Plan your website: a guide to a tailored proposal

Start with the job your website needs to do

A coach explaining one service needs a different website from a retailer taking orders. Before choosing a solution, describe your customers, their main questions and the action you want them to take. List the content that answers those questions. A short, well-structured website can be more useful than extra pages without a clear purpose.

Next, separate essentials from later improvements. Your first launch might need services, an introduction and contact information. A client portal or automated sales process may be a separate project. This makes it easier to compare proposals without quietly comparing different assignments.

Choose the capabilities your business needs

Form & Field uses three service levels to structure the conversation. Launch establishes a professional presence with custom design, responsive development, content assistance and SEO foundations. Business brings a multi-page website together with conversion-focused structure, local SEO, analytics and useful integrations. Growth connects website development, landing pages, SEO strategy, marketing setup and ongoing improvement.

These are directions for a tailored proposal. The right mix depends on your business and the work customers need the site to do. Explore Launch, Business and Growth, then describe the functions that matter to you. For online sales, consider catalogue and checkout needs; for repeated manual work, discuss automation and integrations.

Ask who is doing the content work

Pages do not fill themselves. Check who writes or edits the text, selects images, prepares product information and adds the content. “Content included” can mean very different things unless the amount and responsibilities are clear. Agree what happens if material is late or the required work changes.

• Which text will you supply, and what will be written or edited?
• Which images can be used with permission?
• Are photography, product entry or translations separate?
• How many feedback rounds are covered?

Plan what happens after launch

A domain name is your address; hosting provides the space and service needed to make the website available. They are different items, even when one provider arranges both. The Dutch government’s business website guide explains these choices and the need for appropriate content rights.

Identify who handles domain renewal, hosting, maintenance, backups and content changes. A store may also need platform subscriptions, extensions or a payment provider. Ask which services you manage and which Form & Field supports. Your tailored proposal should distinguish launch work, ongoing support and third-party commitments so the operating responsibilities stay clear.

Check the handover before choosing

Ask who holds the domain, which accounts you receive and what you can change yourself. Check which software or images have separate licences. Agree the launch steps, feedback process and treatment of extra work. For a redesign, include the content and links that should be retained. An initial enquiry helps define the project; the agreed proposal establishes the work.

A practical comparison checklist

1. Write the required pages, functions and customer action on one list.
2. Compare design, content, setup and launch work against that same list.
3. Define the ongoing support you need and who owns each task.
4. Ask for access, licences, feedback rounds and commercial terms in writing.
5. Choose an approach you can explain and maintain as your business develops.

Already have a website? The free website self-check helps identify what feels unclear before you decide whether to improve or replace it. You can read the guidance without leaving contact details.