Fundamental considerations as you build your website and beyond
I’ve used this as a web design/development checklist while discussing needs from clients whom I’m building websites for. Keeping these 7 concepts in mind while planning will support you in any decisions you’re making around your website.
Actions:
What actions do you want your visitors to take?
Some Examples of Actions:
- buy now
- sign up for a newsletter
- sign up for a freebie
- contact us
- donate
- share
- take a quiz
- make a reservation
- play a game
- comment
Branding:
What sort of branding do you have, want or need?
Some examples of branding:
- Fonts
- Graphics
- Logo
- Colors
- Vibe
Content:
What content do you have? What content will you be creating or providing?
Some examples of content:
- Text/Copy
- Images
- Videos
- Custom games/quizzes
- Proprietary tools
Design:
Look, feel, and structure.
This is generally broken up into two parts:
- Look and Feel (Graphical Design): The appearance and vibe of the website.
- Structure (Architectural Design) – The structure of the website pages and the navigation — how the website and navigation will be laid out).
Environments:
What applications will you be using for your web presence? And what will you use them for?
This includes:
- Website
- Social media platforms
- Google and other search platforms
- Directories
- etc.
Functionality:
What sort of functionality will you need, on your website and beyond, based on the information gathered from A-E and G?
A small set of examples include:
- Create forms (i.e. contact, sign up)
- Quiz/Game creation
- Design applications (i.e. Canva, Photoshop)
- Analytics / Data collection
- Social media and Directory aggregator
- Under the hood: Security, Speed, Search Optimization.
Bonus (G)
Growth:
Do you want to grow over time? If so, how much? How might you do it? And how will you know what growth is?
An example answer to these questions could be:
Yes, I want to grow. As much as I can, but not so much I’m overwhelmed. I’ll do it by creating content that’s interesting enough that others want to share, and I’ll do it consistently. I’ll know if I’m growing because I’ll use tools to track and analyze my results.
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