Why redesign?
If you want to redesign your website, it means you have a reason. However, not all reasons are good – let’s take a look.
Bad reasons to redesign your website include:
- “I don’t like it anymore” – that’s fine, but what if your customers like it?
- Keeping up with competitors – analytics is what matters, not who has the sleeker website
Whereas good reasons for redesign include:
- Providing value
- Mobile optimization
- Updating outdated look
Budget and timeline
Websites cost time and money. The more you invest, the better returns you will get. However, there’s no reason to overestimate your budget, OR to underestimate the time it will take.
It’s always good to plan out how much your website will cost, and the to keep some money aside for contingencies. Websites can take anywhere from a month to three to build. They also require you to put in your time as well. The developers don’t know your business better than you.
Internal technology
Hosting and domain name are the modern day equivalent of your house deed. In a lot of cases, hosting and the domain are provided by different agencies. Make sure you have your research done ahead of time. This will save the development agency (and you) a ton of time. Remember, this does seem like additional work, but it is vital to your website’s success.
Aligning organisational players
Now that you’ve organized the budget, timeline, and technicalities, it’s time to get your team onboard. Yes, your team does need to be involved in the website redesign. After all, someone needs to be in charge of all the redesign decisions. Other people will be needed to provide assistance and data to the development team. They also need to help with feedback and evaluation of each milestone.
Benchmarks for current website
Once you have your team prepared and in place, it’s time to collect some benchmarks. This is important because a website redesign only happens because something is wrong. The only way to identify and quantify what’s broken is through data.
There are several free tools like Google Analytics that you can use to measure important site metrics. It is also important to start measuring data as early as possible.
Choosing the right agency
Unless you have a complete in-house team, you will need to hire a web development agency. The right agency isn’t just one that fits your budget. There are many other factors to consider, including agency type. Look at where they’re located, how many experts they have on their team, and evaluate their past performance. Testimonials can be of great help.
At the end of the day
Websites are not the same as they used to be. Customers have increasing expectations of what they need from a business website. The good news is, if you’re willing to invest and improve your site, you will keep delivering.
