Plan the site before choosing the builder
Turn a loose idea into a goal, evidence inventory, and page map that any builder can execute.
Write the decision the website must help someone make
A website is not the goal. It is a decision environment. Name the person, the moment they arrive, what they need to understand, and the action that creates value for both sides.
Write one primary job in this format: Help [specific visitor] decide [specific decision] by showing [evidence], then make it easy to [action].
Help an operations director decide whether our consultancy understands multi-location rollouts by showing three relevant engagements, then make it easy to book a 25-minute fit call.
Using ‘raise awareness’ as the primary objective. It cannot tell you what the page should contain or what to measure.
Inventory evidence before writing claims
Collect what can make a statement believable: outcomes, process artifacts, credentials, product screens, policies, locations, team experience, customer language, and constraints.
Mark each proposed claim as proven, plausible but unproven, or unsupported. Publish only what you can defend.
Replace ‘world-class service’ with ‘Weekly progress review, named project lead, and documented handoff.’
Designing testimonial sections before you have permission to use a real testimonial.
Give every route one distinct job
A page earns its URL when it answers a distinct intent. Home orients. A service page explains fit and process. A case study proves a capability. Contact reduces uncertainty around the next step.
Keep navigation labels literal. Clever labels increase the cost of finding information.
Home → understand the offer. Services → choose the right engagement. Work → verify capability. About → understand the people and approach. Contact → begin safely.
Repeating the same hero, benefits, proof, and CTA on every page with only nouns changed.
Choose a launch threshold
Define what must be true for version one to be useful. Separate launch blockers from improvements. This prevents endless polishing and prevents an attractive shell from shipping without evidence or working paths.
A small complete site is stronger than a large site full of placeholders.
Launch blockers: complete service pages, tested inquiry form, privacy page, domain, analytics consent decision, metadata, mobile review. Later: resource library and interactive calculator.
Treating the homepage as the whole website and calling every other route phase two.