Redesigning Your Website? Answer These Questions First

by Gina Armstrong, Lead Designer

Insights / Website Design / Redesigning Your Website? Answer These Questions First

At the start of any website redesign process, a dedicated information gathering stage is crucial.

To set the project up for success, it’s important to take the time to reflect on your brand, current pain points, and your organization’s ultimate goal for the new site.

At Digital Ink, our first step is to have clients fill out a redesign questionnaire in order to better understand their needs, which we then review in more detail during the project’s kickoff call.

Here are the six most important questions you need to be prepared to answer before starting a website redesign.

Who are you (and what makes you unique)?

Part of telling your organization’s story is understanding exactly who you are. That includes not only your mission, but also what sets you apart from competitors.

You have to fully understand what attracts your community in and why they should stay engaged. If you don’t have a clear idea of your value proposition, this is the time to reflect and establish one.

Who is your target audience?

Audience plays a huge role in shaping the overall design, both functionally and aesthetically.

A younger audience may prefer different features than an older one; a site designed for students will probably implement different colors and imagery than one meant for professionals.

Understanding who will be visiting and engaging with your website leads to making the best decisions and creating a seamless user experience.

Do you have a brand guide?

You may or may not have a formal brand guide, but you’ll need to know what colors, typography, and graphics/imagery your organization uses.  It’s also helpful to review any marketing collateral to share how you implement these elements.

Sometimes organizations will find that they don’t have a strong brand identity or aren’t happy with their existing style guide. The good news is that a website redesign is a great opportunity to refresh your branding if things are feeling stale or outdated.

How do people use your website?

You’ll need a basic understanding of the most common tasks people are completing on your site.

Are they seeking resources, registering for events, or reading the your organization’s blog? To find out, you can use tools like Google Analytics or more sophisticated methods. It’s also good to have an understanding of how most people are accessing the site, either from a desktop or on mobile.

Having a grasp on the way your users engage with the current site and their primary goals will help guide content, functionality, and design.

What are the current pain points?

Every site will have its pain points.

Oftentimes, it’s related to functionality – something  just isn’t working correctly. Sometimes it’s a concern of disorganized content or clunky navigation – and sometimes a site just isn’t equipped with the needed features. Maybe the site was designed to feature tons of imagery, but your organization relies on a limited photo library.

Understanding exactly what problems need to be addressed ensures that the right solutions can be found, creating an improved site that will work for your audience.

What are your inspiration sites?

You’ll want to find inspirational websites with designs your team likes.

Those sites may have functionality you need (like an extensive calendar with embedded event registration) or may have design elements you appreciate (colors, white space, or use of video). You should also find sites that have designs and features you want to avoid. Providing these examples will help communicate your goals more clearly and effectively.

The more prepared you are at the start of a project, the better the results. All of these questions help us gain a better understanding of your organization, audience, and goals. In doing so, we’re better able to address any problem areas and ensure a successful outcome.

If you need help with a website redesign, reach out to us to get started.