Get Your Content Ready for Your New Website: A Checklist That Saves Weeks

When a website project runs late, owners often assume the developer is slow. In my experience, the most common cause is much simpler: the project is waiting for content.

The design is ready. The pages are built. Then everything stops while someone writes the About page, finds a decent photo of the shop or hunts for a logo that exists only as a blurry picture on WhatsApp.

This post is a practical checklist of everything to gather before your developer starts. Having it ready can save weeks, reduce cost and produce a far better website.

Why content comes first

A website is a container. Its job is to present your message, your products and your credibility. Design built around imaginary content tends to be redone once the real content arrives, because real text is longer or shorter than expected, and real photos have different shapes and quality.

Preparing content early lets the designer work with the real thing, and lets you spot gaps in your offer before launch.

1. Goals and audience

Write a short note answering these questions.

What is the main goal of the website? Calls, messages, bookings, sales, enrolments, credibility?

Who are your ideal visitors? Describe one or two typical people.

What do you want them to do after reading? What is the single next step?

What makes you different from competitors?

Which websites do you like, and why? Which do you dislike?

2. Text for each page

List the pages you need. A small business typically needs a home page, an about page, a services or products page, a contact page and perhaps a blog or news page.

For each page, write or collect:

A clear headline saying what you do. Short paragraphs describing your services or products. Answers to the questions customers ask most often. A short story about who you are and why you do this. Calls to action, such as call, WhatsApp or request a quote.

Do not worry if the writing is rough. A first draft is fine, and your developer or a writer can help polish it. But bring real facts: what you offer, to whom, how it works and what it costs.

If you are unsure what to write, make a list of ten questions customers ask you, and answer each in two or three sentences. That is half your content.

3. Photos and videos

Good images make a huge difference, and weak ones are hard to fix.

Gather clear, well-lit photos of your premises, your team, your products or services in use and finished work. Use your own photos wherever possible. Photos taken by a modern phone in good natural light are often good enough.

Check that you own the rights. Do not use images copied from other websites or search results. If you want stock photos, use sources that allow commercial use, and keep a note of where each came from.

Provide the original files, not screenshots or images forwarded through chat apps, which are compressed and lose quality. Name them sensibly, for example front-of-shop.jpg.

Videos should be short, and you will usually need them uploaded to a video service, rather than sent as large files.

If you have photos of people, especially children, make sure you have permission to publish them.

4. Logo and brand files

Ask whoever designed your logo for the original files, ideally in vector formats, plus a transparent version. If you only have a small picture, mention it early, so that it can be redrawn or replaced.

Also note your brand colours and fonts, if you have them, and any guidelines for how the logo should appear. If you do not have a brand yet, a good designer can help you create a simple one.

5. Contact and business details

Collect the exact details that will appear on the site:

Business name and any registered name. Phone and WhatsApp numbers. Email addresses. Physical address and a link to your location on a map. Opening hours. Social media page addresses. Registration or licence numbers, if relevant.

Check every detail twice. A wrong digit in a phone number defeats the purpose of the site.

6. Services, products and prices

List everything you offer, with a short description. For products, collect photos, names, descriptions, sizes or options, prices and availability. For services, explain what is included, who it suits and how to start.

If you plan to show prices, decide how to present them and how often they will change. If you do not show them, decide what visitors should do instead, such as request a quote.

7. Trust and proof

Collect evidence that you are reliable.

Testimonials and reviews from real customers, with their permission to publish their names. Examples of finished work, with a short note on the problem and the result. Certificates, awards or memberships, if they are genuine. Logos of well-known organizations you have worked with, with their permission. Real numbers you can stand behind, such as years in business.

Never invent testimonials or statistics. If you do not have any yet, leave that section out until you do.

8. Policies and legal pages

Most sites need a privacy policy, and shops need terms of sale, a delivery policy and a refund policy. If you collect information or use analytics or advertising, say so. If you are unsure what to include, ask your developer for a starting point, and take legal advice for anything formal.

9. Special features

If you want extras, such as online booking, payments, a members area, a calendar of events or a blog, list them now with a short description of how they should work. Features are much easier to plan at the start than to add halfway through.

10. Domain, hosting and accounts

Decide the web address you want. If you already have a domain or hosting, gather the login details for the developer, and make sure the accounts are in your own name. If you use social media, list the pages that should be linked.

How to organise it all

Create one shared folder, with a subfolder for each type of content: text, photos, logo, documents. Use clear file names. Keep text in simple documents rather than inside images or messages. Put a short index at the top saying what is in each folder and what is still missing.

Agree on a date by which everything will be delivered, and treat it as seriously as a payment deadline.

Choose one person to decide

Content projects slow down when many people give different opinions. Pick one person to collect material, make decisions and answer questions. If several people need to approve, collect their comments together.

What if you cannot write or photograph?

Do not let that stop you. A developer or designer can often recommend a writer or photographer, or help you edit what you have. Even a short half-hour interview, recorded and written up, can produce a strong first draft.

A quick checklist

Goals and audience written. Pages listed. Text drafted. Photos gathered, with rights confirmed. Logo files found. Contact details checked. Services and prices listed. Testimonials collected with permission. Policies started. Extra features described. Accounts and domain details ready. Folder organised. Decision maker chosen. Deadline agreed.

Let us start well

If you are planning a website, I will give you a content checklist tailored to your business and help you decide what to write, photograph and gather, so that the build runs smoothly. Contact me through the contact page, or call or WhatsApp me on +231 777 810 466. And if you know someone about to start a website, send them this list first.