📝 Planning Your Website Before You Build It
Know What You Need Before You Start Clicking
You've decided that a website makes sense for your business.
Now you may be tempted to:
Pick a template.
Choose colors.
Upload a logo.
Start adding pictures.
Create pages.
NOT YET. 😳
Before you build the website, let's create the plan.
A little planning now can save you hours of changing, deleting and rebuilding later.
🎯 STEP 1 — WHAT IS THE MAIN PURPOSE OF YOUR WEBSITE?
Start with one question:
WHAT DO I NEED THIS WEBSITE TO DO?
Your answer might be:
🛍️ Sell products
📅 Book appointments
📋 Explain services
📞 Generate leads
💳 Accept payments
📧 Collect email addresses
📸 Show your work
📝 Publish information
🔐 Provide member content
📂 Sell digital products
🏠 Provide information about a property
✈️ Collect travel requests
or several of these.
Write yours down:
The main purpose of my website is:
Don't start choosing features until you can answer this question.
👤 STEP 2 — WHO IS THE WEBSITE FOR?
Your website isn't really being built for YOU.
It's being built for the person visiting it.
Think about your ideal customer.
Ask:
Who are they?
Why did they come to my website?
What are they looking for?
What questions will they have?
What might make them hesitate?
What do I want them to do before they leave?
You don't need a complicated marketing profile.
Just understand who you're trying to help.
🧭 STEP 3 — WHAT SHOULD A CUSTOMER BE ABLE TO DO?
Imagine a customer arriving on your website.
What actions should be easy?
Check everything that applies:
☐ Shop
☐ Book
☐ Pay
☐ Call
☐ Text
☐ Request information
☐ Request a quote
☐ Complete a form
☐ Read about services
☐ View prices
☐ See your work
☐ Find your location
☐ Read policies
☐ Join an email list
☐ Access member content
☐ Download something
☐ Follow social media
☐ Other: ______________________
These answers help determine what features your website actually needs.
🏠 STEP 4 — DECIDE WHICH PAGES YOU NEED
Every website doesn't need the same pages.
Here are common options.
🏠 HOME PAGE
Your homepage should quickly help a visitor understand:
WHO ARE YOU?
WHAT DO YOU OFFER?
WHO IS IT FOR?
WHAT SHOULD THEY DO NEXT?
Your homepage might include:
✔️ Business name/logo
✔️ Clear headline
✔️ Short introduction
✔️ Main products/services
✔️ Photos
✔️ Customer benefits
✔️ Reviews/testimonials when appropriate
✔️ Calls to action
✔️ Contact information
Don't try to put your entire business on the homepage.
Give customers enough information to know where to go next.
👤 ABOUT PAGE
People often make this page much harder than it needs to be.
You don't necessarily need your entire life story.
Explain:
Who you are
What the business does
Why you started
Who you serve
What makes your business different
Why customers should trust you
If your personal story is an important part of your brand, tell more of it.
If it isn't, keep the page focused on the business.
🛍️ SHOP / PRODUCTS
If you sell products, customers need a clear way to shop.
Think about:
Products
Categories/collections
Prices
Descriptions
Photos
Variants
Sizes
Colors
Inventory
Shipping
Pickup
Returns
FAQs
Don't just upload products randomly.
Think about how customers will find what they're looking for.
📋 SERVICES PAGE
If you provide services, explain:
✔️ What you offer
✔️ Who it's for
✔️ What's included
✔️ Starting price or pricing when appropriate
✔️ How long it takes
✔️ Important requirements
✔️ What happens next
✔️ How to book/contact you
Don't make customers send you a message just to understand what you actually do.
📅 BOOKING PAGE
If customers need appointments, determine:
What can they book?
How long is each service?
What days are available?
Is a deposit required?
What is the cancellation policy?
What information must they provide?
Will they receive confirmation/reminders?
Your booking process should answer those questions.
📞 CONTACT PAGE
At minimum, consider including the appropriate ways to reach your business.
For example:
📞 Business phone
📍 Business location or service area when appropriate
🕐 Business hours
📱 Social-media links
📝 Contact form
Don't publish personal information you don't want publicly available.
A home-based business doesn't necessarily need to publish a residential address.
❓ FAQ PAGE
An FAQ page can save you time.
Think about the questions customers repeatedly ask.
Examples:
How long does shipping take?
Do you accept returns?
Do I need an appointment?
Where are you located?
What payment methods do you accept?
Do you ship internationally?
How do I cancel?
If you answer the same question over and over...
PUT IT ON THE WEBSITE. 😄
🚚 SHIPPING INFORMATION
If you ship products, customers should be able to understand:
Processing times.
Shipping options.
Estimated delivery information.
Tracking.
Local pickup if offered.
Shipping restrictions.
Lost/damaged-package procedures.
Don't promise shipping or delivery times you can't consistently control.
↩️ RETURN / REFUND POLICY
If you sell products or services, clearly explain your policies.
Depending on the business, this might address:
Returns
Exchanges
Refunds
Cancellations
Deposits
Digital products
Final-sale merchandise
Damaged merchandise
Policies should fit YOUR actual business practices and applicable laws.
Don't copy another company's policy simply because it sounds professional.
🔒 PRIVACY POLICY
If your website collects personal information, uses analytics, accepts payments, uses marketing tools or collects email addresses, privacy considerations may apply.
Some website platforms can provide templates or tools to help businesses get started.
But don't assume a generated template automatically covers every law or every business.
If your business has significant privacy/compliance requirements, seek appropriate professional guidance.
📜 TERMS & CONDITIONS
Depending on what your website does, you may also need terms addressing use of the site, purchases, memberships, digital content or other activities.
Again:
DON'T COPY AND PASTE RANDOM LEGAL LANGUAGE FROM SOMEBODY ELSE'S WEBSITE.
Your terms should actually apply to your business.
🔍 STEP 5 — CREATE YOUR WEBSITE MENU
Now let's think about navigation.
Your menu is how visitors move around your website.
A simple website might have:
HOME | ABOUT | SERVICES | FAQ | CONTACT
An online store might have:
HOME | SHOP | NEW ARRIVALS | ABOUT | FAQ | CONTACT
A service business might have:
HOME | SERVICES | BOOK NOW | ABOUT | FAQ | CONTACT
KEEP IT EASY TO UNDERSTAND.
Don't get so creative with menu names that customers don't know what they mean.
SHOP is clear.
SERVICES is clear.
CONTACT is clear.
Customers shouldn't need instructions to navigate your website.
🗂️ STEP 6 — ORGANIZE PAGES UNDER MENUS
Not every page needs to appear across the top of your website.
You may use dropdown menus.
For example:
SHOP
- Hair
- Accessories
- Clearance
SERVICES
- Service One
- Service Two
- Service Three
HELP
- FAQ
- Shipping
- Returns
- Contact
This can keep your main menu cleaner.
📱 STEP 7 — PLAN FOR MOBILE FROM THE BEGINNING
Do not build the entire website on your computer and wait until the end to look at it on your phone.
Check the mobile version as you build.
Look for:
✔️ Text that's easy to read
✔️ Buttons large enough to tap
✔️ Photos that aren't awkwardly cropped
✔️ Menus that work
✔️ Forms that fit
✔️ Product information that's readable
✔️ Checkout that works
✔️ Contact information that's easy to access
YOUR CUSTOMER MAY NEVER SEE THE DESKTOP VERSION YOU SPENT HOURS PERFECTING. 😂
Always check your phone.
📸 STEP 8 — GATHER YOUR PHOTOS BEFORE YOU BUILD
Make a list of the images you need.
You might need:
📸 Logo
📸 Owner/headshot
📸 Product photos
📸 Service photos
📸 Store/location photos
📸 Before-and-after photos
📸 Portfolio images
📸 Banner/hero images
📸 Lifestyle images
Don't start filling your website with random pictures simply because you need something to fill the space.
Your images should help tell the customer what your business is about.
⚠️ DON'T JUST TAKE PHOTOS FROM GOOGLE
Finding an image through Google Search does not mean you have permission to use it on your business website.
Photos, illustrations and other creative works can be protected by copyright.
Use:
✔️ Photos you created
✔️ Images you properly licensed
✔️ Images supplied with permission
✔️ Legitimate stock-image sources under their applicable license
✔️ Graphics you have the right to use
We'll talk more about business photos and graphics on Page 8.
✍🏽 STEP 9 — GATHER YOUR WORDING
Before building, start collecting the actual information that needs to go on the website.
Create a folder or document containing:
BUSINESS INFORMATION
Business name
Tagline
Business description
Contact information
Business hours
Service area/location
ABOUT INFORMATION
Your story
Experience
Mission
What makes you different
PRODUCTS/SERVICES
Names
Descriptions
Prices
Options
Requirements
POLICIES
Shipping
Returns
Cancellations
Privacy
Terms
Other policies
CUSTOMER INFORMATION
FAQs
Testimonials/reviews you have permission to use
Instructions
Contact methods
📝 WRITE FOR YOUR CUSTOMER — NOT YOURSELF
It's easy to write a website using language only people inside your industry understand.
Your customer may not know those terms.
Keep important information:
CLEAR.
EASY TO FIND.
EASY TO UNDERSTAND.
Professional doesn't have to mean complicated.
👉 STEP 10 — DECIDE YOUR CALLS TO ACTION
Remember CTA from Page 3?
Every important page should lead the customer somewhere.
Examples:
🛍️ SHOP NOW
📅 BOOK NOW
📞 CONTACT US
💬 REQUEST A QUOTE
📧 JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST
🔐 BECOME A MEMBER
📋 VIEW SERVICES
🔎 LEARN MORE
Don't put ten different calls to action in every section.
Decide what matters most.
🧠 STEP 11 — MAP THE CUSTOMER'S JOURNEY
Pretend you're the customer.
HOW DID THEY GET HERE?
Maybe:
TikTok
Business card
Referral
Advertisement
QR code
Then ask:
WHERE DO I WANT THEM TO GO?
Example:
Instagram Post
⬇️
Product Page
⬇️
Add to Cart
⬇️
Checkout
That's a clear path.
Another:
Google Search
⬇️
Services Page
⬇️
Booking Page
⬇️
Appointment Scheduled
Make it easy for the customer to move from interest to action.
💳 STEP 12 — DECIDE HOW CUSTOMERS WILL PAY
If customers will pay through the website, decide what you need.
You may need:
💳 Credit/debit cards
📱 Digital wallets
🛍️ Online checkout
📅 Booking deposits
💵 In-person payment
📦 Payment before shipping
Different platforms offer different payment options and fees.
Don't assume every payment method works with every website platform.
Check before you build around it.
🚚 STEP 13 — IF YOU SELL PRODUCTS, PLAN FULFILLMENT
Ask:
How will customers receive the order?
☐ Shipping
☐ Local pickup
☐ Local delivery
☐ Digital delivery
☐ Other: ___________________
Then determine:
Where inventory is stored.
How orders are packed.
Who ships them.
How tracking is provided.
How pickup works.
What happens with returns.
The website is only one part of the sale.
You still need a process after someone clicks BUY.
📧 STEP 14 — WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE CUSTOMER TAKES ACTION?
This gets forgotten.
After someone:
Places an order.
Books an appointment.
Submits a form.
Joins your membership.
Requests a quote.
What happens next?
Do they receive:
📧 Confirmation?
📱 Text?
🧾 Receipt?
📅 Appointment instructions?
📦 Shipping notification?
📋 Next steps?
PLAN THE AFTER.
Good customer service doesn't stop at the checkout button.
🔗 STEP 15 — GATHER ALL YOUR BUSINESS LINKS
Create one master list.
Domain: ______________________________
Facebook: ____________________________
Instagram: ___________________________
TikTok: ______________________________
YouTube: _____________________________
Booking: _____________________________
Marketplace: _________________________
Payment link: ________________________
Other: _______________________________
This makes website setup much easier.
🔐 STEP 16 — DECIDE WHO WILL OWN & CONTROL EVERYTHING
Write this down BEFORE hiring anyone.
DOMAIN OWNER/ACCOUNT
WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR
BUSINESS EMAIL ADMIN
PAYMENT ACCOUNT OWNER
BILLING CONTACT
RECOVERY EMAIL
RECOVERY PHONE
PASSWORDS STORED SECURELY?
☐ YES ☐ NO
Do NOT write your actual passwords on this worksheet.
💰 STEP 17 — SET YOUR WEBSITE BUDGET
Don't just budget for the initial website.
Consider:
Domain: $________
Website/Hosting: $________
Email: $________
Theme/Template: $________
Apps/Plugins: $________
Booking: $________
Professional Help: $________
Photos/Graphics: $________
Other: $________
INITIAL COST:
$________________
ESTIMATED MONTHLY COST:
$________________
ESTIMATED ANNUAL COST:
$________________
Now you can make decisions based on actual numbers.
🛑 STEP 18 — DECIDE WHAT YOU CAN DO YOURSELF
Mark each one:
| TASK | DIY | NEED HELP |
|---|---|---|
| Domain | ☐ | ☐ |
| Business Email | ☐ | ☐ |
| Website Setup | ☐ | ☐ |
| Wording | ☐ | ☐ |
| Photos | ☐ | ☐ |
| Graphics | ☐ | ☐ |
| Products | ☐ | ☐ |
| Policies | ☐ | ☐ |
| Payments | ☐ | ☐ |
| Shipping | ☐ | ☐ |
| SEO Basics | ☐ | ☐ |
YOU DON'T HAVE TO DIY EVERYTHING.
But you also don't have to pay someone to do everything.
💡 IF YOU HIRE SOMEONE, GIVE THEM A PLAN
Imagine contacting a website designer and saying:
“I need a website.”
That's not much information.
Now compare that with:
“I need a 5-page service website with Home, About, Services, FAQ and Contact. I need customers to submit a consultation form. I already own my domain, have my logo and photos, and I have my wording prepared.”
Now you're speaking a completely different language.
PLANNING HELPS YOU GET BETTER QUOTES.
It can also reduce misunderstandings about what you expected to receive.
🌐 NEED HELP BUILDING YOUR WEBSITE?
If you've completed your plan and decide you would rather have help creating your website, you can explore the website options available through:
THE BOSS WEBSITES
Having your website plan completed first will make it much easier to determine what kind of website and services you actually need.
🌐 EXPLORE WEBSITE OPTIONS
Link this button to:
📋 YOUR WEBSITE BLUEPRINT
Now let's put everything on one simple blueprint.
BUSINESS NAME
DOMAIN
WEBSITE PURPOSE
IDEAL CUSTOMER
MAIN CALL TO ACTION
PAGES I NEED
☐ Home
☐ About
☐ Shop
☐ Products
☐ Services
☐ Booking
☐ FAQ
☐ Contact
☐ Blog
☐ Membership
☐ Shipping
☐ Returns
☐ Privacy
☐ Terms
☐ Other: ___________________
FEATURES I NEED
☐ Online payments
☐ Shopping cart
☐ Booking
☐ Contact form
☐ Quote form
☐ Email signup
☐ Member login
☐ Digital downloads
☐ Local pickup
☐ Shipping
☐ Blog
☐ Reviews
☐ Other: ___________________
WEBSITE PLATFORM
BUDGET
TARGET LAUNCH DATE
📂 CREATE A WEBSITE FOLDER
Before you build, create one folder on your computer or cloud storage called something like:
MY BUSINESS WEBSITE
Inside it, create folders for:
📁 Logo
📁 Photos
📁 Product Images
📁 Website Wording
📁 Policies
📁 Business Information
📁 Website Logins / Account Information
📁 Receipts & Subscriptions
SECURITY NOTE:
Do not save passwords, payment information or other highly sensitive credentials in an ordinary unprotected document.
Use a secure password-management method for passwords.
🚦ARE YOU READY TO BUILD?
Before moving forward, ask:
☐ I know what my website needs to do.
☐ I know who my customer is.
☐ I know what pages I need.
☐ I know what features I need.
☐ I have my business information.
☐ I have or am gathering my photos.
☐ I have or am writing my content.
☐ I know my main call to action.
☐ I know how customers will pay.
☐ I know how orders/bookings will be handled.
☐ I know who controls my domain.
☐ I know who will control my website.
☐ I understand the recurring costs.
☐ I know what I can DIY.
☐ I know where I may need help.
If you can't check every box yet:
THAT'S OKAY.
That's exactly why we're planning before we build.
⭐ MRS. GWEN'S WEBSITE PLANNING RULES
1. PLAN BEFORE YOU BUILD.
2. Build for the CUSTOMER—not just yourself.
3. Know what you want the website to accomplish.
4. Don't add pages simply to make the website look bigger.
5. Don't add features you don't need.
6. Gather your wording and photos before you start.
7. Always check the mobile version.
8. Give every important page a purpose.
9. Keep control of your business accounts.
10. Know your budget before you start spending.
❤️ THE BIG LESSON
A website doesn't need to be huge to be effective.
It needs to be:
CLEAR.
EASY TO USE.
PROFESSIONAL.
USEFUL.
and
BUILT FOR THE BUSINESS YOU ACTUALLY HAVE.
Don't build what everybody else has.
Build what YOUR customer needs.
➡️ NEXT: SHOPIFY — GETTING STARTED
Now that you have your website blueprint, we're ready to look at an actual website/e-commerce platform.
On the next page, we'll break down Shopify in plain language:
What Shopify is.
Who it may be good for.
Plans and recurring costs.
Themes.
Products.
Collections.
Pages.
Menus.
Payments.
Shipping.
Apps.
Customer accounts.
And some of the things I wish people understood before they start adding apps and changing themes. 😳
← PAGE 3: DO YOU REALLY NEED A WEBSITE?
🏠 ONLINE BUSINESS HOME
PAGE 5: SHOPIFY — GETTING STARTED →
⚠️ IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER
This information is provided for general educational purposes only.
Website requirements can vary based on the type of business, location, products or services offered, customer information collected and applicable laws.
Website platforms, payment systems, apps, features and pricing can change. Always review current provider terms and seek appropriate legal, tax or professional advice when your business has requirements beyond basic website setup.