Gaining a clear understanding of your vision for your project is essential to any successful design project. Before getting started, it’s important to share important information with your designer. Here are a few essential items they’ll need to know.
Website Questions & Needed Information
1. Do you have a current logo? If yes, please send it to your designer. If not, they’ll be able to create an innovative logo that captures your company’s identity.
2. Is there a specific color scheme that you have in mind?
3. What is your slogan, tagline, or mission statement?
4. Have you purchased a domain? Every website has a specific address called a domain name. For example, my domain name is roundmtndesign.com. You must purchase a domain name and pay to register it annually. The cost is around $20 per year. I do this for a lot of my clients and have recommendations concerning domain names.
5. Do you have a website in mind that you would like your site to emulate? Send examples of websites you like, so your designer is able to get a better idea of the look and feel of your project.
6. Share information about your competitors, so your designer is able to keep market trends in mind.
7. What sets your business apart from your competitors? Let them know the unique features and benefits of your services or products, so they can emphasize those elements in the website design.
8. Explain the core purpose of your website, so the designer is able to integrate elements that align with your goals. Is it for entertainment, internal communication, increasing your public profile, increasing sales, reducing customer calls, increasing your prospective customer base, or promoting online transactions (sales, registrations, etc.)?
9. Who is your target audience? Determine your target audiences’ age, gender, income, interests, location, etc. This information can help determine your website’s style.
10. Are there any websites you would like to list (partner organizations, vendors, clients, etc.) on a resources page?
11. Does your business hold any specific licensure/bonding/certifications?
12. Do you want to incorporate social media accounts with your website? Please list the address for each.
13. Do you have any testimonials or reviews that can be used on the website? If not, you should take the time to gather some from your past clients. Testimonials go a long way to helping your business look legitimate and trustworthy.
14. If you were looking for your business or services, what would you type into a search engine? These will help your designer with keyword research for search engine optimization or SEO.
For E-commerce websites you need to think through the following:
1. How will you accept payments? For example, you can use PayPal, Square, Authorize.net, etc. How are you accepting payments now?
2. How many products/services do you plan to sell via your website?
3. What service will you use for shipping and what amount will you charge for shipping?
4. Do you have quality images of your products?
5. How will you collect taxes?
6. What are the categories of your products? An example of product categories would be shirts, pants, shoes, dresses, jewelry, etc.
7. Will your products have variables like size or color? Make a list of those.
Having this information available will help you and your designer plan how best to create your website. The designer should have a lot of experience with the best practices for these issues and be able to explain and guide you through most of these decisions.