AI & Development Process - The Digital Ink

AI & Developemnt Process

At Digital Ink, we approach every AI and development project with a rigorous, collaborative framework to turn real business problems into innovative, scalable solutions. Powering this process is our Smart Elephant team, a group of strategists, developers, and data scientists who specialise in unpacking complexity and delivering high-impact, intelligent systems. Whether it’s lead generation, software development, AI/ML, or data analytics, we start by clearly defining the core problem and understanding why it matters to your business. From there, we gather full background context on your industry, workflow, current limitations, and the stakes involved to shape a focused project goal, whether automating a process or building a system that drives tangible value.

We dig into key success metrics like time saved, revenue growth, or improved accuracy, and evaluate the potential ROI to ensure the solution justifies the investment.

Clients are encouraged to share user stories, target requirements, and a vision for the final deliverable, from specific data needs to open-source preferences, which we use to scope the project, create a transparent timeline, and define pricing. Every project kicks off with a collaborative planning session, followed by signed-off scopes and contracts, so everyone’s aligned before the real magic begins.

The devil is in the detail

We scope, plan, and deliver every project with precision, guided by a proven framework that ensures clarity, value, and results at every stage. Here’s how we do it, and what we look for.

Type of project

Lead gen, software development, AI/ML, data analytics, other?
Problem definition: What is the problem the client is trying to solve, and why is solving this problem important?

Project desc.

⁠Goal of the project (e.g. automate x, or create a system that does y) and a brief description.

Background info

⁠What industry is the client in? What do they do?
⁠As much background context as possible. What is the scenario?
Current pain points? Limitations of the client’s current workflow.

Key success metrics

How will the client measure success for this project (e.g. time saved, increased conversions, improved accuracy, revenue growth, etc).
How much does the client currently spend on this issue?
How much would the successful outcome be worth to the client?

Project requirements and scope

⁠Can the client write a list of requirements/user stories?
⁠If lead generation, this can be things like the leads have to be in the UK, they have to be in x industry, basically get specific on their target audience.
⁠Does the client have a desired output or vision of what the project deliverable should be like? Does it need to be open source?
Writing out user stories is always good. From this, we can scope the project, set a timeline and price, etc. Usually, we meet the client to discuss and ensure they are happy with our scope. Then contracts and then deliver.

The Process

AI & Developemnt Process

The devil is in the detail

Type of project

Project desc.

Background info

Key success metrics

Project requirements and scope

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