by Tega AkuruliPlanning a Seamless Website Launch
Launching a new website whether for a company, personal brand, nonprofit, or portfolio is a thrilling undertaking. It’s a digital milestone, after all, one that embodies your vision, values, and goals. But for many individuals and organizations, website projects become sources of frustration and budgeting excesses. Why? Because expectations were never properly set in advance.
Setting the right expectations before starting a website project is the difference between a smooth experience and an arduous, conflict-ridden one. No matter if you are a business owner, project manager, freelancer, or startup founder, this post will guide you through the process of laying the groundwork for a successful website project with clear objectives, timelines, roles, and deliverables.
1. Understand the Purpose of the Website
Before talking to developers, designers, or agencies, ask yourself one essential question: Why this website?
Ask:
- Is it to sell products or services (eCommerce)?
- Is it to inform and educate (blog, news, or corporate site)?
- Is it to generate leads?
- Is it a portfolio to showcase your work?
- Is it a hub for community activity?
Defining the purpose provides direction. It helps to determine functionality, types of content, and user journeys.
Action Tip:
Craft a purpose statement such as:
“Our website is a lead generation site for our consulting practice, with the goal of turning visitors into clients through valuable content and a prominent call-to-action funnel.”
2. Establish Your Goals and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
With your purpose defined, determine what success would look like. Don’t use vague statements such as “a stronger online presence.” Be precise.
Some examples of concise goals:
- Grow email subscribers by 40% within 6 months.
- Generate 20 new leads per month.
- Sell 100+ units of a product per month.
Set up KPIs:
- Bounce rate
- Average time on page
- Conversion rate
- Page speed
- User engagement (click-through rates, downloads)
These metrics will enable you and your team to know whether your project is generating real results.
3. Know Your Audience
Most website projects fail because they were created for the brand or organization—not the end user.
Create User Personas:
Think about 2–3 fictional but realistic customer types who will use your website.
For example:
Name: Business Owner Ben
Age: 42
Goal: Looking for a reliable logistics partner.
Behavior: Googles, reads content, prefers videos or quick summaries.
Design for them. Every page needs to help them.
4. Decide Custom Build or Template
One more expectation to manage: are you building a custom site from scratch, or using a template or builder like WordPress, Webflow, or Shopify?
Pros and Cons:
Custom Build:
- More flexibility
- Custom features
- Longer development time
- Higher cost
Template-Based:
- Quicker setup
- Lower cost
- Limited customization
Your decision will directly affect budget, timeline, and capabilities.
5. Define the Scope of Work (SOW)
Scope creep is the silent killer of website projects. You need a Scope of Work document that outlines:
Key Elements to Include:
- Pages to be developed (e.g., Home, About, Services, Blog, Contact)
- Features (e.g., contact form, newsletter signup, booking system)
- Content to be written or provided
- Who provides images, icons, illustrations
- Number of design revisions permitted
- Hosting and maintenance duties
Bonus Tip:
Use project management applications (Trello, Asana, Notion) to keep everyone on the same page.
6. Budget Realistically
How much really does a website cost? That depends on your goals, functionality, and scope.
A rough breakdown might be:
- Template-based site: $500 – $3,000
- Mid-range custom site: $3,000 – $15,000
- High-end enterprise site: $20,000+
What to budget for:
- Design and development
- Copywriting
- SEO optimization
- CMS integration
- Hosting and domain
- Ongoing maintenance and updates
Don’t forget to leave a little room for unexpected costs like additional plugins, premium themes, or integrations.
7. Define the Timeline (and Pad It!)
Web development takes time. And something will almost always go wrong—whether it’s delays in getting content, unexpected bugs, or scope changes.
Typical timeline for a mid-size site:
- Discovery & Planning: 1–2 weeks
- Design: 2–4 weeks
- Development: 3–6 weeks
- Testing: 1–2 weeks
- Launch: 1 week
Pad buffer time. If your best estimate is 10 weeks, budget for 12. Make that clear to all stakeholders.
8. Define Roles and Responsibilities
One of the biggest expectation pitfalls is a lack of clarity around who is doing what.
Example Breakdown:
- Client: Content, branding, and approvals.
- Designer: Wireframes and mockups.
- Developer: Front- and back-end build.
- Copywriter: All website copy.
- Project Manager: Timelines, updates, and quality control.
Without set responsibilities, things will get chaotic. Clearly establish who signs off on what.
9. Content Planning is Imperative
Content is typically the most behind-schedule element of a website project. Yet, it’s arguably the most important. A beautiful site with poor content is still a poor site.
What to Prepare:
- Homepage messaging
- Service/product descriptions
- FAQs
- Team bios
- Case studies/testimonials
- Blog content
- Metadata (for SEO)
Who Writes It?
Be explicit upfront whether content will be created by your team or the agency/freelancer.
10. SEO and Mobile-Friendliness Shouldn’t Be Optional
These aren’t “bonus” features anymore.
Set expectations for:
- On-page SEO (keywords, metadata, image alt text)
- Fast load time (under 3 seconds)
- Mobile responsiveness
- Clean, semantic code
- Accessibility standards (contrast, alt text, keyboard navigation)
Make sure SEO is in the deliverables—either built-in or handled by a specialist.
11. Use Wireframes and Prototypes Early
Wireframes are like blueprints—they help everyone visualize the layout and flow before designing. Prototypes take it a step further and illustrate clickable layouts.
Benefits:
- Gets everyone on the same page visually
- Prevents redesigns
- Gets stakeholder feedback early
Ask your team or agency to deliver wireframes first. Approve them before full design.
12. Make Time for Testing and Revisions
Include time for multiple rounds of testing and feedback.
Types of tests:
- Cross-browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, etc.)
- Mobile vs desktop
- Broken links
- Usability tests
- Load speed tests
Also specify expectations for how many revision rounds are included in the price. Usually, 2–3 rounds are acceptable.
13. Know Ownership and Access
Who owns the website once it’s delivered? Who has access?
Make sure:
- The domain is registered in your name or business
- You have admin-level access to the CMS
- Hosting accounts are in your control
- Design files and code are handed over
Protect yourself from vendor lock-in.
14. Strategically Plan the Launch
Don’t rush to put the site live. Instead, schedule your launch.
Launch Checklist:
- Test on a range of devices
- Redirect previous URLs (if redesigning)
- Notify stakeholders or clients
- Send out press releases or social media notifications
- Monitor post-launch problems
Also, soft launch to a small audience before full public launch.
15. Create a Post-Launch Support Plan
What happens after the site goes live?
Set expectations for:
- Bug fixes (free or paid?)
- Ongoing maintenance (updates, security patches)
- Training on how to use the CMS
- Monthly backups and uptime monitoring
Ideally, establish a maintenance retainer or agreement from the start.
16. Get Everything in Writing
Whether you’re working with a freelancer, agency, or internal team—create a contract or project agreement.
Include:
- Scope of work
- Deliverables and timelines
- Payment schedule
- Revision policy
- Termination clauses
- Intellectual property rights
Clear contracts reduce misunderstandings and protect both parties.
17. Communicate Early and Often
Finally, the key to keeping expectations aligned is regular communication.
Communication Best Practices:
- Regular weekly updates or check-ins
- Open feedback channels
- Shared documents/folders
- Clear escalation path in case of problems
Even a weekly 10-minute call can save weeks of confusion or delay.
Setting Expectations is Half the Work. A website building project is a multi-faceted undertaking that involves creativity, strategy, technical expertise, and business acumen. Most failures don’t happen because of bad design or coding they happen because of bad communication and unclear expectations.
By taking the time up front to define purpose, goals, scope, content, timelines, and roles, you lay the groundwork for a website project that not only delivers on but surpasses expectations.
So, before you dive into pixels, plugins, and page builders pause and set expectations. Your future self (and your team) will thank you.