Planning is not only meant for listing out things that need to be done but also for the things that should be avoided throughout the project in order to make it successful. This tutorial enlists a few important steps that will guide you in planning your website!
1. Define your goals
Defining your goals is as important as planning your website. Identifying the purpose behind developing a website will aid the development process. In order to do so, ask yourself some basic questions such as ‘What’, ‘Why’ and ‘How’. These questions aid other stages of developing a website.
Be clear about the type of website you want.
- Is it a blogging website?
- A website to promote your business?
- An NGO or a nonprofit website?
- Is it an e-commerce website?
- An educational website?
- A website meant for entertainment purposes?
- A social media website?
- Or is it a web portal?
In short, there are numerous types of websites, you need to identify your type before jumping to its development.
2. Estimate Costs
The importance of estimating costs can’t be emphasized enough. It is an extremely critical step to the success of a project. After identifying your goals the next target is to allocate a budget to the website development.
Consider the following:
- Identify your human resources.
- How many team members are you going to work with?
- How polished are their skills?
- How much effort will be required to develop your desired website?
You can consult experts for estimating your budget. Timely estimation of the budget will prevent any problems relevant to monetary resources in the future.
3. Identify content type
Once you know your website type and you are clear about your budget, you can now define the content type for your website. For this purpose, first, identify your target audience then list out things you will include in your content.
Below we have enlisted some content types that will make your website appear attractive to its user:
- Blog posts and Articles
- Pictures
- Animations
- Videos
- Sound-clips and so on
4. Identify features to be included
Features are added to a website to make it more attractive and enhance the user experience. If you also want your website to appear appealing to your users then add multiple features.
Some website features that enrich a website are:
- easy navigation,
- eye-catching design,
- relevant content,
- visual representations,
- and descriptions of your product.
The list of features is not limited to this, you can add as many features you want to make your website engaging.
5. Define SEO strategy
If you want your website to rank and attract as much audience as possible then you need to devise your SEO strategy from the beginning. In order to define your SEO strategy, find a way to organize your website content in a way that increases its chances of appearing in search results and gaining organic traffic from various search engines.
6. Create a prototype
Building a prototype is another way of ensuring that you are headed in the right direction. The prototype gives the client as well as the developer a clear picture of how the website will look once it is done. It also helps the developer in synchronizing the phases of design and development. It helps the developer to focus on important features of the website.
7. Get a domain name
Securing a domain name for your future website is highly significant. A domain name is first and foremost the address of your website which will make the website appear online. Along with a domain name you are also required to buy hosting for the website. Purchasing a domain name and hosting together or separately is totally your choice. You can buy these for a definite period of time and their prices may vary.
Conclusion
Planning a website before diving into its development can save you from future problems. A target that has been set without future planning may never be accomplished. This tutorial guides the readers on how to plan their website development. Following the steps mentioned in the tutorial will save your money and energy from being wasted.
