Creating a website can be a rewarding investment if you approach the project with effective website planning in mind. By defining clear goals, understanding your audience, and focusing on usability, you can create a site that meets visitor expectations and supports your business objectives.
What do you want to accomplish by having a site?
Whether you’re a photographer looking to present a polished portfolio or a retailer aiming to generate sales online, it’s good to document your goals and measure yourself against them. Effective website planning begins with defining these objectives. For many of our clients, the primary answer involves increased sales, improved revenue, or greater exposure. These goals should align with your site’s purpose and determine the number and types of pages you need.
Defining clear, measurable objectives ensures that every design and content decision supports your goals. For instance, e-commerce businesses typically focus on maximizing sales, while personal blogs may aim to grow an engaged readership.
Who is your audience, and how do they use the internet?
Understanding your audience means more than identifying demographics. It’s essential to focus on identifying your target website audience and evaluating their browsing behavior. Site functionality and usability often determine whether visitors stay or leave. Consider the experience level of your ideal visitor. Will they easily discover content placed below the fold? If links aren’t clearly defined, will they find them?
To better understand your audience, leverage tools like Google Analytics to analyze visitor behavior, social media insights to gather data on your followers, and customer surveys to gain direct feedback. These methods are essential to effective website planning, helping you refine your strategy and ensure your site caters to their needs.
What will your visitors expect to gain from your site?
Visitors typically arrive with specific expectations. If you’re an insurance company, they may want an online quote. If you’re a clothing retailer, users expect an easy and intuitive way to order online. Aligning your site with these expectations, while clearly defining the website’s purpose, increases the likelihood that visitors will return, convert, or do both.
Additionally, a focus on usability can help meet these expectations. Best practices include intuitive navigation, mobile-friendly design, and minimizing page load times. By ensuring your site is easy to use, visitors are more likely to stay engaged and complete desired actions.
Do you want your visitor to take action? If so, what?
Take time to prioritize the actions you want visitors to take. These actions should directly support your website goals and objectives. Are there multiple actions? If so, focus on the most important ones—like sales, project requests, or contact form submissions. Secondary goals, such as newsletter signups or social media engagement, should support the primary objective.
The point is this: having an online address alone won’t guarantee success. To meet your goals, you need a strategy that combines effective website planning, understanding your audience, and designing a user-friendly experience.