Website Planning - It Cannot be Overlooked

A website is a core tool used in marketing consultancy, therefore planning for the creation of a website is one of the most important steps. Building and efficiently using a website requires having a clear purpose. Is the website speaking to the right audience? Is it supporting the goals that the business is trying to achieve? These are the questions that need to be asked, to avoid developing a confusing user interface that quite honestly does not provide any return on its investment. Effective planning requires clarity and understanding to be established. What is the goal of the website? Is it going to be used to sell a product or service, or simply to share information and create leads? Has the target audience been established? Understanding who will use or learn from the website will help to mold the tone, functionality and content. Once the purpose and audience has been established, the next step is organizing the website’s structure. Mapping out the pages and what information they will contain will prevent the website from becoming overloaded with information. Creating a content outline, of sorts, can go a long way in making sure that the website is maintaining positive user retention. Maintaining a clear plan will improve efficiency, reducing redundancies and ensuring that the final goal aligns with the original goals. The outcome can be achieved faster, when features and priorities of the website are clear. Simply put, planning for a website ensures a strategic balance. Investing time into developing a purpose, target audience and structure will deliver a website that is more impactful and guaranteed to deliver on its investment.