Why Planning Your Project Is More Important Than You Think

Planning is arguably the most important element of any investment. How are you going to benefit from this? What can you do to ensure that everything goes smoothly?

Without adequate planning, you'll find things go missing, important features are left out, time is wasted and costs begin to rise. Creating websites can be a lengthy process, especially when there are multiple, complex requirements.

It's important to remember that you aren't paying for a product, you are paying for service. This means that you are buying into the service providers time. Think of it as an investment. All investments require planning.

Time is a valuable resource, one that we never get back. As such, each second you spend should be important.

Shouldn't this be the case for your project? Of course.

It's extremely important and within your best interest to plan the content, navigation, functionality and design of your website. Work with your web developer to ensure that both parties fully understand what is truly required.

You need to provide your web developer with all the information that you can. As a service provider, they require as much information that you have to be able to create something tailored to you.

"Failing to plan is planning to fail" - Benjamin Franklin

Without a plan in place, you will often find that many key elements get missed. In web development, one key feature could be the defining factor of whether your website is £3000 or £5000.

As a client, you don't want to have this charge sprung upon you mid-project.

The main downfall, as a result, is that the project deadline gets delayed. This can be a number of weeks and in some cases, months. If you are working towards a tight deadline then you will need to avoid this at all costs. Not only are you delaying your website, you are also delaying your return on investment.

When planning, you need to consider medium to long-term business ideas. Your website is a long-term investment. If you are able to get it right the first time you'll save yourself a lot more hassle in the future.

Sometimes, web developers can build the website with little to no additional cost if they are aware of features that may be added later.

When your web developer understands exactly what is needed and what will be needed, they can plan accordingly. This then prevents "hidden" costs arising further into the project. It could also allow the developers to build the website in a way that incorporates all additional requirements.

By this, we mean that the developer could build the website in a certain way. If you then need additional functionality, it could become more complicated to code around. This would then take more time.

If they are aware of further requirements, they can work that into the original build, saving ample amounts of time.

Planning should be a continuous act. You will need to consider what comes next. There are three, key phases of planning:

Before you select a service provider and hire them to start work on your project, you need to plan exactly what it is you want.

You need to ask yourself a few key questions:

-> What does my website need to achieve?
-> What is my target audience?
-> What functionality does the website need to have?
-> Will I need a blog? or an events page?
-> What is my current branding? Logos and colours.

There can be many more questions to ask depending on the size and structure of the project. Understanding the answer to these questions before the project has been started is crucial.

Not only does it give you a good example of what to expect from the developer, but it also allows them to understand exactly what you need.

When the project is underway, you want to be thinking about the end of the project. What considerations may you need to take into account for once it has finished?

Here are some questions to ask:

-> Where do I want the website hosting?
-> Will I need support after the project?
-> How am I going to market the new website?
-> Does anyone else need training on the use of the site?

Understanding what steps to take before the website has been completed allows you to save time further down the line. It also allows you to prepare other members of your team for the foreseeable future.

Necessary planning steps like hosting/support and training all need to be considered outside of the project. Hosting the website on a separate server to your web developer can mean that they need to build directly onto that server.

Without this information up front, they will need to move all of the files over to that new server, which will incur additional costs.

Similarly, training is often provided to the first point of contact for the project. However, you yourself may not be the one updating the site. Thus, it could be more beneficial for another to have training in your place or at the same time.

Towards the end of the project, you will want to consider what comes afterwards. Many business owners understand that their website is a big investment. However, once they have the website, they don't consider how that can grow.

This is where you need to plan potential growth and additions to the website. If you are looking to add more pages, more functionality into the website in the future, then considering you should evaluate your current relationship with your web developer.

It is always easier for the developer who built the website, to make changes. Thus, it makes the most sense to work with them for the newer additions to the website.

Many developers, including ourselves, offer a support package that is designed to help support the growth of client websites long after the project has closed.

Planning your website comes with a huge range of benefits, it's important to not miss a crucial step. Consider the project in its entirety, then delegate key phases to different planning mentalities.

If you're struggling to plan your website, we can help. Give us a call on 01332477575 and we'll talk through your requirements with you.