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Website Checklist.
A guide by Website Labs - 2019
Getting StartedCreating your first website can be confusing... Thankfully the Website Labs team have put together a checklist to help you get started.
Remember, we offer everything in this document and more in our most basic packages! No matter what you need, website labs has you covered!
RequiredFor the most part, all websites need the same basic building blocks.
DomainLet's pretend that your website is a house. Think of your domain as the address for your website. Here's an example of a domain www.websitelabs.co.uk
Remember. There are a lot of suffixes for domains. .com .co.uk .net .org .ukWe recommend choosing a .com or a .co.uk domain. Try to stay clear of ICANN-era generic top-level domains unless it is a very good fit for your business, and even then consider the fact that they are not very mainstream yet and are easily forgotten or misunderstood.
HostingIf your domain is the address for your website, think of hosting as the land your website is built on.
You need land to build your website on and like land in the traditional sense, it can cost more or less depending on your requirements.
How do I choose a domain name for my website?
Have I chosen theright domain namefor my website?
TipsDon’t choose a domain name that:
Is too long
Is easily misspelled
Is misleading
Is unpronounceable
Remember, your domain is the address for your website
Have you ever putthe wrong post codein on a satnav?
TipsIf your domain can’t be spelt or pronounced or is confusing, people will not find it.
Keep it short.
Keep it simple.
Make it memorable.
Incorporate keywords.
Required… In our opinion.SSL“SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is the standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and a browser.”
What on earth does that mean and why do I need it?On the most basic level, SSL means your site is secure and safe for your users. You’ll also be favoured by Google over other websites without SSL.
Although it is not technically required, we heavily recommend using SSL.
ResponsiveYou may have heard this term thrown around quite a lot. The goal of responsive design is to create web pages that detect the users screen size and orientation and change the layout of the page accordingly.
This is why most sites layouts look different on desktop and mobile.
Mobile VS Tablet VS DesktopAs of 2019 mobile and tablet browsing accounts for ~53% of all internet traffic. This is a huge demographic and if your website isn't responsive, you could be missing out on ~53% of traffic.
If your site isn't responsive in 2019 you are losing business.
Although conversions on mobile are only ~32%. A lot of potential customers will find your site on mobile but go back on desktop.
You need to cater for ALL screen sizes!
You don’t need all those pages!You might have heard that your visitors don't like clicking and that any content should be only three clicks away from a visitor.
WRONG!
People LOVE clicking!They HATE waiting! Tips
If your going to have your customers click around your website.
Make sure your pages load fast enough to keep them interested.
Optional.EmailHave you considered email hosting? Having a professional email address such as, [email protected] can be very useful, especially when potential customers feel the need to contact you.
Imagine sending a customer support email from [email protected]…
Core PagesThe “core pages” of a site are Home, About Us & Contact Us. If your site is for e-commerce you will also have a Products & Services page.
At the very least, we recommend having all 3/4 of these pages.
It is also worth considering creating pages for Testimonials, Portfolio, Case Studies, Our Team, FAQS.
ImagesThe quality and size of your images
can really affect your site.
Tips
Bigger isn't always better.If it's over 700kb it will most likely impact page speed.Try to use images with a 4:3 aspect ratio and ideally less than 500kb.
Resources
Images:www.shutterstock.comwww.depositphotos.com
Icons:www.thenounproject.com
Compression:www.tinypng.comwww.compressor.io
Image compressor websites like these can quickly reduce the size of an image with minimal loss in quality.
Images.
ColourChoosing the right colour scheme for your website is very important.
Follow these simple tips to keep your colours in check.
Tips
5 colours maxTry not to use solid black or solid white.Make sure your colours have enough contrast to stand out against each other.
Resources
Colour scheme generators:color.adobe.comwww.coolors.co
Accessibility checker:www.material.io/resources/color
Understanding Dark Themes:www.material.io/design/color/dark-theme
Colour Theory:blogs.adobe.com
We recommend having a basic understanding of colour theory when choosing colours for the web.
Colour.
The basics of SEOBacklinksPromoting and generating links to your content is almost as important as as the content itself.
Having a healthy number of backlinks can really increase your traffic.
Optimize for searchMake sure that when people search for content that can be found on one of your pages, they can find it easily and quickly.
AccessibilityMake sure your website is accessible to both search engines and people.
Search engines and people browse web pages in totally different ways.
The basics of SEORefinementMonitor your traffic and take note of what improves it. You can tailor your hard work to suit your site and continuously increase growth.
Search IntentMake sure your pages are aligned with what your potential customers are likely to be searching for.
KeywordsUse keyword research tools to create content that fits a gap in search intent.
