Thinking about having a web site designed? Congratulations! Before you start let us fill you in on the one big secret that will make or break your future website… that secret is you!
So let us quickly go over several reasons you, the client, are absolutely necessary to the success of your website.
As the client you take on several roles. First you are the Visionary. No one understands your business better than you do. No one understands the goals and long term direction your business should take better than you. I will rely on you to communicate this vision. Without it I cannot create the best solution for your business.
Second you are the content guardian. Your website will be full of content for your users to read and digest. It is up to you to make sure this content is relevant and high quality. If not your website will become stale and users will stop coming back for more.
Thirdly the Project Coordinator. Oversight of the site is yours. Somebody will need to make decisions regarding the site. There is nobody better to make these decisions than the visionary. At times critical decisions will need to be made and you will be the one to make them.
Another important aspect of successful web design is for clients and developers to understand their strengths and weaknesses. As the client your main strength is the knowledge and understanding of your business. Your weakness is that you have limited experience with web design. Designers are exactly opposite. They have all the skills necessary to create and design but we lack the vision to fully understand the needs of your business. This is where we can combine our strengths. As the client you are able to successfully focus on problems the business faces. As the designers we are able to better focus on the solutions to those problems. This helps us not to step on each others toes and allows for the best possible solution.
Another problem we often see with websites is that once they are built, they whither and die. Content will eventually become out of date. The website may start to look old fashioned. Eventually you will stop referring people to it. It is a sad but common problem that is usually a result of lack of ownership. No one within your business has been assigned with the responsibility of the site. This can result is a great deal of wasted money. Every business with a web site needs a manager to oversee the site and keep an ongoing relationship with the web design company.
Lastly we want to mention the importance of your web site and its content. Ever heard that content is king? It's true. Have you thought about how you want to handle it? Maybe you have a writer in your business that is qualified to do it? Maybe you feel like you can do it? Would you like me to find a professional to write it? Just remember that if you don't have any experience writing copy, it will show. Think about this now so when the time comes you won't be scrambling to get it done.
That's it! Understanding the importance of your role in the design proecess will help everything run more smoothly and allow for the best end result.
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The Project Planner