) less frantic and more effective as well as help to increase visibility or generate leads or establish a brand presence or provide an internal content approval process or whatever their objectives may be.

With all the questions and options and objectives and necessities aside, what it really comes down to is the fact that we want to make sure our clients’ investments don’t end up on the shelf next my PDA.