A well-designed website is crucial for creating a strong online presence and achieving your business goals. Before embarking on a website design project, it’s essential to align with your designer on key aspects to ensure a smooth process and a successful outcome. Here’s a 10-point checklist to guide your discussion:
1. Purpose and Goals
Clearly define the primary purpose of the website. Is it to generate leads, sell products, provide information, or build a community? Discuss specific goals such as increasing traffic, improving user engagement, or achieving a certain conversion rate.
2. Target Audience
Understand who your website is designed for. Discuss demographics, interests, and pain points of your target audience to ensure the design resonates with them.
3. Brand Identity
Share your brand’s logo, color scheme, typography, and overall style guidelines. Ensure the website design aligns with your existing brand identity or creates a cohesive new one.
4. Key Features and Functionality
Outline must-have features like e-commerce capabilities, contact forms, chatbots, blogs, or appointment scheduling. Prioritize functionalities that enhance user experience and achieve your goals.
5. Content Plan
Decide who will provide the content—text, images, videos, etc. Will you need the designer’s help with creating or sourcing content? Establish a clear content hierarchy and tone of voice.
6. SEO Considerations
Discuss SEO requirements, such as site structure, keyword strategy, mobile-friendliness, and loading speed optimization. A good design should be search-engine friendly from the start.
7. User Experience (UX) Design
Talk about how users will navigate the website. Plan an intuitive layout, clear call-to-actions, and a seamless journey to achieve their objectives while keeping bounce rates low.
8. Budget and Timeline
Be upfront about your budget and deadlines. Set realistic expectations for what can be achieved within the given constraints.
9. Competitor Analysis
Review competitor websites to identify strengths, weaknesses, and gaps you can address. Use this research to inspire unique design elements and avoid common pitfalls.
10. Maintenance and Future Updates
Discuss how the website will be maintained post-launch. Will you need the designer’s ongoing support, or should they create a user-friendly CMS for self-management? Address scalability for future needs.
By covering these 10 essential topics, you can ensure a collaborative, efficient, and successful website design process that meets your business needs and delights your users.