Steps of a redesign

Overview
Goals
Time estimate and team
Content review
Site structure and navigation
Finalize timeline and content
Visual design development
Production and proofing
Launch and maintenance

Content review and development

Review sitelogs and current content

• Check your web stats. Which pages are rarely viewed? Is it because your audience can't find them or because they're not targeted to your audience?
• Go through each page of your site and identify outdated text and photos.
• From your focus-group research and competitive analysis, you'll have a good idea of what content might be missing from your site. Additionally, your team might have great new ideas.

This is the time to put together a spreadsheet that lists

• each current page name and who is rewriting or updating it
• each new page name and who is responsible for content creation

If your content or audience demands photos, illustrations, or complicated tables, graphs, or charts, you'll want to plan as far in advance as possible for these items.

Writing for the web

Share good web-writing practices with content providers so they're focusing on usability and the audience. Talk to your writers about the differences between reading on-screen and on paper.

• "How Users Read on the Web," by Jakob Nielsen
• How to write for the web
• Example from Web Style Guide of print writing repurposed for the web

Editorial style and consistency

Throughout your site, you'll want to ensure a consistent voice.

• Share your style guide with each writer. For an example, see Creative Services' Writing Style Guide
• Offer a template or example for writers to follow, including the following information
  • page title (filled in by project manager)
  • filename (filled in by project manager)
  • status (needs copy creation, needs copy update, completed - same information is needed for art)
  • due date (filled in by project manager)
• Assign an editor to review and unify all content after it's written

Keep in mind, you'll be establishing additional, separate style guides for good HTML practices.

 

Next step: Site structure and navigation

 

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Have questions or materials you'd like to share? E-mail Creative Services.