Preparing for a website project before the first meeting removes weeks from its life. Seven things you gather yourself: the goal of the site, the page list, the copy for each page, real photography, logo files, domain and hosting credentials, and one person who owns the decision. Whatever is missing from those seven is what will delay you later.
Why do most website projects run late?
The leading cause by a wide margin is not development but content. The agency waits on copy and photographs, the client waits to see a design first, and the project stalls between them. Preparing for a website project early breaks that loop.
The second cause is too many decision makers: three reviewers with no single authority produce contradictory notes, and the work gets done twice.
Preparing for a website project: the seven item checklist
| Item | What form it takes | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The goal of the site | A sentence with a verb and a measure | It governs page order and button placement |
| The page list | Page names and their order in the menu | The basis for pricing and scheduling |
| Page copy | One file per page with heading, body and buttons | Designing on real text avoids redoing it |
| Photography | High resolution real images of the place, team and product | The strongest visual difference between sites |
| Logo files | A vector format if you have one, plus colour and font values | It prevents a distorted logo in the header |
| Domain and hosting | Credentials or where they were bought | Launch stops here if they arrive late |
| A decision maker | One name who approves and consolidates notes | It prevents contradictory feedback |
How do you write your page copy quickly?
Do not start with a blank page. For each page, answer four questions in short sentences:
- Who opens this page? And where did they come from.
- What question is in their head? Write it in their words, not your jargon.
- What convinces them? Three points, not twenty.
- What is the next action? One clear button.
Four answers per page is enough for us to start, and we handle the phrasing and search preparation. What matters is that the substance comes from you, because you know your customers.
Photography: the most postponed item
- Photograph the place and the team, even on a modern phone in daylight. It beats any stock image.
- Photograph products on a consistent background if you run a store, because inconsistency makes the page look careless.
- Collect before and after images of completed work if you are a service business.
- Avoid images containing client data or anything identifying third parties without permission.
- Send images at the highest resolution you have and we compress them for the web.
What do you not need to prepare?
You do not need to understand the technology, choose a theme or write a technical specification. That is our responsibility. Preparing for a website project on your side concerns information and decisions, not execution.
You also do not need polished prose. Send the substance the way you say it to a customer on the phone, and the phrasing is part of our job.
One folder that covers the whole preparation
Gather the seven items into a single cloud folder: a document for the goal and page list, a document per page, a folder for photography, a folder for the logo, and a note holding domain and hosting details. Share the link at the first meeting.
That folder is the difference between a project that finishes on schedule and one that drifts for no clear reason. Read your website goal before writing anything else.
A two week schedule for preparing for a website project
Spread the preparation across two weeks instead of trying to finish it in a day:
- Day one: write the goal of the site and the page list. An hour is enough.
- The next three days: one file per page using the four questions above.
- Week one: arrange photography of the place, the team and the product.
- Week two: gather logo files and domain and hosting details.
- Before the meeting: name the decision maker and tell your team that notes go through them.
Common mistakes in preparation
- Copying text from a competitor site. It damages rankings and erases your own voice.
- Sending images through WhatsApp at a resolution too low to publish.
- Only having a small PNG logo with no vector version.
- Not knowing where the domain was bought, which genuinely stops launch.
- Leaving copy until last on the assumption that the design will suggest it.
What if you have none of this?
That is common and does not stop you starting. We run a scoping session that produces the goal and the page list, then agree who writes and who photographs. The difference is that the schedule and price rest on that agreement rather than on an assumption.
Frequently asked questions
What should I prepare before a website project starts?
Seven items: the goal of the site as a sentence with a verb and a measure, the page list, copy for each page, real photography, logo files and colour values, domain and hosting credentials, and one person who owns sign off.
Should I write the content myself or should you?
Both work. Writing it yourself lowers cost and improves accuracy, while us writing it saves your time and guarantees search preparation. The common middle path is that you send the substance as bullet points and we handle the phrasing.
Can design start before the copy is ready?
Only the overall direction can. Designing on placeholder text produces spaces the real words do not fit, so the work is redone. The middle path is to start with the page whose content already exists.
What if I have no real photography?
Shoot on a modern phone in daylight, or arrange a simple session covering the place, the team and the product. Stock imagery makes a site look like thousands of others, and it is the fastest way to lose a visitor trust.
Who should the decision maker be?
One person who can give final approval and who consolidates the team notes into one list. Three reviewers with no single authority is the second largest cause of delay after content.
Start with a scoping session
Send whatever you have now, however incomplete, and we identify what is missing, who supplies it and when, because preparing for a website project does not have to be finished before you talk to us. See the web design and development page for what we build.
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Arqam Web
44 Central Axis, Al Saraya Mall, Lower Ground, Entrance 2, Sheikh Zayed, Giza, Egypt
Phone and WhatsApp: +20 111 872 1404 · Email: info@arqamweb.com
