The Creative Design
Process
Important Things To
Keep In Mind
Every client is different, so every website should be a reflection of who they are and what their business is. No two people are the same and your business is a unique creation that you brought to life so others could enjoy. You website should be as unique as your business is. It shouldn’t be created with a cookie cutter template or thrown together for the time being. One of the things I hate to hear is “…it’s just for now”, meaning you’re compromising your dreams as well as your business because you can’t accomplish your goals. Your website is not only important to your success but a part of your business’s success.
Let's Begin With A
Initial Consultation
For the initial consultation, I like to sit down and get to know my client and what their business is. Tell me a little bit about yourself, about your business, and I like to get an idea of how you work. This allows me to get a sense for the future about what things you might like to be incorporated and integrated into the website to make your life easier and work flow better. Give me a general idea of what you are looking for in your website and an estimated timeline. Keep in mind that websites are built over time and not in a day or so. They can take anywhere from two months to a year depending on the complexity of customizations or coding. Be upfront about your schedule and your flexibility. I am comfortable working around anyones schedule or business needs.
What To Know About The
First Meeting
Upon the first meeting, I like to meet with my client and go over what we discussed in the initial consultation and explore all options on how to achieve their needs. I like to be able to see what you already have in place and hear about how you want to change certain elements while abandoning others. I like to go over what aspects you want to nurture and what you want your customers to experience and take away. If you have any visuals, such as references to other websites you not only find visually aesthetically pleasing, but what functionality they embody, please feel free to bring that or mention it. The more information you bring to the table, the better I can get a sense of what you are looking for. I like to have a “creative think tank” or brainstorming session and come up with different strategies to accomplish your goals and overall website functionalities. This not only allows me understand your vision but understand what you need out of your website and its key core functionalities.
Important Things To
Keep In Mind
- Schedule: General timeline of launching the new website
- Existing Website: If you already have a website in place
- Domain Registrar Login Information
- Hosting Login Information
- Website Login Information
- Creative Ideas: visual references, website examples
- What It Can Do: Core Functionality and examples. (e-commerce, smart forms, profiles, membership, etc)
- Budget: Knowing your minimum and maximum budget
- Logo: Whether you don’t need a new logo or need to rebrand
- Social Media: Integrate in your social media to enhance user experience.
Deconstruct &
Reimagine
Now if you already have a website in place, I like to take a look around. Not only at your existing website and how it’s set up, but how it is being hosted and constructed. Typically, when I start with reimagining a website I like to use the foundation on which it is already constructed upon just so that you don’t have to start over from scratch, but more importantly so you don’t lose data or sensitive information. This way, customers or visitors to your site won’t have to clear their cache or get redirected to a 404 error page. They key here is to not deter customers away from your site or make it confusing for them with broken links, but to enhance your user interface and experience to draw in more customers and maximize your profits.
Think Of All The
Endless Possibilites
Envisioning your website can be hard and a daunting task, but it shouldn’t be. When bringing your website to life it’s important to keep in mind that not everything is going to happen over night and that it might take a few tries to get it right. There are many things to go over and decide on what you want to include within the construction of your site. Keep in mind that the more functionality you want on your site, the longer it will take to complete. But it’s also a good rule of thumb to start off with the bigger core functionalities to build the site on so that it minimizes the daunting task of overhauling the site later on in the future. Your website should be a continuation and extension of your business where it all feels cohesive and uniform. When customer’s visit your site they should be able to instantly recognize your business and trust you with their patronage. Overall, your website should not only be a reflection of your business but a hub of functionalities to simplify your life and expand your business. It should be fun and playful while informative and user-friendly that keeps users coming back for more.