Website Redesign
Turn your outdated website into a modern lead-capturing machine
Why Invest in a Website Redesign Project?
Today’s websites are no longer digital business cards. When people are deciding if they’re going to do business with you they’ll look at your website and customer reviews before contacting you. This means you have one chance to make a good impression.
If your old website is broken, has a poor design, and a clunky user interface visitors will translate that to how you conduct your business. You’ll be viewed as unprofessional, and not caring about how you’re seen. Even though it may not be true, that’s how visitors will view your business.
You should consider redesigning your website every 3-5 years depending on your industry and business growth. Sometimes you outgrow your website, and sometimes your industry outgrows your website. If it’s been 5+ years since your last website redesign you’re likely losing business.
How to Plan for a Website Redesign
A website redesign can be in big or bigger in scope than a new website. In many ways, a redesign is a new design when you think about all it entails. The good part is you’ve already had a website and you know what worked and what needs to be improved. So you have something to build off. Here are the main things to consider for your website redesign.
Determine Your Budget
Website pricing can be as low as $5K and go well over $35K. Having an understanding of how much you have to work with can help you and your web designer find a realistic solution. You have more options than you realize, and knowing your budget will help you zero in on your best options a lot faster.
What is the Project Scope?
Your web designer will have a hard time giving you an estimate for your redesign if they aren’t clear on the project scope. They’ll need to know how many pages you need, unique pages, functionality, SEO demands, and more. If you’re not sure, just ask your web designer and they’ll explain each category in more detail.
What is the Sitemap?
The sitemap is the website architecture or a snapshot of all the pages your website will include. Your website will have a combination of pages and unique pages. Your homepage for example will be a unique page because your services pages will likely follow a similar layout for consistency. So you may have five service pages with one unique page among the five.
Functionality
Sometimes you need your website to do cool things. This can include having an interactive map, unique forms, a portal for members or patients, and 3rd party integrations like Salesforce. Unique functionalities need to be accounted for in your redesign proposal for an accurate cost estimate.
Do Some Website Scouting
Sometimes you don’t know what you want until you see it. That’s why we always encourage our clients to see what their competition is doing and take notes about what they like. You can even do research in other industries and find things that will make your website unique from your competitors. Because companies are redesigning their websites every 3-5 years you’ll be surprised at what is possible if you haven’t looked in a while.
The Website Design Phase
Once you’ve decided on the scope of work and have your plan in place you can get started on the design phase of your website redesign. This is where working with a fully staffed digital agency comes in handy. They’ll have different people working on different aspects of your website at the same time. This not only expedited the redesign process but helps you see everything come to life at the same time so making revisions and tweaks is easier.
Start with Your Homepage
Your homepage is a snapshot of your entire website. It lets visitors know they’re in the right place and you have a solution to their problem. It also sets the tone for all of the other pages on your website in terms of design, user experience, and content. After your homepage design is finalized the rest of your pages can be designed and built a lot faster.
Wireframes and Mockups
A wireframe focuses more on architecture and layout while a mockup is more visual. So we always start with a wireframe and then turn that into a mockup. When you get your free mockup with Zeem Digital keep in mind the architecture and even the images can change. However, our free mockups are often very close to your final mockup because we base it on answers you give to a detailed questionnaire.
Website Content or Copy
Probably the most overlooked element of a redesign in the messaging, content, or copy. These are the words that your visitors will be reading. A lot of people have a misconception that people don’t read and end up skimping on the content. Everyone reads, they just read differently. You’ll need to have content for scanners and content for the readers who read every word. We can match you with one of our experienced copywriters who can write persuasive copy that shows your brand personality, highlight your unique selling points, and ultimately get visitors to say yes and click your call to action buttons.
Ready to Get Started on Your Website Redesign Project?
Just like with a new website design project Zeem Digital lets our clients take us for a test drive before committing. The first step is getting your Free homepage mockup. That process will allow us to get to know more about your business and website needs, and let you see if you like how we operate.
If you like your free mockup and want to move forward with the redesign then getting started is easy. You’ll already have a proposal you can approve or modify if you discovered something new during the mockup process.