Developing a Plan for Your Website

Planning a Website the Organized Way: Developing a Plan for Your Website
Janet Barclay

Janet Barclay

A former professional organizer, I now eliminate stress for my clients by hosting, monitoring, and maintaining their WordPress sites so they don't have to worry about security, downtime or performance issues. When I'm away from my desk, I enjoy reading, photography, watching movies, and cooking.

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Are you considering a new website for your organizing business? How exciting!

No matter if it’s your very first site or you’ve been online for a while and are ready for a change, whether you’re a DIY-er or working with a web professional, you’ll make the project go more smoothly if you draw upon your strong organizing skills.

Although you’re probably anxious to get your site up and running, taking the time to make a few decisions right from the start can save much aggravation later on and increase the ROI of your new website.

Planning a website is much too big an undertaking to complete in one sitting, so I’m excited to announce a new series here on Your Organizing Business, Planning a Website the Organized Way. Join me over the next few weeks, and I’ll walk you through the various factors you need to consider when planning a new website or website revamp.

Make sure you have a notebook, Word document, spreadsheet, whiteboard, or note-taking app ready at hand so you can record your answers for each section as you go along. When you’re done, you’ll be all set with your very own organized website planner!

Even if you don’t expect to plan a new website in the foreseeable future, working through Planning a Website the Organized Way will be a great way to identify improvements you can make on your existing site.

To ensure that you don’t miss a single post in this series, subscribe to Your Organizing Business today!

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16 Comments

  1. Moreen Torpy Moreen Torpy on August 5, 2015 at 11:33 am

    Looking forward to this Janet. There seems to have been so many changes on websites lately, that mine looks turn-of-the-century! Consequently, I have a list of updates, however learning from you what’s important or not will be enlightening. Can hardly wait!

    • Janet Barclay on August 5, 2015 at 12:24 pm

      Thank you for joining me in my enthusiasm!

  2. Seana Turner on August 5, 2015 at 11:33 am

    What a great idea, Janet. I could have used this back when I was putting together my website, but I’m sure I can still learn so much from you!

    • Janet Barclay on August 5, 2015 at 12:25 pm

      A website is always a work-in-progress, so hopefully you’ll pick up an idea or two!

  3. Autumn Leopold on August 5, 2015 at 12:27 pm

    What a great idea for a blog series! I actually can’t wait because even though I love my website I just know you are going to have some wonderful nuggets of information to help me revamp it!

    • Janet Barclay on August 5, 2015 at 12:36 pm

      Don’t be surprised to see a few changes here as well!

  4. Jill Robson on August 6, 2015 at 7:39 am

    Really looking forward to this Janet, I hope to learn how to improve what is already there.

    • Janet Barclay on August 6, 2015 at 10:22 am

      There’s always room for improvement, right? My thought was that breaking this down into a series of short steps will make it less intimidating and more manageable than a big long guide.

  5. Sabrina Q. on August 6, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    Great post! I totally agree. I like using a large marker board or large poster board and draw out how I want the website to look and function for visitors. After I write the majority of it out, I would then take a picture of it with my phone. It’s a great place to start and helps me keep focused when I start getting more detailed. Thanks for sharing.

  6. Janet Barclay on August 6, 2015 at 3:12 pm

    I love the idea of using a whiteboard, because it’s so easy to make changes. Taking a picture of it is great too, because you can take it with you if you want to consult with someone else. Thank you for sharing!

  7. Ellen Rubin Delap on August 6, 2015 at 9:34 pm

    Great idea for all of us! We all have websites and keeping them up to date is an important step for us all. I am looking forward to learning so much here.

    • Janet Barclay on August 7, 2015 at 6:37 am

      I’m thrilled by everyone’s enthusiasm, and can’t wait to see what kinds of changes are inspired by my series!

  8. Kim on August 10, 2015 at 9:36 pm

    Hey Janet,
    Do most people have a website or is it okay to just have a blog site? What is the difference?

    • Janet Barclay on August 11, 2015 at 12:00 pm

      Great question, Kim!

      In my view, all blogs are websites, but not all websites are blogs. So you could have:

      a) a website without a blog (sometimes referred to as a brochure-type website, as it provides information but no interaction)

      b) a website with a blog, where the main purpose is to promote a business.

      c) a standalone blog, where the blog IS the business, generating income through advertising, affiliate programs, sponsorships, etc.

      There are lots of other options too… some businesses have a blog that is a separate entity from their main website.

      It really comes down to setting your goals and determining what type of site will best help you achieve them – which is what this series is all about!

  9. Spread Digital on August 13, 2015 at 1:35 am

    Fully agree with Sabrina. Use large marker board and draw a website scheme. By looking at the scheme you’ll get a fair idea of what you want

    • Janet Barclay on August 13, 2015 at 7:08 am

      So that’s two votes for the whiteboard! Thank you for stopping by.

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