Before you order a website: six things to decide first
Most owners start a website by asking what it will cost. That is a fair question, but it comes second. Six plainer questions come first, and you can answer all of them without knowing anything about technology.
Written by Villiers Vision Works, Cape Town.
Tell us what you need
1. What should a visitor do?
Pick one thing. Call you. Send an enquiry. Book a time. Buy something. A website that tries to do five things usually does none of them well. If you can finish the sentence "After a visit, I want the person to ..." the rest of the work gets easier.
2. Who is the visitor, and where are they?
Think about one real customer. Are they in your town or across the country? Do they read on a phone while waiting for something else? Many owners and customers do. If yours do, the page must work on a small screen first, and the phone number and the button must be easy to find without scrolling.
3. What do you already have?
Write down what exists today: a logo, a name for the business, photographs, old text, a domain name, an email address, a social media page. Some of it may be good enough to keep. Some may need replacing. Knowing this early stops surprises later.
4. What do you need to sell, and how?
If you only need people to find you and get in touch, you need a website. If you need to show products and take payments, you need an online store. They are different jobs. A store has to deal with stock, prices, delivery and payment, and each of those needs a decision from you. You do not need to know how it works inside. You need to know how you want it to work for your customer.
5. Who will keep it up to date?
Opening hours change. Prices change. Someone leaves the team. Decide who will edit the words, and how comfortable they are doing it. A site that only a developer can change becomes out of date quickly, and an out of date site tells visitors the business may be closed.
In short
A website that only a developer can change becomes out of date quickly.
6. What happens after it goes live?
A website is not finished the day it opens. Things need looking after: a form that stops sending, a page that needs a new line, a change in how you take payment. Ask early who will help, and how you will reach them. It is an easy gap to close if you ask before you sign.
What you do not have to decide
You do not need to choose a technology. You do not need to know what a hosting plan is. These are choices for the people building the site, and they should explain them in plain words when they matter to you. If they cannot, that tells you something.
How to use this list
Write one or two lines under each of the six questions. Do not worry about getting them perfect. Half-formed answers are enough to start a good conversation, and they will save time for everyone.
If you would like to talk it through, tell us what you need. A few lines are enough. We will reply in plain words and say what we think you need, and whether it is a website, an online store, or something else.
Written by Villiers Vision Works, a Cape Town software company for small and growing businesses.
Websites & online stores