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Home » The Famous Blog » Why You Need to Plan Before Building Your Website

Why You Need to Plan Before Building Your Website

November 13, 2011 - Last Modified: November 13, 2011 by Bruce Stevens

Building Your Website

Online businesses spring up every day online. The Internet has opened up the world to everyone from traditional bricks and mortar stores, corporations and Mom and Pop stores to enterprising individuals who conduct their entire operation online.

However, growing your website is much harder than simply throwing up a few pages in the vast space of the cyber world.

Fast Isn’t Always Better

The Internet allows everyone to compete on a fairly even playing field, and takes most of the dollars out of the equation, letting the little guy battle with monster corporations for consumer attention. Because of that, websites are often created in the blink of an eye, but many times fall short because they lack the planning necessary to create a solid business presence.

The ease with which individuals can get started online often masks the fact that business is business. Even online, a business needs to be treated and nurtured the same as you would an off-line company. Much like, say a hunter nurtures his hunting dogs so that they don’t get out of shape and perform poorly, you have to make sure the environment and care that goes into your website has the proper elements to ensure its survival and subsequent performance.

What’s the Purpose?

In the case of a hunter, he has to determine what his likes and dislikes are, and plan his hunting  accordingly. He also has to take into consideration the environment he’ll be operating in, what his chosen prey (sales, leads etc.) is, and the tools (hunting dogs, rifles, GPS dog tracking collars etc.) that he will be using.

Just like that hunter, when I develop a website I have to determine what needs my product has, what the market is, and if I’ve used up any of the site’s requirements on a previous marketing plan.

By giving my websites some diversity, I save myself a lot frustration, time and money. My web pages are geared toward high-quality reviews that give consumers the information they need to make good decisions for their lives. However, when I created a web page on dog locating devices such as the Garmin Astro 200, I wanted to be sure I’m not competing with myself on another website, or indeed web page, that sells a similar product. It’s all part of the planning.

Your ideas for your website will spring from what your product is, and who your audience is. Finding the right path is simple if you take the time to understand the people who will be using what you offer.

Who’s Your Audience?

I also need to know my audience, just like the hunter needs to know what the environment is for a particular quarry, and if he can sell or donate what he doesn’t need himself. He also has to know where to send his prey for the best chance of the most value for it. e.g. it’s no sense hunting for the sake of hunting, if no one you know even likes receiving a gift of wild meat.

This was true when I developed the web page on GPS Dog Collars. In order to get the best return from my work and investment, I needed to know what my target audience was, and where to find them.

When promoting these dog locating devices it wouldn’t make much sense to create a website geared towards cat lovers would it? Nor would marketing that site in areas where the web traffic is similarly unrelated, say motocross racing enthusiasts.

Rather, I developed a web page with a real life experience of a friend who had trouble keeping valuable hunting dogs alive during arduous hunts, and solved his problem with the help of a good dog collar tracking device. I made sure I created a web page that appeals to both dog lovers, and hunters who enjoy the sport with the help of hunting dogs, and then marketed it in areas where dog owners and hunters are likely to be.

Beyond the initial planning

Beyond the actual planning of your website, it is important to plan the implementation as well. Some important items to remember when creating your website are:

  • Ease of navigation
  • Broken links
  • Load time

Your customers can’t buy what they can’t find. If your pages are hard to find, or viewers have to jump through hoops to get to the page they want, they’re not likely to hang around long enough to buy.

Broken links can kill sales faster than just about any other aspect of a website. Viewer attention spans are short. If they like what you have available, they will click on a link you provide, but if that link doesn’t work, they’re not going to bother with trying to make it work, or find another. More likely, they will simply plug in the item in the search engine box on top of their screen and find it on their own – without you.

Websites that take too long to load because of large picture files, heavy video files or long pages with complicated scripts will turn off viewers too. An over use of Word Press plugins can be deadly as well. This was more of a problem in the past when the majority of viewers had slow dial up Internet, but even in the high-speed age we live in now, it is important to remember that some viewers may still not have fast download speeds.

Getting it Right – With The Precision of GPS

When you spend the time to plan well, growing your website after it is built is actually similar to keeping track of your hunting dogs with GPS precision, it’s easy when you have planned well, and used the right tools.

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Filed Under: Design, Marketing

About Bruce Stevens

Follow @therocketrider

An Affiliate Marketer & aspiring blogger, Bruce enjoys making reviews of products that we use daily. Realizing that there is a need for impartial and accurate information, Bruce created Hubzz, a comprehensive website, where he offers his opinion on products as diverse as a Vitamix CIA Blender to Teeter Hangups and all that he has personally used or has done extensive research on. Bruce & his wife live in Western Canada, & are looking forward to retirement.

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{ 23 Responses }

  1. Samuel says:
    Planning to start a new website takes time and effort. Plus knowing what you are getting into is a step also.
  2. Dave Doolin says:
    Audience can be really, really hard to define. I struggle with that constantly. But that's where it all flows from. Current site is undergoing a rewrite, this time with specific personas in mind (and on paper).
  3. Richard Hill says:
    As you say planning is essential and so obvious. The hunting analogy is great - our forefathers would not have survived if they had not thought about a whole host of factors from the season to the prey, marketing is similar in that way.
    • Bruce Stevens says:
      So true.... "from the season to the prey, marketing is similar in that way." - you're a poet & you didn't it!
  4. Tessa says:
    Its really good points which are to be keep in mind before building the websites. And the points you mentioned in "beyond planning" is just amazing.
  5. Sinema Kulubu says:
    I like the analogy. If you are building a real website, there are a lot of things to do. It starts small and it is not respected. (google) Even the social media is like that. Open an account post something and it will not be found unless you ahve followers. These all need to be planend ahead. Create a mini site and do not update and it will not be found. If you are building a real business, simply plan and execute. You do it in real life, dont you?
  6. Joseph says:
    We plan everything in our lives. And we should know what's the purpose why we are planning this and that.But planning a business is much more complicated than we think. Thanks for sharing this valuable and informative post!
    • Bruce says:
      Yes, you always need to focus on the desired result before you can plan properly don't you. ~Bruce
  7. Terje Sannarnes says:
    It goes without saying that before to create any online resource an internet entrepreneur should plan everything thoroughly in advance. Therefore, you should know exactly how you will promote and monetise your website. Plan everything in advance and avoid serious problems in the future.
    • Bruce says:
      The planning shouldn't be done in haste though. I found it pays to make your plan, then "sit on it" for a while before executing it. ~Bruce
  8. Ruby says:
    Thank you so much Mr. Stevens . it is really very good advice for all of us . planing is the best precious way to built anything , whether we will make website or any thing else. thnx for the post .
    • Bruce says:
      Glad you enjoyed it Ruby ~Bruce
  9. Ricardus says:
    Planning stage is just like how an architect plan and sketch the draft before putting all the engineers and developers to construct a building. It's the basic fundamental stage in everything we do in our daily life
    • Bruce says:
      So true Ricardus. ~Bruce
  10. Steve says:
    Bruce, I really like the hunter and the dog analogy. In my mind planning is everything. When I started my blog I even had plans on what I would do (at least in a general sense) over a year out. It is important to know where you're going if you want to make a success of things. Of course you also need to adapt to changing situations, but if you don't start with a good plan you'll end up being lost in the maze of the online world.
    • Bruce says:
      Thanks for stopping Steve, I admit I got a bit "lost in the maze of the online world", but the turnaround was making the plan, putting it to paper, then visiting it often to make sure I was on track. ~Bruce
  11. Tushar Agarwal says:
    When i started my new blog, my first priority was to decide for whom i will be writing. I just dont wanted to be any other blogger, I am here to make and leave my mark
    • Bruce says:
      Yes, & it takes a bit of time to make that mark though. ~Bruce
  12. Jeanie says:
    We need to plan everything not only before building our own site, but also before doing anything, I do believe that it's very important to have definite aims, ways of their achieving, a list of things that you need for it - generally saying, A PLAN! Thanks a lot for reminding this
    • Bruce says:
      Yes, planning is crucial Jeanie. ~Bruce
  13. Gerard York says:
    Hi Bruce, Thanks a lot for this amazing post. Honestly the hunter and his dog example made this article really interesting and easy to follow, unlike some of the so called professional and complicated articles I've been reading in the past! I am planning in launching a new website soon, and this time I really want to get things done the right way, from the start itself. My biggest concern so far is trying to get closer to my audience because I still have to figure out who exactly I want to target. I do not want to compete in the big guy's niche, I prefer going for a smaller niche. This article has really been helpful to me.
    • Bruce Stevens says:
      Thanks for the complement Gerald. I'm glad the hunter example rang a chord, & thanks for letting me know. It was a bit of a leap of faith penning something that was different than the norm. ~Bruce
  14. Bruce Stevens says:
    Hi - this is Bruce, the author... Feel free to offer any comments or questions, I'll pop in often & will be sure to answer any questions. ~Bruce

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