Designing Your Website

1. What Are Your Objectives?

First work out what objectives you aim to achieve with your site. Ideally, they should be SMART objectives - specific, measurable, agreed, realistic and time-limited (see Planning your marketing).

1.1 Who are you trying to reach? For example, a roofing supplies company may target builders and architects rather than the general public.

1.2 When these people visit your site, what action do you want them to take? For example, register for a newsletter, email for more information, or place an order.

1.3 If you are intending to increase sales, what targets are you setting?

• How will you track this?

1.4 If you are intending to save money by cutting the cost of customer support, what targets are you setting?

• How will you track this?

1.5 What are the constraints?

• Keeping certain information away from competitors may be a vital consideration.