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All Process
Website Design Client Onboarding
As a web design studio, the first steps you take after landing a new client, leading on up to the actual project start are all part of the vital yet daunting onboarding process.
This is where you really get the chance to make a strong first impression - onboarding can set the tone for the whole of your client relationship. It's your chance to set the stage for a successful project, outlining project details, setting expectations, and building the framework from which you'll launch the project.
Onboarding leaves open just as many opportunities as it does pitfalls, like coming across as unprofessional, wasting your clients time with useless or tedious tasks, and failing to provide any real value. That's why it's so important that you nail down a solid process for new client onboarding.
Thankfully, this checklist is designed to guide you through the whole process step-by-step, showing you exactly how to pack your client onboarding process with value, whilst saving more time and money by removing manual processes and replacing them with streamlined automation.
Record project details
First things first, you need to record some basic information about your new client.
Client first name
Client last name
Client company name
Primary communications channel
Upload web design contract
Send contract for signing
Receive signed contract
Send invoice
Confirm first payment
Set up project management system record
Assign project roles
Kick-off call:
Understand website purpose and goals
Your initial meeting with the client is an important one. This is your opportunity to learn as much about the company and their vision for the website as possible before work begins.
You can record the results of your questioning in the form fields provided beneath.
Discuss deliverables and expectations with the client, recording the information in the form fields below.
Desired features
Project scope notes
Agree on timeline for project
Work out a timeline that makes sense for the duration of the project, including a final deadline and at least one major milestone.
Final deadline
Milestone 1 - What will be delivered here
Milestone 1 Date
Milestone 2
Milestone 2 Date
Milestone 3
Milestone 3 Date
Milestone 4
Milestone 4 Date
Timeline notes
Immediately after the call:
Prepare and upload creative brief
The creative brief is a hugely important document for both your team and the client.
This will typically be 1 or 2 pages of overview for the web design project, informed by the information you gathered during your last call with the client as well as any additional information such as the survey.
Your team will use this document to guide them towards the goals and milestones of the project.
A creative brief might include the following points:
Send creative brief
Send the creative brief you prepared earlier to both your client and the rest of your team.
Brief Template
Client Brief
Name
Column 3
Notes
Project Name
Open
Project Website URL
Open
Additional Website of Client
Open
Organization Doing Similar work
Open
Organization Full Address
Open
Purpose of website
Open
What Task would be done to reach website purpose
Open
Target Owner from Organization Owner Point of view
Open
Technical Reuirements
Website Development Platform, CRM, Other Integrations
Open
Define primary and secondary goals of the site
Open
Define primary and secondary calls-to-action
Open
Hard requirements of Client
Open
Soft Requirements of Client
Open
Email address to receive responses to the contact form submission.
Open
Social media handles (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or other)
Open
There are no rows in this table
Resources:
Perform competitor research
In order to better understand where your client's company can find their niche, you need to have a strong understanding of the industry they are either working in or entering into.
You can read this about best practices when conducting industry research - what to look for, and how to look for it.
Use the sub checklist below to help guide your research.
Client's USP
Main competitors
Perform target audience research
Understanding who your key demographic is will help you tremendously in constructing a brand identity which can effectively target the right customers.
The sub checklist below provides a short series of steps to consider when assessing the demographic in the context of the construction of a branding strategy.
Request branding, media, and style guides
Request additional resources from your client, if you need to.
Educate your client:
Educate them about your process
Help your client to understand how you typically do things. Inform them where they can see progress, whom to direct questions to, and anything else that you deem relevant for them to fully understand your workflow during the project.
Transparency of communication is crucial from start to finish, so it pays to be crystal clear about how you intend to work.
Provide research and statistics supporting your design decision
Share example sites, statistics, and research or case studies done on user experience to back up the creative direction outlined in the design brief.
This helps lend credibility to your statement and also serves to preserve momentum following a recent creative decision.
______________
Website Planning
Identify site purpose and goals
This task is all about understanding the purpose and goals of the website. Why is it being created? What are the objectives and desired outcomes? Consider the target audience and how the website will meet their needs. The results of this task will inform the rest of the planning and development process.
Create a user persona
A user persona is a representation of the target audience for the website. It helps to create a clear picture of who the website is for and their specific needs, preferences, and behaviors. By understanding the user persona, the website can be designed and developed to meet their expectations and provide a great user experience.
Outline the site navigation structure
This task involves planning the overall structure and organization of the website. Consider how the content will be organized and how users will navigate through the site. Think about the main categories or sections of the website, as well as any sub-categories or pages within them. The goal is to create a logical and user-friendly navigation system.
Plan the site design
The site design is an important aspect of the website planning process. It includes decisions about the overall look and feel of the site, the color scheme, typography, and visual elements. Consider the brand identity and target audience when planning the site design.
Choose a color scheme for the website
Choose web development platform
The web development platform is the foundation of the website. It is the software or service that will be used to build and manage the site. Consider factors such as ease of use, scalability, customization options, and any specific functionalities required for the website.
Create content for the site
Content is the heart of any website. It includes text, images, videos, and any other media that will be displayed on the site. In this task, create or gather the content that will be used on the website. Consider the target audience, the website goals, and any key messages that need to be conveyed.
Develop site prototype
A site prototype is a visual representation of the website layout and structure. It helps to visualize how the different elements will be arranged on each page. In this task, create a prototype for the website. Consider the site navigation, content layout, and any interactive elements that need to be included.
Test site functionality and usability
SEO Setup
Ensure mobile compatibility
Install necessary plugins and tools - Jetpack, Google Analytics, Yoast SEO
Set up Google Analytics
Add SSL Certification
Approval: Site Prototype
Launch the website
Perform post-launch testing
Monitor website performance
Website Content Strategy
Identify Target Audience
Who is your content for? This task involves identifying and defining your target audience. Think about their demographics, interests, and pain points. Understanding your target audience will help you create content that resonates with them and drives engagement.
Research Competitor Content
Understand what your competitors are doing and gather insights for creating better content. This task involves researching your competitors' websites, blogs, and social media profiles to identify their content strategy, topics, formats, and engagement levels.
List the top 3 competitors and their website URLs:
Develop Unique Brand Voice
Establish a unique brand voice to differentiate your content. This task involves defining your brand's tone, style, and personality. Consider your target audience, brand values, and desired perception. Your brand voice should align with your content goals and appeal to your target audience.
Describe your brand voice:
Set Specific Content Goals
Define specific and measurable goals for your content strategy. This task involves setting goals that align with your overall business objectives. Consider metrics like website traffic, engagement, conversions, and brand awareness. Clear goals will guide your content creation and help you measure success.
What are your content goals?
Create an Editorial Calendar
Plan and organize your content creation and publication schedule. This task involves creating an editorial calendar that outlines the topics, formats, and publishing dates for your content. A well-planned editorial calendar ensures consistent and timely content delivery.
Editorial calendar title
Start date
End date
Produce High Quality Content
Create compelling, informative, and valuable content for your target audience. This task involves producing content that aligns with your brand voice, content goals, and editorial calendar. Focus on providing value, addressing pain points, and engaging your audience.
Approval: Quality Assurance Team
Curate Visual Content
Enhance your content with visual elements. This task involves curating or creating visuals like images, infographics, videos, or animations that complement your written content. Visuals help increase engagement and make your content more shareable.
Optimize Content for SEO
Improve your content's visibility in search engine results. This task involves optimizing your content for relevant keywords, meta tags, headers, and URL structure. Effective SEO techniques will help your content rank higher and attract organic traffic.
Select the SEO techniques you plan to implement: Multiple options can be selected from this list
Conduct Keyword Research
Identify relevant keywords for your content. This task involves conducting keyword research using tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Moz. Choose keywords that have high search volume, low competition, and are relevant to your target audience.
Implement Call to Actions
Guide your audience to take desired actions. This task involves including clear and compelling call to actions (CTAs) in your content. CTAs can be in the form of buttons, links, or prompts that encourage users to engage, subscribe, purchase, or share your content.
Describe the call to actions you plan to implement:
Promote Content through Social Media
Approval: Digital Marketing Manager
Monitor Content Performance
(Track and analyze the performance of your content. This task involves monitoring metrics like website traffic, engagement, conversions, and social media shares. Regular monitoring helps you identify what's working and what needs improvement to optimize your content strategy)
Collect and Analyze User Feedback
Revision and updates based on feedback
Incorporate user feedback to refine and improve your content. This task involves reviewing feedback and making necessary revisions to your content strategy, topics, formats, or publishing schedule. Addressing user feedback helps enhance the effectiveness and relevance of your content.
Approval: Project Lead
Develop and Execute a Link Building Strategy
Review and Refine Content Strategy
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