Building a house and building a website are surprisingly similar in concept.  For example:

• Both should be based on a solid foundation.
• Both need to be created from the ground up, not from the top down.
• Both take a lot of hard work and attention to detail.
• Both are created with a particular group of features in mind.
• Both are based upon a design and building budget.

The concept is indeed very much the same.  So here’s the thing—you wouldn’t start building a house without blueprints, would you?  So why try to start building a website without planning it out first?

To start building a website without a well designed plan is a surefire way to produce chaos and drive the development expenses through the roof.  The final results may or may not turn out, but getting there in the first place is practically impossible without a plan.

So, what should a website blueprint consist of then?

Well, the plans for your new website need to encompass all of the components and designs to be used throughout the site.  These will normally include:

• A specific keyword use plan;
• The navigational structure to be used;
• A wireframe layout of the “schematics” of the site;
• Detailed design drawings;
• Sub-plans for additional website components like CMS or E-Commerce;
• Specifications for SEO functionality to be built into the website;
• Provisions for the code structure and hosting platforms to be used;
• And many more details.

Architects & Engineers

Architects—or in our website case, web designers—are naturally responsible for the overall design work and making it aesthetically correct.  The architects of a website are also on the frontline when it comes down to ensuring usability and providing for a first-rate visitor experience from the time they enter the site until the time they leave the site.  Just like designing a quality home, there’s a lot of work that goes into the design phase of a quality custom website—it’s a vital part of the overall project.

And then there are the engineers.  Engineers are typically called in to get the structural components of a construction project under wraps.  Just as they’re a significant part a the technical prowess that goes into traditional construction, engineers—in this case software engineers or programmers—are the ones that make sure the designer’s plans are structurally sound.  It is these programmers that figure out how to code and implement the design of the website and turn it into a functional, usable product.

Website Plans Pay Off

Planning first, and only then building a website according to the precise blueprint, is simply the most logical way to undertake a complex, multi-faceted project.  Precise planning pays off in countless ways—most prominently when it comes to ensuring a project will be completed on time, according to schedule, and on budget.  Remember, you wouldn’t start building a house without blueprints, so why try to start building a website without planning it out first?