Recently we have been working with a lot of businesses who are just creating their very first website.  We eat, sleep and breathe websites so at times it can be easy for us to forget how daunting the process can be when you start. 

To help we have put our heads together to create a list of things to think about before you start talking to an Agency to help you create your website. This list of headings should hopefully help you feel more confident in what you need or want your website to look and feel like as well as what you want it to do.

Branding

To start with what brand assets do you have?  By brand assets we mean do you have a logo, a set of colours and a font that you want to use?  If so make sure you jot these things down ready to share.  It is also helpful to have a look at other websites that are in your sector, what are your competitors doing, is there a business that you admire from afar?  If so make a note of what you like on their websites, obviously you wont be copying but it is good to get inspiration and have an idea of where you are striving to be with your website.

Page Structure

Working out exactly what pages you need on the website is a great place to start and should help you get an accurate quote from an Agency.  If it is your first website we would recommend you start with the Core 4, Home, About, Services and Contact. You can then obviously increase this to as many pages as you need, but jot these down in a hierarchical structure to help you start thinking about the content you need to write.

Imagery

Often clients stumble on imagery when they are getting the content together for their website. If you don’t have lots of your own imagery that is not a huge issue, there are plenty of websites out there that allow you to use images for free such as Unsplash or Pixabay.  Alternatively you can purchase images from sites such as iStock and 123rf.  Make sure you never just take images off Google to use as you will not have the license for these and could end up with a hefty fine.  Alternatively, if you have a little bit of budget, why not get some professional photos taken of you and your business in action, it will make a huge difference, add a layer of authenticity, and doesn’t have to cost the Earth. 

Functionality

Aside from basic text and image content, what else do you want your website to do? We have included a list of functionality below that you may want to include when getting quotes together for your new website.

• Instagram Feed
• Blog/ news content
• Newsletter Sign Up
• Document Manager
• Gallery
• Contact Form
• eCommerce Shop
• Events

Domain

Your domain is something that people will type into Google (or other Search Engines) to access your website.  Ours is www.purplecs.com. Start thinking about what you would like your domain to be, make sure that it is short, memorable and easy to spell that uses words that relates to your business. We would recommend getting a business email address on your domain as well that makes you look professional, such as [email protected].

–

We hope that the above list has given you something to think about if you are just starting out on your website journey.  We are always happy to talk if you want to discuss your business and your website ideas, we understand a website is an investment and it needs to work just as hard as you do to get you seen online.