Website redesign is a very important period in the life of your website. Just like any other major decision you’ll make, the decision to redesign your website will affect your business or organization for the next months or even years. So it’s good to get it right the first time. In this post, I’d like to explore 4 areas of this process that you need to pay attention to in order to get the most out of this experience. This will save you a lot of headaches and frustration while allowing you to tap into the power of the new web and all it has to offer.
1. Write down what you’d like to achieve from website redesign
Just like the remodeling project you did last summer, you need to write down the goals for this project and make sure they reflect your organization’s overall vision. A goal is only fulfilling if it contributes to the big picture of life.
Another reason to write your goals down is so that you can share them with everyone who will be involved. At Front2Back Studio, before we redesign a website for a client, we insist on having a set of goals written down. Projects without a clear set of goals can only lead to dissatisfaction of all parties involved.
2. Gather a winning team
Redesigning a website involves a number of individuals, or teams. Your team may consist of:
- Web designers/developers
- Photographers or video producers
- Content writers
- Search Engine Marketers
- Your customers/vendors/clients
- Industry specific professionals
When gathering your team, consider working with teams from one company as much as possible. This allows you to take advantage of the working relationship that exists among them as opposed to trying to bring individuals together.
Share your set of goals with this team and make sure they understand where you’re headed. You can only achieve your set of goals if your team understands and shares your commitment to achieving these goals.
3. You don’t have to change everything
When redesigning the website, you don’t have to change things totally. People hate change, especially when nothing was wrong in the first place. If your customers love the ordering process, then changing this part of the website may cause unnecessary frustrations for them and could even lead to losing revenue. That’s why it’s important to gather customer input before redesigning the website. Ask your customers/clients/vendors what they like about the website and then see if you can preserve it.
4. Consider New Technology Online
This is a good time to improve on and take advantage of new technology. Chances are that your website is at least a few months old and so when talking to the web designer/developer ask if they know of new ways to simplify a given task on your website. When working on a website redesign, we always try to present a number of ways to simplify client website because we keep up with technology and see some opportunities in doing this. Anything you can simplify for the end user is a plus for your website.
On the same note, it’s important to avoid old technology that was used earlier to build the website. For example, websites built with Adobe Flash cannot be accessed by iPhones. So during this redesign you may consider using other newer technologies to accomplish the same task.
The fastest way to fail at a website redesign is to start working on a new website without a plan. Follow the above steps and you’ll be successful. Every month Front2Back Studio undertakes numerous successful website redesigns for its clients and can do the same for you. We can do the same for your business or organization. Get in touch with us today and see how we can help.
