The 2 schools of thought when it comes to website design
The 2 schools of thought when it comes to website design – if you need someone to create your content for you OR if you already have all of your content. ALL of your content. One of the last things a web designer wants to hear is “Hey could you spruce up the website a bit more”. No direction, no suggestions, no nothing.
This is like going to an auto maker and saying “I’d like you to build me a custom vehicle.” Months later the auto maker says “Here you go, we took a wild guess as to what you wanted and we think we got it right. ” “Well no I actually wanted a pickup truck. Yeah sorry, try again”. The auto maker goes back to the drawing board (on his dime of course) and creates the most badass truck he can with the budget he is provided with. When he is all finished he unveils the truck to the customer.
“Uhh yeah I was hoping it would be red. And a 2 wheel drive. Oh and a 4 door. And with more horsepower.” All things that would have been helpful UP FRONT. You’re going to end up with the most expensive, worst built truck around if it has to be rebuilt over and over.
“I’ll know what I want when I see it”
I hear this statement about every time I had a website client back in the day. When I say “Ok cool lets charge by the hour and I’ll create as many different versions as you can handle”. “Well no that won’t work, that sounds expensive and open ended.” Yep, it is. Keep this in mind as well, a website is the LAST thing you create for your business, NOT the first. When content is either very scarce or has not been created yet is not the time for a final product to be created.
Going back to my “building block” analogy in this video. You can’t build a great looking wall with no building blocks. I used to dread being hired to do web design by a restaurant that is not yet open. When the brand does not yet exist, no pictures are possible of the build out, food, or atmosphere. There are basically ZERO building blocks except for a logo and a data collection field.
Read more on why I hate website design here.