- Decide Exactly What You Want from Your Web Site
- Decide on a Structure for Your Site and Develop a Rough Site Plan
- Decide What Interactive Elements You Need
- Decide What Graphics You Want to Include
- Write the Text for Each Page in Your Site
- Determine Your Budget and Timeframe for the Project
- Establish Your Web Infrastructure
- Collect Your Toolkit
Write the Text for Each Page in Your Site
Web developers tend to be bad writers as well as bad marketers, so write all the text you think ought to go into your site. Sketch each page on a regular sheet of paper and type the copy that goes there. Save the text for each page into an appropriately named separate file. Handing your Web developer all the text already written and in electronic form will save you money as well as improve the results you get. Resize and print a copy of the text that goes into each page, then paste it into the space where it goes on your hand-drawn Web page so there is no doubt where it belongs in your site.
If you are not a good writer, contact your local English Department professor for help. You provide the marketing message and get the expert writer's assistance to make it sound better and meet grammatical standards.