by Sarah Hill
Setting goals can help reduce costs, improve the experience of using a website and save time.
Every website needs to have the goals confirmed at the beginning of the project.
Business Goals
What would you like to achieve with the website?
Some common business goals are
- Reduce costs related to staff answering queries
- Increase in-store sales
- Increase online sales
- Provide information on products and services to staff and clients
- Create or reinforce a brand
When these goals have been decided, they will help you choose your Target Audience.
While these are important, it is also vital to consider the goals of the users as this will help avoid costly redesigns after the website is released. User-centred design helps create a positive experience for both users and staff and can increase staff morale and reduce development costs.
User Goals
Users are motivated by their own needs.
Some common user goals are:
- Learn more about a product or service, find prices
- Buy online
- Learn more about a company to help decide if they would like to call or email
- Find contact details
- Feel supported
- Find out how to do something
Efficiency Goals
Efficiency Goals are the parts of the website which will directly or indirectly affect staff and the bottom line.
Some common efficiency goals are:
- Make it quick and easy for staff to access the information they require (thus saving hours)
- Support common tasks and existing infrastructure, or transferring existing infrastructure to an online environment
- Make it easier for staff in branch offices to access the consistent information and communicate with each other
Sarah Hill is Senior Web Designer at Datasearch Internet Services