Website Questionnaire

Almost the first thing we do when meeting with a new client is to ask them to fill in this questionnaire. The answers to these questions will help us to understand their needs and enable us to give them a professional website design, that meets their needs and stays within their budget.

* We do not collect, use or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than those identified below, except with your consent or as required by law.

 

The best Web design questionnaires focus on:

1. What the site’s supposed to do for the client’s business.

2. What the site will look like.

 

So now let's go through the questionnaire that we use, and explain the reasoning behind each question.

 

1. Why do you want to have a new website, or have your current site redesigned?
This question uncovers the client’s motivation for getting in touch with someone like us in the first place. The answer can be as simple as  "Our competition has one so we should, too."

 

2. What will happen if you don’t have a new website, or have your current site redesigned?
This is the question that starts getting into a bit more detail. The current site may not be functional in current browsers. Or it could be that they’ve decided to sell online, and the current site is not capable of e-commerce. Maybe it just looks dated and they want to have a fresh new look.

 

3. Please describe your organization in a few sentences.
Since this answer should be both concise and precise, it could later become part of the home page copy.

 

4. What is there about you and your background that sets you apart for a special (niche) group of potential customers?
This is a question that should get the prospective client thinking. Sometimes we can help with the answer. There is almost always something that can be found that will serve to differentiate them from their competition.

 

5. What problems do your prospects have that your business solves?
Although the word “solutions” has been overused lately, in this case it applies directly. This is an opportunity for the client to clearly state what they can do for their prospective customers.

 

6. How can your particular work background help prospects, compared to others in your industry? What’s special about your work experience?
For example, if we’re dealing with a consultant to the construction industry, it would be good to know that she worked as an electrician for 15 years. Her website visitors would appreciate knowing that too.

 

7. Why do you believe site visitors should do business with you rather than with a competitor?
Remember, on the Internet, the competition is just one click away. This means that your site will probably be compared to a lot of other sites. So, it’s up to you to work with us to make the site memorable.

 

8. Do you have a slogan or tagline that clearly describes what you offer in terms of benefits or features?
There is no wrong answer here - some companies have a slogan, some don't. If you don't have one and want one, a good copywriter may be able to help you with that.

 

9. Please describe your potential customers. Pay special attention to their income, interests, gender, age, even type of computer they use, e.g., old with dialup account or newer with broadband. If your website is a business-to-business site, what sort of companies are you hoping to attract?
This is the Demographic Question, and the more detail that you can include in your answers, the better we will be able to address your needs. Remember that although this is your website, it is being aimed at your current and prospective customers!

 

10. What is your budget for this project?
Quite often this question goes unanswered at first. Some people have no idea of what to budget for a website project, or maybe they want to hear a figure from us first, with the idea of using that as a starting point for some sort of bargaining. At this point we can usually give a rough figure, that can be later refined as we narrow down the details.

 

11. Who are the decision makers on this project? What is the turnaround time for making a decision?
Ideally, we’ll want to deal with someone who’s in charge, rather than someone who works for someone who reports to the assistant to the person who actually makes the decisions. The latter scenario tends to lead to long delays while decisions are being made, and this is frustrating for everyone involved.

 

12. What staff will be involved? What are their roles? Is there a webmaster on your staff?
Sometimes we find ourselves dealing with a website committee. There’s nothing wrong with having more than one voice involved in the website process, but a contact person should be appointed to deal with us. This will avoid the problem of conflicting inputs from multiple people. As for the webmaster, we'll want to know the skill level of this person. Is it someone who’s been using computers since the punch card era? Or is it a new hire who just had “maintain the new website” added to his job description? This information will enable us to communicate clearly and efficiently with them.

 

13. What is your deadline for completing the site?
" Fast, cheap, good - pick any two. " We may find ourselves dealing with people who want a 5,000-page e-commerce site done by next week, or someone who needs a brochure-style site but has a timeline of months for the completion. This question often provide us with an opportunity to educate prospective clients on how long good design takes. (For more on this topic, see our article:   "Web Design Timeline" ).

 

14. Please list the names of five other sites that you like. Why are they attractive to you?
This is often one of the easiest questions for prospective clients to answer. They often offer more than five links, plus a detailed explanation of why they like each one. We are always happy to have as much detail as possible, since it makes it easier for us to find a starting place for a design that will please the client.

 

15. Have you researched your online competition so you have an idea of what you do and don’t want on your site?
Some of your competitors reveal a great deal on their sites, others have sites that say little and explain less. It’s a hard decision to make, but it is important to decide on the right balance between openness and secrecy.

 

16. What do you NOT want on your site in terms of text, content, etc.?
Every company has a different answer to this question; many base the decision on a company privacy policy or some other internal document. Some just do a straw poll of their employees. For example, some splash employee pictures all over their sites and others are like Revenue Canada, which shows no employee photos. In general, if you are in a service business (selling directly to the public, for example) having a photo of the salesperson on the site can really serve to personalize the experience and make a point of perceived contact with the prospective customer. Just look at almost any realtor's website!

 

17. Where is the website content coming from? Who’s responsible for updating it? Is it ready for use on your website?
Content is one of those things that can take a client forever to deliver. If you do not have copywriting skills, consider hiring a professional to do the job. This can turbocharge the content production process, and finish the project faster. We do not write content for our clients, but we do have a short list of copywriters that we can recommend, if requested.

 

18. Do you have a logo?
A good logo is one of the first steps in brand recognition. A well-designed logo gives an impression of professionalism and attention to details, and shows that you care about your business and take pride in everything your company does. If you don't already have a logo, we have a very good graphic designer who can out one together for you.

 

19. Are you planning to do online sales? If so, what is the product, and how many items do you want to sell online?
E-commerce is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Many companies who jumped on the bandwagon before doing appropriate research, found out after the fact that e-commerce has a lot of moving parts – online order-taking that makes people feel comfortable sharing their credit card information, order-filling, shipment tracking, customer service, and the list goes on. It’s best to plan an e-commerce strategy early and in detail, taking into account possible future expansions and additions.

 

20. If you’re planning to sell online, are you set up to accept credit cards?
Accepting credit cards is mandatory in the online business world. Getting set up to accept credit cards can take time, and lots of it. Personally, I found that my merchant account application was more complicated than the form I had to fill out for an FBI background check. (Yes, way back in 1973 I worked at Churchill Downs racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky, and had to register with the FBI for security reasons. The upside was that I got to watch Secretariat work out in the mornings, and saw him win the Derby in person, but that's another story altogether.)

 

21. How much time will you be able to spend online, responding to inquiries that come in via your website? Once a day? Several hours a day?
If you have ever gone to a big company’s site to ask a question, dutifully filled out the contact form, then waited, waited, and waited for an answer that never came, you know that this is not how you want to treat your customers. You should respect your visitors and treat them as you would like to be treated. Timely responses to visitor inquiries work better – and cost a lot less – than elaborate PR programs.

 

22. If you were using a search engine, what words or phrases would you use to find your site? Which of these words or phrases is most important? Second? Third?
This is one of the trickiest questions - some clients come up with an impossibly long list of search terms that they expect top rankings on. Others don't know where to start. We encourage them to come up with a reasonable list – say, three to five terms - as a starting point. The SEO will be refined as the development process goes forward.

 

23. Other than what search engines will produce, what methods do you have in mind to spread the word about your website?
It is helpful for us to know what other marketing tools you will be using so that we can co-ordinate with them whenever possible to give a seamless, comprehensive and focused approach to marketing your site.

 

24. Once your website is completed, how long do you think it will be before you begin bringing in significant business from the website?
This question is closely related to the previous question. It is important to understand that, once your new website is up, it will take time for the promotional plan to show results, just as it would with any other marketing method.

 

25. How do you plan to encourage repeat visitors and referrals?
Once they have seen your website, its features and content, and have learned about your business, what reason can you give them to visit you online again? Luckily, there are lots of ways to keep your web content fresh – adding a blog to the site comes immediately to mind. You can also use discounts or promotions, particularly those that are only valid for website visitors. Informational articles that are refreshed frequently, and notification e-mails to an opt-in e-mail list will also keep your customers abreast of new developments and keep your business at the top of their minds.

 

 

Wow! That’s quite a list of questions. Of course, we don’t use every one of them every time. It’s important to respect our clients’ time, and we want them to answer only the questions that actually pertain to their situation.

Working from the detailed answers we get by using this questionnaire, we can create a detailed estimate that will meet all of their needs, while staying within their budget.

This active communication is one of the best tools we have to develop solid, long-term relationships with satisfied customers.