How to Prepare Your Content Before Hiring a Web Designer: A Practical Checklist for Small Businesses
Get organized before you hire a web designer. This practical checklist helps small businesses and creative entrepreneurs prep copy, images, SEO, and assets for a smoother build.
Why preparing content first saves time (and money)
Hiring a web designer is exciting — whether you’re a surf-school owner in Maui, Hawaii, a photographer in Lisbon, or a creative agency in Shoreditch. But designers move fastest when your content is ready. Instead of back-and-forth guessing, you’ll get cleaner layouts, fewer revisions, and a faster launch.
Below is a friendly, actionable checklist to prepare your content before handing it to a web or app designer. It works for boutique studios, creatives in Berlin or Paris, digital nomads in Tulum, and small businesses from Rio de Janeiro to Cape Town.
1. Start with clear goals
Ask yourself:
What’s the primary goal of the site? (sales, bookings, lead gen, portfolio)
Who is the main audience? (age, location, preferences)
What actions do you want visitors to take? (call, book, buy, sign up)
Write these down in 1–3 sentences. Designers love clarity — it guides layout, calls-to-action, and user journeys.
2. Map a simple sitemap
A sitemap is just a map of your pages. Keep it lean to start:
Home
About
Services/Products
Portfolio/Work
Blog/Resources
Contact
If you have multiple service lines or locations (e.g., Maui studio remote services for clients in Lisbon or Berlin), show those as sub-pages. This helps set navigation and content needs.
3. Audit existing content
If you already have a website or social profiles, do a content inventory:
Page URL
Page title
Main heading
Word count
Assets (images, PDFs)
Notes (keep, rewrite, remove)
A spreadsheet works great — even one with columns for “SEO keywords” and “priority.”
4. Prepare your copy (or hire a copywriter)
Good copy is the backbone of your site. For each page, draft:
A short page title (H1)
1–3 short paragraphs explaining value
3–5 bullet points of benefits/features
1 clear CTA (e.g., “Book a free consult”)
Keep it scannable. Designers appreciate copy that's written to fit typical web sections. If writing isn’t your strength, budget to hire a copywriter — many designe...