Why Do I Need a Website?

Before you embark on constructing your website you first need to answer one very simple question: “Why do I need a website?”

It appears obvious at first but really take a moment and reflect.  Ask yourself these questions.  Do you have a small business or a service you need to market?  Are you eager to start a web based business?  Do you manufacture or resell a product and are looking to increase sales leads?  Are you looking to share ideas or setup a family or wedding site?  Is it business or personal?  I think you get the idea.

List some general ideas on why you want to create a site on a piece of scrap paper or in your favorite word processor.

If you are building a website for business purposes or personal it is important to identify why first.  Once you can answer that question planning the website and choosing how to build it and what tools to use will become much simpler.  After you understand why you need a website then you can start answering what you want the website to be able to do.

As an example let’s assume Joe is a carpenter and works for himself.  He would most likely build a list consisting of the following reasons:

• Promote carpentry services on the internet
• Find new clients

Now that Joe has the answer and reasons to why he can start to identify what he wants the website to do.   These reasons can be varied but in Joe’s case he would like to be able to show photos of his latest projects, provide contact information, a form so users can email him and the ability to easily update photos and content himself.

Take some time and think about the above 2 questions – Why and What. Make a list and think it over.  Browse the web and look for other examples of sites in the same industry or based on a similar idea.   Take notes and then revisit your list to see if there is something you didn’t think about.

A solid planning stage with concrete ideas at this point can greatly assist you in deciding whether or not to build it yourself or contract an outside developer.