Quick Steps for Planning a Web Site

Part of the Web Sites Do-It-Yourself For Dummies Cheat Sheet

If you’re designing a Web site yourself, you may be tempted to jump right into the design. However, scoping out what you need your site to do lays the groundwork for all the Web design work that follows. The following steps summarize the Web site planning process, because it’s an important part of creating a site:

Define the goals and objectives of your Web site.

Try to make some of your goals measurable, especially if your site is a business site. An example of a measurable goal is a number of downloads per month of a free guide you offer on your site.
Create a content list.

By creating a list, you know what content you need to gather so it’s ready before you start working on your design.
Create a task list.
Set a timeline.

Goals always help you keep going on a project.
Establish a budget.

Knowing your budget up front can help you choose a host and decide what other services you can (or can’t) afford before you decide whether to include them in your design.
Determine how to handle maintenance and updates.
Assemble a team.

Even if you want to design the Web site yourself, having someone proofread your text or simply look at your site and give feedback is helpful. Or you may decide you want to hire an expert to help you with a part of your site, because you don’t have the time or technical expertise required.