Ordinary re-designing of websites is essential because of the speed at which the Internet evolves. Bandwidth increases, new technologies appear, and website users’ expectations change.
Your website is often your company or organization’s first speak to with prospective clients, and it is therefore vitally important that it makes a great first impression – anything less and you will be missing out on custom, leads and sales. So, aim to review your website every 6-12 months to make sure that it is in keeping with the present standards expected of websites. The question is then, how do you know if your website is need of an update, or even an outright re-design?
Writing a simple checklist is the best place to start. Write down everything that your present website must be doing. Then, ask some customers or friends to take your list and try out your website. Ask them which of the points on your list your website achieves. Tell them to be frank and honest with you, as you will gain nothing from the exercise is they want to shun offending you. Tell them that it is not personal, but that you want to make your website and your business as good as you possibly can.
Once you know what your website can and is doing, the next step is to write a list of added things that you want it to be able to do. Write such a list, and then write one sentence which states the primary purpose of your website, and one sentence which states the secondary purpose of your website. Make sure that everything on your list of desired features and capabilities supports either the primary or secondary purpose of your website. If they support neither purpose, then leave them out of your re-design, as they will only stand to overcomplicated your website and confuse visitors to it.
Try not to get caught up in the mindset that it necessary to totally overhaul the design of your website. Often, creating just a few changes, or adding one or two extra capabilities is the best loom to take. If you make changes simply for the sake of making changes then you will just be wasting time and resources. You may also distance existing customers of yours who may feel overwhelmed and confused when they visit your website after the re-design.
Coming up with a strict budget, and sticking to it, is something else to bear in mind. It is good practice to get numerous bids or proposals for the project before accepting one. Let website design companies know up front that you can spend around a certain amount, and the sorts of changes that you are looking to make, and then ask them to give you their best price.