Hi,
Glad you made it! Below… through our experience is what we’ve found to be the 5 fundamentals for a fast, affordable website build.
1 - What is the menu structure and website navigation going to look like?
A menu structure is the main menu that the user will use in order to access different pages of your website, often they will be a part of the header (just like in a word document) but can also be an icon that expands when clicked on.
Menu structures are fundamental on a website because they help direct the user to the part of your website they’re looking for – so it’s important to have one because if you don’t your website is just a landing page.
Supplying this to us can be as simple as putting the main headings that you will see in the header on a spreadsheet and then underneath put in what pages will sit underneath.
Once we have this, we can determine the approximate number of pages we are looking at and what will be required for each page.
2 - Images – stock or real life?
Imagery is one of the key things that bring a website to life. They can convey much more than words can, and a large majority of the population are visual consumers, which means their attention is drawn to the images before the text (AKA the content) on your website.
So not only do images tell your story visually, but they are essential for filling space through the website.
With a hyper-efficient website you will either need to be utilising stock images (either licensed paid or unpaid), or sourcing high quality images.
Once you have your menu and navigation structure in mind, it’s as easy as setting up and naming folders for each page that can then be retrieved as part of the website design and build & placing your desired images in each page folder.
3 – Do you have the content for each page?
When we talk about content, what we’re really saying is text, copy – the written component of the website that are written in a way that describes your business to the outside world and often is favourable in language.
If you are rebuilding from an existing website (IE: updating), its likely you will have some content to work with.
Large bodies of text need to be broken up into bite size chunks (2-3 paragraphs) for the optimal user experience and often sit underneath headings that describe the sections.
Having a firm idea on what is the most important information that is easily read (even when a user is skimming through the site) will help with content placement throughout the design and build of your new website.
Alternatively, you may not have an existing website, so you’ll need to think about who is going to supply this? You may be doing it yourself or engaging a professional copywriter.
Either way, again it is as simple as putting this down on a word document and labelling for each individual page.
4 – What are the super critical points that you need to get across quickly to a potential user, customer or client; and what are your key points of difference?
Having a good understanding of this prior to designing and building a website will give a designer a much better insight into where key elements should be placed and what emphasis should be placed on each.
This aligns with content and imagery of each individual page.
The quicker you get your message across the more interested a user will be on your website.
5 – What do you want the user to do?
Most websites have an objective – and this could be simply supplying a user with information or driving them to a page where useful product or service information can be found that they are interested in.
Additionally, you may want a user to be able to contact you or to book a service of some description.
Understanding this will play into the design of a website and the user experience delivery, and this will help in the initial design phase and content placement of your new website.
Getting this right to begin with will have users navigating your website like a pro!
Keen to get started on your own Fast, Affordable Website? Click the link below & get in touch with use today.
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