Website planning

What to prepare before building your business website.

By Don Hudson · COTC Web Studio

You do not need a finished design before talking to a developer. A clear picture of your business and a few useful materials will make the first conversation more productive. Here is what I ask clients to think through.

Plan a website for your business

Choose one main action for visitors

Decide what a useful visit looks like. Do you want someone to request a quote, book an appointment, call you, or find directions? Choose the main action, then explain what visitors need to know before they feel ready to take it.

For a counseling practice, that might mean understanding the services and meeting the care team before scheduling. For a contractor, it might mean seeing relevant work and understanding the service area before requesting an estimate. Your business should guide the page plan.

Outline the pages around customer questions

Start with the questions people ask before hiring you: What do you offer? Who is it for? Where do you work? What happens next? A homepage, service information, an about page, and a clear contact path can provide a useful starting structure.

You do not need a separate page for every sentence. Give a topic its own page when it needs enough explanation to help a visitor make a decision. We can decide together whether a focused landing page or a larger website fits your needs.

Gather the facts and materials

Prepare your business name, contact information, service area, hours, service descriptions, and any prices you want to publish. Add your logo, approved photographs, and examples of your work. Choose images you own or have permission to use.

If you want to feature a testimonial, get the client’s approval of the wording and attribution. If content is missing, flag it early so we can agree on who will supply it and whether additional writing or photography work is needed.

List your existing tools and accounts

Share which provider manages your domain and hosting, plus any booking, payment, or email tools the website needs to connect to. You can start with provider names; do not put passwords in an inquiry form. We can arrange appropriate access when it is needed.

Describe whether visitors should follow a link to an existing tool or complete the process inside your website. That distinction helps us scope the work and identify any separate subscriptions.

Make room for feedback and launch

Choose who will review the work and consolidate feedback into one clear list. Share your preferred launch date and any fixed event behind it. The schedule also depends on the agreed scope, content readiness, and time for reviews.

You can start the conversation even if everything is not ready. Send what you have, say what is missing, and explain your priorities. I will help you turn those details into a scope, a quote, and a practical next step.

Let’s talk about your website.

Send your website address and business details, and tell me what you would like help with. We’ll confirm the fit, scope, and next steps before starting.

Start a conversation