The checklist
Branding
- Your logo, ideally as a high resolution file rather than a small image pulled from your existing website or social media
- Any brand colours or fonts you already use, if you have a preference
- Examples of other websites you like the look of, even loosely, to help communicate your taste
Business information
- A short description of what your business does and who it serves, in your own words
- Your key selling points, what makes you different from competitors in plain, honest language
- Business hours, service area, and any relevant certifications or qualifications
Contact details
- Phone number, email address, and physical address if applicable
- Any specific contact preferences, for example if you'd rather receive calls than form submissions
- Social media links, if you have active accounts you want linked from the site
Photos
- Photos of your work, your team, or your premises, ideally good quality and genuinely yours rather than stock images
- Any existing product photography, if relevant to your business
- Logos of any brands, suppliers, or certifications you want displayed, if relevant
Written content
- Text for each page you need, even in rough form, a designer can help refine it, but starting from nothing takes longer than starting from a rough draft
- Any existing testimonials or reviews you'd like featured
- FAQs your customers commonly ask, if you have them in mind
Practical details
- Domain name, if you already own one, along with login access if needed
- Any existing hosting or website details, if this is a redesign rather than a first website
- A rough idea of your budget and timeline, so your designer can plan accordingly
Why gathering this in advance matters
Projects that start with this information ready tend to move noticeably faster than those where content is gathered piece by piece during the build. It also tends to produce a better result, since a designer working from real business information from the start builds something genuinely tailored, rather than filling gaps with generic placeholder text that has to be rewritten later.
FAQs
What if I don't have professional photos of my business?
This is common, particularly for newer businesses. A web designer can often work with what you have, or advise on simple ways to get better photos, a phone camera in good natural light is often enough for a small business website.
Do I need to write all the website text myself?
Not necessarily, many web designers offer copywriting as part of the process. Even rough notes or bullet points on what you want each page to say gives a designer far more to work with than starting from nothing.
What if I'm not sure what pages I need yet?
That's a normal starting point. A good web designer will help you work out the right page structure for your business as part of the early planning stage, based on what you do and what you want the site to achieve.