The second most common complaint we hear about website design is about time:
“The last time we did a website redesign it took more than 6 months!”
“I need the website to launch on X date. How can you guarantee we’ll make that?”
“Our last website designer was slow to communicate. I can’t afford that kind of time.”
Sound familiar?
Good news! You have a considerable amount of control over deadline management. Insinuate your website designer as an extension of your team rather than just a contractor. Hiring a website anything should never be a fix-it-and-forget-it contract. To get the highest quality results you need to be involved every step of the way.
Start by sitting down with your designer and going over a detailed timeline. Designers can’t promise to complete every website in 3 months: each timeline has to be customized to suit their current workload and your availability to provide content and feedback. A professional designer knows exactly how long it will take them to create each element of your website, so it’s easy for them to draft a timeline, don’t be afraid to request one. After that, it’s up to you to respond in accordance with the deadlines to keep the project on track.
Vital parts of the timeline include how long you have to completely change your mind on design elements, (hint: it’s not long), and what information is required from you to get the project off the ground.
Build flexibility into your timeline. You never know when someone’s going to get the flu or you or your designer will run into an emergency with another client and have to devote time to putting out that fire. Or in case you totally forget to reply to that email from your website designer with a critical question for 6 weeks – not that we’ve ever experienced that!
Limit the number of people reviewing the website content, or at the very least designate one point of contact for the website designer. Make sure everyone on your team whose feedback you want knows to incorporate time in their schedules to review the website content. Let them provide feedback to your designated contact, who will condense all feedback into one document for the designer. The more voices you have chiming in on the project, the longer you will be waiting, and the greater delay added to the project finish date.
To review, keep your website designer on schedule by:
- Setting up a reasonable timeline with your designer.
- Assigning 1 point of contact on your team to gather feedback and coordinate with the designer.
- Providing content and feedback to the designer as indicated on the timeline.
That’s it!
Insider Info: Remember how time is our second most common complain? The Number One complaint we hear when we sit down to a website design consultation is cost. You, the client, have some say over that – we can trim down the size of your website or cut back on the features to better suit your budget – but ultimately you get what you paid for (Pro Tip: Prices for a top-notch website with online shop and all other bells and whistles start at $10,000).
Jelly Triangle loves website design! Our team of personable professionals will work closely with you and your team to make your website dreams come true. Call us at 519-624-8888 to book your commitment-free consultation.
