Picture this…
You’ve decided to build a stellar website. You’re eager to get your digital presence up and running, and you think, “How hard can it be? Let’s whip this website up in a weekend!” Well, hold onto your party hats, because I am about to take you on a journey explaining why creating an effective website is more of a lavish party than a quick get-together – and why it takes over 60 days to develop. At the end, I will drop a link to view what a realworld website project timeline looks like that I created for a recent client.
Here are all of the things you have to consider for your website design project as if you were planning a party:
Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day, and Neither Is Your Website
When it comes to building a website that truly wows, you’re creating your own little Rome in the digital world. It’s not just about slapping a few pages together and calling it a website. It’s about carefully planning every detail, from content to design to functionality. Trying to rush through this process is like trying to cook a gourmet meal in a microwave – it just doesn’t work.
What is the Purpose of Your Party?
Every great party has a purpose or objective! Like why are you throwing this shindig? Is it to celebrate an occasion, just bringing people together, raise money for a charity? The same goes for a website. The foundation of any successful website project is a clear understanding of its goals and objectives.
Before diving into design and development, it’s crucial to define what you want to achieve with your website. What are you selling? To who are you selling? How are we going to selling it to them? What happens once you sold it? This involves conducting market research, identifying your target audience, and setting specific, measurable, and achievable goals. Taking the time to establish the goals of your project ensures that your website aligns with your business’s overarching strategies. Aka making sure the purpose of your party is met!
Champagne-Style Planning
The planning phase is like picking out fine champagne for your grand celebration. You need a well-structured sitemap, thought-out wireframes, content strategy, SEO Planning and a user experience strategy that’s smoother than a perfectly poured glass of bubbly. It can also take more time if your web designer is brining outside support to be able to provide the SEO planning. Think of it as bringing outside vendors into ensure success.
So a well-thought-out website project involves meticulous planning and strategy development. This includes creating mockups, which are essential for visualizing the website’s structure and layout. Rushing through these critical stages can lead to a disjointed and ineffective website. Which means skipping this planning step would be like toasting with sparkling water instead – it’s just not the same!
Content Creation: Crafting the Perfect Canapés
Creating compelling content is the equivalent of preparing exquisite canapés for your website visitors. Quality content is at the heart of an effective website. Most people would agree that the food served is a major point of a party. To my husband it is the only thing that matters. So your website content creation is not just about slapping words on pages; it’s about crafting stories, creating visuals, and making sure everything is on brand. Neglecting these steps on your website can result in poor user engagement and low conversion rates.
Some other outside vendors you could hire for your website during the content creation phase are experienced copy writers, professional photographers and/or videographers. But every additional outside vender means you have another person you have to work around their timelines for your project completion which means your launch date will be pushed even farther out. So taking the time in this phase to use professionals to round out your website will lead to a higher quality website whereas rushing content creation would be like serving stale crackers at your fancy soirée – not very appetizing and leaves a bad impression of your event!
Design: The Red Carpet Look
Once your content creation is done, it is not time to get dressed up for the main event. Your website’s design is like getting full glam for a red carpet at a glitzy Hollywood award show. You want to look stunning and leave a lasting impression. Crafting a website design that’s both visually appealing and user-friendly takes time and finesse. The design of a website plays a pivotal role in attracting and retaining visitors. Crafting a visually appealing and user-friendly interface involves multiple iterations and revisions. It’s essential to consider factors such as responsive design, accessibility, and mobile-friendliness, which all contribute to a positive user experience. Hastily designed websites often lead to frustrated visitors and high bounce rates. So rushing through it would be like showing up to the Oscars in pajamas – not a great look!
Development: Building the Grand Ballroom
Underneath the glamour of your website’s design lies a complex structure of code, functionality & automations. Developers are like the architects and builders of your digital ballroom. They ensure everything works seamlessly and that your guests have a smooth experience. The development phase is where the website starts to take shape, but it’s also where numerous technical challenges may arise. Building custom features, integrating third-party tools, and ensuring cross-browser compatibility can be time-consuming tasks but this time spent prior to launch can actually save you time running your business in the long term. Rushing through development would be like constructing a grand palace with shaky foundations – not very regal and wouldn’t give you the most bang for your buck!
Testing: No Party Crashers Allowed
Imagine throwing a lavish gala and not checking the guest list. Testing your website is like making sure only the right guests get in – no party crashers allowed. It involves checking for functionality, security, and performance. Skipping this step would be like inviting gatecrashers to your party – chaos ensues!
Review and Feedback: Consultation with the Party Planners
Even the most experienced party planner needs a second opinion. Getting feedback from stakeholders, team members, and potential users is essential for making your website truly shine. Giving ample time for these reviews and iterations allows for refining and improving the website’s performance, content, and design based on real-world feedback. It’s like having a team of experts help you fine-tune your event to perfection. Rushing through this process would be like trying to throw a black-tie affair without a stylist – a fashion disaster!
The Finale:
So there you have it – building an effective website is no swift sprint; it’s a lavish, champagne-popping, red-carpet-rolling extravaganza! But remember, just like the most luxurious parties, it’s worth the time, effort and money. Your website is your digital showcase, and it deserves the full VIP treatment. So, embrace the journey, enjoy the process, and toast to your website’s success – because a website crafted with style and finesse is the best kind of online party! Cheers! 🥂
The After Party:
Every great party has an after party and this blog post is no different. To view a project timeline I recently did for a website client CLICK HERE. For reference this website had:
- Three main offers they were selling,
- Two freebies to grow their email list,
- Two low ticket courses they wanted to sell for passive income.
- Not to mention a few other tech integrations to save them time when onboarding clients.
If you want to work together for your new website design or website redesign, book a free consultation below.
——————————————————————————
Links You Might Love to Have:
Join my FREE 6K+ member Facebook Community of – Bosses Building Brands
Follow for More Tips on Instagram – Zestful Media & Design Instagram
Schedule a FREE Consult for 1:1 Branding & Web Design Services – Book It Here
