- 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
Collect Your Toolkit
By acquiring and trying out your tools before hiring a Web developer, you may decide your tools are so easy to use that you can build your own Web site without assistance. Even if you do decide to proceed with a Web developer, though, bear in mind that most developers will happily spend a few minutes in each meeting, or even between meetings, answering your procedural questions about how to use your Web development tools. During this time the clock is probably still ticking, even though you cannot hear it. Having said that, I must also say that few developers will charge for an occasional five-minute "tech support" call from a client who just handed them a $500 check. (For more on this topic, see the next article, "How to Choose the Right Web Developer.")