Planning your website project

When you own a business, it is safe to assume that you have at least thought about the idea of having a website. It is a good idea, as in this day and age nearly everything is online, and having a web presence can sometimes be more vital than having a physical shop, for example helping you to reach places and customers that your shop cannot.

However, when it comes to a website, it can sometimes be a delicate process, as it isn’t just as simple as setting one up and leaving it at that. It needs maintenance, for example when you get new products or publish new content. But you don’t have to worry about doing all of this yourself, as here at Kaizen Brand Evolution, web design is something that we specialise in, and as such would be more than happy to help. But before jumping in the deep end take a look at some of the things you need to think about before beginning your website project.

Written content:

Before you can even start to think about putting your website together, you need to think about what you want to go up on it. There isn’t much point in saying you’re ready to bring the website together if you don’t have content, as then you will just set yourself back. To begin with, think about the different pages you want to have and what they are going to be. This all depends on what business area it is you are involved in. For example, if you are like ourselves here at kaizenprint.co.uk, you are going to want a lot of different pages detailing all of the different products that you have. However, if for example if you own a photography studio you might want to have fewer pages, and instead include a gallery page which then has subcategories of all of the different types of photography that you are involved in. But aside from this, everything on each page is vitally important, from the homepage telling people who your brand is to the contact page. So before starting your project, we highly advise sitting down and thinking about all of this, making sure that you have everything, before going over it again just to make sure you haven’t missed anything. Of course, it isn’t compulsory to have this planned before visiting us but will save a lot of time.

Photography and video content:

When beginning your website project, it is important to think about what visuals you are going to have on there, and this all depends on what it is your service or product is. However, one thing that is a common factor among all of the great websites is their photography. Images sell on a website, so before you have started your project it is a good idea to plan ahead and get them sorted now. Again, think about what your website is going to be used for, and plan your photography around that for example If you’re selling products, it is a good idea to use a professional photographer. They can catch your products in the best light, making them easy to view and also enticing for customer viewing them. Using a professional photographer is a good idea for whatever photography that you need, as it will really show in the quality of your images. Here at Kaizen Brand Evolution, we understand the best brands are ones that work together and we can put you in touch with a few of our favourite photographers. If you don’t need a professional photographer we have a team of graphic designers that can use stock photography that will look right at home.

Purchasing a domain:

Before beginning your website project, it’s a good idea to purchase your domain name. When you do this, you are ensuring that the website address is yours and yours alone. We highly recommend that you purchase yours off 123reg.co.uk and get it now. When this is done, you can let us know and we can upload a holding page to go up until your website is being completed.

Hosting your website:

Before you can begin hosting with a company, they usually request that you own your domain name, so it is definitely a good idea to get that part sorted first. But what exactly is web hosting? It is a service provided by companies that allow both individuals and other companies to bring their website online, and put it on the internet and provide them with the tools they need to do this. Here at Kaizen Brand Evolution, we use a company called Big Wet Fish who we highly recommend and will gladly put you in touch with them if you don’t already have something sorted yourself.

Research other websites:

One of the final steps that will be involved with your website project is the designing of it and once all of the content has been gathered this can go ahead. However, before meeting with your web designer, it would be a good idea to come with some preparations. Take a look at some other websites, whether they are in the same business as you or not, take a look at ones you like the look of and compile a list. Look at how they are designed, their functionality, colours and imagery, as this will all help when it comes to designing yours. For example, if you have a few, you could tell your designer that you like the look of X but the way Y functions, and as such can begin to create exactly what it was you had envisioned for your website.

We hope by now you have some idea of the steps that are required when you begin your own website project. But we also hope that this article has helped you understand a little better, and help you your way of gathering everything you need, before taking the step to creating your online presence.

If that is what you are currently thinking about, then why not let us help you even further? Here at Kaizen Brand Evolution, we have a specialised Web Designer in-house who is always happy to help get you up and running. Give us a call on +44 (0)28 9507 2007  or get us by email via our contact form.