Preparation
Take a look at your competitors, if any of them have websites make time to visit their sites. Make a list of what you like and what you dislike about them, think in terms of genaral layout, colours, fonts, navigation, logo's and the content (make a note of their sites addresses too - it will help us later on)
Now think about the products and services that they offer, compare those to your own business and make a short list of bullet points using the following headings:
- Strengths - What makes you better than your competitors?
- Weaknesses - Which areas are you not strong in?
- Opportunities - Is there a niche that can be exploited? eg. Could you sell your products or services online?
- Threats - Who is your main competitor? Is your particular sector becoming saturated?
If you've never done this before, this a known as a SWOT analysis (for obvious reasons!) and its is a fantastic way of forcing you to look at your business in a very objective manner
You know your business better than anyone else, combine this knowledge with what you have hopefully just gained from your SWOT analysis. You now have the information necessary to start writing some text or 'content' for your website
Write as much or as little as you think you need to get your message across to the public, and don't worry if your spelling or grammar is not as good as you would like it to be, we'll review what you have written and correct any errors. We may also suggest any additions or deletions you could make, from an objective 'lay-persons' point of view, in order to maximise your impact. Please remember that these will only be suggestions, it's your site and you will have the final say after reviewing the first draft.
Now lets move on to your design.
