• 02/18/19
• imagine

Web designers and developers create visual concepts using computer software to give businesses and individuals platforms where they can showcase their products and inform or captivate their customers. Their skill level helps them develop the overall layout and the production design depending on the type of website and the content required.

This being said, it is inaccurate to assume that your web designer can read your mind and produce a website that you will like without your consultation. It is imperative that you are clear on your brand, the messaging you want, the font styles and colors, and all other bits that you envision on your website.

If you do not have any sort of concept or clue in mind, chances are your web designer will be stuck as well. There are some crucial contributions that your web designer will expect from you to help him put together your website. The following are some of these elements.

The Goal of the Website

Even before approaching a web designer, you must be clear on what you want to achieve with your website. The goal could be as simple as publishing contact details online or something more specific such as having users sign up to your newsletter or achieving sales enquiries.

Sharing whatever goal it is with your designer, he will know exactly how he should deliver the website.

Your Target Audience

Some web design decisions are best made when you know the audience that will be interacting with the website. Design issues around attractiveness and accessibility can change if the target audience changes.

If you are targeting children or working women, there are specific features you would or wouldn’t include if the target audience is another group.

The Content and Keywords to be Used

Communicating the nature of your products and services to your designer and the specific keywords your potential customers will type into search engines is important during the design phase. Oftentimes, clients ask designers how comes their products and services are not listed in Google’s search engine results pages while in the first instance they never fed that information to them.

The Competitors

As part of the overall business environment, your designer would appreciate if you shared details of your competitors not just the direct ones, but also the less obvious ones. This information will help the designer to differentiate your site and even look at how to position your website based on the weaknesses of your competitors.

While this information may look straightforward, there is no person who understands your business better than you do. Share as much as you can.

The Specific Features You Want on Your Site

No any two businesses are alike even if they are competing in the same niche. There is need to have a discussion with your web designer on the specific features such as shopping carts, blogs on newsfeeds, onsite videos, photo galleries, social media connectivity, and email marketing capabilities.

Such kinds of information unless communicated in advance can easily be overlooked thereby giving you a website other than the one you wanted.

Any Existing Website

If you have a website that has been running, you need to tell this to your designer. Unless he has been following your business communications, it is unlikely that such information will be within his knowledge. In informing your designer about the other site, tell him when you designed it, the content management system that you used, the things you like and do not like about it, and whether he can use it as a reference.

This can give you a baseline on where you start your discussions going forward. As a matter of fact, the news site being designed may cost much less and take a shorter time if there is a point of reference.

Therefore, having a good designer is not enough. Your participation in the entire process is needed so that the good intentions can combine with your preferences to give you the site you really need and can be proud of.