Some Questions to Consider:
- What you does your company/organization do or produce? (Give a brief overview of the company/organization)
- What is the purpose of this site?
- Do you have a time frame or deadline to get this site online?
- How much are you willing to spend? (If you don’t have a budget provide a range you’re willing to invest)
- Keep in mind that most custom sites for small business will run between $700 -$1500
- Simple 3-5 page sites can be created as cheap as $350
- What is your Target market? Describe your potential clients. (Young, old, demographics etc.)
Domain and Hosting
- Do you already own a domain name(s)? (www.mygreatsite.com)
- If yes, do you have IP information?
- If no, what website name(s) would you like?
- Do you have a hosting account service already? (Server where the computer files are stored.)
- If yes, do you have the login information?
- If no, I can provide hosting service?
Functionality
- What action(s) should the user perform when visiting your site?
- Fill out a contact form
- Fill out a quote form
- Sign up for your mailing list
- Search for information on your site
- Purchase a products
- Are you going to need Special functionality?
- E-commerce (sell products)
- Membership of any kind
Pages
- List of all the sections/pages you think that you’ll need. (Samples below are just an example to get you started)
- Home page
- Contact page
- About page
- Photo Gallery page
- Member Login
Content
- Do you have the written content and images/photographs prepared for these pages?
- If not, will you need a photography services?
- (Please note that before any real design work or site construction can begin, an outline of the content and preferably all of the content will be needed.)
- If this is a Redesign please explain what is working and not working on your current site?
Design
- When people come to your new site for the first time how do you want them to feel about your company?
- Are there corporate colors, logo, fonts etc. that should be incorporated?
- If you do not already have a logo, are you going to need one designed?
- Is there a specific look and feel that you have in mind?
Example Websites
- Websites of your closest competition.
- Have at least 3 links of sites of your competition.
- What do you like and don’t like about them?
- What would you like to differently or better?
- Websites that you Like
- Jot down the site address (include at least 3 examples)
- Comment on what you like about each site, i.e. the look and feel, functionality, colors etc.
- These do not have to have anything to do with your business, but could have features you like.
Marketing the Site
- How do people find out about your business right now?
- Have you thought about how you’re going to market this site?
- Do you have any social network accounts setup? (Facebook etc)
- Do you want links to those accounts on your site?
- Do you have a mail service account? (Constant Contact, MailChimp etc.)
- Will you want to build your mailing list and use it for advertising & newsletters?
- Will you want Designs for printed materials (business cards, flyers, etc.) produced as well?
- What Keywords do you want? If someone were searching for your product/service, what types of search terms (single words or phrases) might they use? Please list all the possible search terms you can think of (terms a user would use to find your site).
Maintenance
- Will there be sections that need regular updating? Which ones?
- Would you like to be able to do most of the updating yourself?
- Are you planning to write a blog?
- Do you already have several things written?
- Do you already write on a regular basis?
- Are there any features/pages that you don’t need now but may want in the future? Please be as specific and future thinking as possible.
Take the time to answer these questions so that we can work together to create the perfect website to fit your specific needs. This information will give me all the information needed to give you the most accurate estimate. Being prepared with content and photos will also speed up the process when that information is needed.
Steps to the Website Design Process
1. Project Definition
Once all the information is gathered from our initial discussion, an estimate will be given including a design proposal. This proposal will include scope of work, detailed price estimates, and estimated milestones and deliverables for project completion.
2. Site Architecture
Once the estimate and project proposal has been accepted I will begin to create the site architecture includes the sitemap and wireframes of pages. The sitemap ensures that we’ve considered all the key pages in the site, showing their relationship to each other and defining how the sties overall navigation should be structured. Wireframes provide a detailed view of the content that will appear on each page. Although they do not show any actual design elements, the wireframes provide a guide for defining content hierarchy on the page. (a minimum amount of content is needed for this step in the process)
3. Visual Design
Once the sitemap and wireframes have been created, the next step is to create a visual style. The overall visual style will most likely be determined by the visual brand of the organization. The organization’s brand plays an important role in this part of the process. Key features of your established brand, such as color, logo, and fonts will be incorporated into the web design. (More detailed content is needed for this step in the process)
4. Site Development
Once designs are approved, I will design graphics for each page, develop all content and establish an overall style for the entire site including HTML coding and CSS of the site. I will also add any pictures, videos, slideshows, podcasts and other media that will appear on the site. (ALL content is needed for completion of this step in the process)
5. Site Testing
Before the site is officially launched, I will give you a link to view the site in production. Anyone who you share the link with can view it. There will always be issues that need to be addressed before the site goes live. I will test for functionality and coding of the website and you will be able to point out any errors or changes you want to see. At this stage the site will need to be reviewed on multiple browsers (Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer) and multiple devices (laptops, tablets, and mobile) to insure that the site will function properly on different platforms.
6. Launch
The big day! Once the site is tested, reviewed, and approved, we are ready to Launch! Even after launch, I will continue to be available to make any necessary adjustments or corrections that may occur.
7. Site Maintenance
Websites maintenance is essential to a good website, so your site will need constant care and maintenance. Updating content, making changes to the back-end and fixing broken links are all part of keeping a website current and functional for your users.