Things to consider before starting a website

A website is a great way to promote anything and everything. But starting a website can be daunting, especially if you have never done one before. From functionality to design, a lot goes into creating a good website. There are a lot of tools out there that will help you create a quick and easy website, and that is fine for some people, but most need a higher quality site that functions well and stands apart from the crowd. To do that you must do things the right way. Building a good website is like building a house, you need a good plan. If you want to see some examples of sites done the right way, see our web design portfolio.

Below are some tips that will help guide you through this process before you even hire a designer/developer.

Choosing a Host and Domain

Before you do anything, you should already have the name of what you are wanting to promote. The next step is how to turn that into a domain name. The problem most people face is finding a good domain name that is available at a reasonable price (premium domain names can go for thousands of dollars). The trick is to find a name that represents your brand, easy to spell, and something that is unique enough that when people type it into a search engine your site is easily found.

Hosting is another important step in the begging. It’s vital to pick a good host that has good speed, scalable to your needs, has good backup options, secure, and good customer support. If you are doing a WordPress site, there are several good options out there but two that I usually recommend are BlueHost.com and Kinsta.com.

If you are using a service like Squarespace, WIX, or something like that, then you don’t need hosting as they provide that for you. You can also get your domain through them as well. However, these types of sites are restrictive, and template based. You might not be able to do everything you want with their services.

What Will Your Site Use for Backend Services

To create a website in the most efficient way, you will need a CMS (content management system). The most common one is WordPress. However, depending on what type of site you want it might not be the best choice for you. You can run an ecommerce site with WordPress using WooCommerce but sometimes this can be bulky and affect the speed of your site. Adobe commerce which used to be Magento is a great CMS for ecommerce.

Branding

Branding is more than just a logo, which is also important. Branding is the identity of your business that you want to convey to your target audience. You wouldn’t start building a house without first knowing if you wanted brick or siding. Nor should you start building a website without knowing things like color scheme, font, and your overall vision for your target audience. A good branding expert will help you attain all of that and more. If you want some guidance an the importance of picking the right color for your branding view our post here.

Functionality

What do you want your site to do? Is it an informational site? Should it have forms, galleries, or third-party integrations? Any web developer will tell you that one of the most frustrating things when dealing with a client is trying to add new features to the site midway through the project. I know you can’t think of everything but writing down as many functions as possible will help your developer know how to not only build your site but design it in a way that flows appropriately.

Pages and Navigation

If a website is confusing and difficult to navigate, your customers may leave and never return. It is important to layout your site in a way that makes sense. This is something your developer can help you with, but you should know what pages you are going to want before you start laying out the navigation.

Content and Copy

This is a step that a lot of people try to put off until later when the website is being developed. But to get the best design possible, you need to have copy (written text) ready before you start designing. Copy is a crucial part of your site not only because its what speaks to your audience, but also because of SEO (search engine optimization). Google and other search engines use your copy to rank your website in their listings. You can either hire someone to write your copy or do it yourself. If you choose to do it yourself, then you should research some top competitors and see how much copy they have per page. Short and sweet is not always the best practice when writing copy for your site as search engines give higher rank to sites that have well written and complete copy.

Images are another important factor to consider. While it’s not as important as copy to have all your images ready to go before you start building, it can certainly help. Depending on what kind of site you have, your images might be more valuable to your audience than others. For instance, a restaurant should use professional pictures of their food and establishment while a law practice might be able to get away with using stock photos. Your designer could help you decide what is best for you.

If you have all these things decided before you start designing, then it will greatly improve the overall success of your project and the length of time it takes to complete. It will also make for a happier development experience for both you and your developer.

If you are ready to get started on your website, contact us today!

Let’s Get Started

To begin your web design project with Phlex On, you can initiate the process by contacting their team and sharing your project details. Phlex On will then provide you with a proposal that outlines the project scope, timeline, and cost, allowing you to make an informed decision and proceed with their expert web development services.