Website Planning Guide and Checklist

Free Tools, Resources, Website Development Resources, Website Development Tools

A website is critical for every business.

 Every business needs a well-designed website that does 2 very important jobs:

  1. Service the needs of your existing customers
  2. Be engaging enough to draw new customers into your sales funnel to do business with you.

To help you work through this you can download our Website Planning Workbook Tool.

This is free to subscribers, so feel free to download this now.

Ready to get started? Let’s review some of the most common challenges you might be facing:

1. My website isn’t attracting new visitors

Ask yourself:

  • Who is my Target Audience?
  • Have I defined the types of customers who make up my target audience?
  • In an attempt to attract new visitors, have I cast the net too wide and I am addressing a broader audience than I provide solutions to?

2. My online sales are flat of falling

Ask yourself:

  • What are my Customer Needs?
  • On my website, do I clearly spell out the top three needs my product or service satisfies for my target customers?
  • When it comes to online selling, information overload can cause website visitors to bounce to competing sites that don’t waste their time or try to distract them with unnecessary noise 
  • Does my website clearly state the problem my products and services solve for the customer?

3. My website content hasn’t been updated for a year or two, and I think “that’s just fine … my business hasn’t changed, so why should my website”?

Ask yourself:

  • What are my Products or Services? 
  • Is my website content focused on describing (and showing) how my products and services solve my target audience’s problem?

4. I’m thinking about redesigning my website, but I’m not sure where I should start, or what I should focus on

Ask yourself:

  • What is my Unique Value Proposition?
  • Have I defined my unique value proposition?

5. Development Plans

Ask yourself:

  • What is my CTA?
  • Does my sign-up form state specifically what the user is signing up for and the type of user who will benefit from joining my list?
  • Is what they get for signing up clearly stated?

6. My online ads aren’t delivering conversions

Ask Yourself:

  • How will I build Trust?
  • On my website, are my products and services described in the terms my customers are using to search for a solution to their main problem?
  • When a visitor enters my website, is it easy to find information on how my products and services solve the visitor’s main problem?
  • Online ads must honestly represent what they are selling and take the customer directly to relevant information and a compelling offer or risk damaging the website’s reputation and trust with consumers – consumers often share negative experiences on social media.

7. My online contest lifted traffic, but didn’t result in more sales or sign-ups

Ask Yourself:

  • How do I manage my customers when they respond to a CTA?
  • Was my contest focused on supplying a specific deliverable that would appeal to only my target audience?
  • When visitors entered my site what happens next?
  • Do I direct them to more information about the problem they are trying to solve?

8. Social media is eating into my time/budget without providing measurable improvements on my website

Ask Yourself:

  • What are my Marketing Channels?
  • Have I defined which channels I’m going to use to drive traffic to my website, and which specific metrics I’m trying to ‘move the dial’ on?

9. My website developer spends a lot of time (and my money) building backend tools, migrating to new servers and platforms, fending off hacks, and fixing things, but doesn’t seem to understand the goal of my website

Ask Yourself:

  • What are my Website Costs?
  • Does my website designer understand who my target audience is, and what my goals are for my website?

10. My website seems to cost more than it brings in for my business

Ask Yourself:

  • What are my revenue Opportunities?
  • Have I summarized my website costs and revenue-generating opportunities and set them next to each other for comparison?

Now it’s your turn.

If you are struggling with these challenges and need more help, Subscribe and access our Free Website Planning Guide and Check List to start building for greater success.

Get started right away and plan a website that is designed to do its job well and grow your business.