Tips on How to Plan Your New Website
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008Here are some tips for anyone planning on building their own website:
- Do you own a domain (i.e. www.yourcompany.com)? If not, you should consult with a web professional when purchasing one or even researching one that might be available.
- Do you have a hosting account? Again, your professional web development company will be able to assess what you need and recommend an appropriate hosting plan at the appropriate company.
- Do you need a static or brochure-style website or do you require functionality like eCommerce, interactivity, slideshows, forms, etc.?
- Do you have a basic idea of how many pages you need? A good way to figure out how many pages you might need is by visiting competitors websites.
- What is your budget? Can you afford to hire a professional firm or someone’s friend’s cousin, etc.?
- Will you be providing/writing the content for the website yourself or do you need a copywriter?
- Do you have a logo, color scheme, fonts defined?
- Do you have a business plan and/or marketing plan to help guide your web site design vendor?
- Will you have time to provide your website design company with information when they request it? Design companies often get held up because Clients don’t focus on gathering the materials they need to supply designers.
- Do you have a timeline of when you would like to launch your website?
- Do you need Search Engine Optimization services and/or Search Engine Marketing Services for your new website?
All of these questions are important to at least try to answer on your own before you contact a web design and development company for a quote.