How to help your client prepare high-quality content for their site build
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Hey web designer! There’s something I want you to know about your clients…
They, unlike you, are not designers!
So they’ve probably never ONCE stopped to think about what it is about some websites that makes them want to stick around vs. others that immediately make them want to hit that ‘X’ button on the browser.
They just chalk it all up to whether or not they had a solid designer.
But you and I both know that even the best designer in the world can’t turn boring copy and bad photos into an award-winning website.
And yet every day as designers, we are asked to do just that!
So how do you help the client who honestly has no clue to hand over better quality content?
I’ll be sharing that in this video/post!
But before we dive in, I want to share with you a simple tool I use with every new client, and for every new site I build… my Home Page Content Planner.
This is just one of my personal page content planning workbooks I share exclusively with students in my Square Secrets™️ course, and today I want to share with you for free!
FREE Content Planner:
Home Page Edition
helping web design clients gather content for their site
How to help your web design client gather better copy (A.K.A better website words)
So in an ideal world, along with hiring a pro designer (you), your client would have also hired a professional copywriter to write their site content.
But for some clients, that’s just not in the budget.
And others will actually just assume that was your job.
So to avoid any surprises, be sure to educate your client on what to expect, and who’s responsible for what (before they even book.)
But now that you’ve sealed the deal, it’s time to get creative and start handing out some client homework.
Write out some prompts that will get them truly thinking about their business and who their ideal client is so that the copy they do write will actually make sense to that person!
This might look like asking:
‘What questions do you get asked all the time by potential clients or customers?’
‘What are your clients or customers dealing with that caused them to look for a solution in the first place?’
‘How do your clients or customers tend to feel before vs. after working with you?’
‘What’s the nicest thing a past client has ever said about your business?’
‘What kind are some common words or phrases clients tend to use when talking about their problems or about the solution your business provides?’
Now that you’ve got those gears turning and thinking in terms of their ideal client, it’s helpful to give them some sort of reference for what should actually live on each page.
This way, they aren’t just handing you some massive, long, snooze-fest of an essay about their business that you now have to figure out how to break up into smaller sections throughout their site.
The Home Page Content Planner is actually a perfect example of how to do this!
In it, I share not just what actual topics needs to be covered in each section, but also:
How to make sure their websites words actually speaks to the person they are trying to reach
How to know what’s too long, and what’s too short when writing copy
How to write the perfect headlines and tag lines to keep visitors engaged and moving down the page
How to use their site copy to get people to take the next steps they are hoping they will on their site
How to include all the SEO keywords they are trying to rank for in a totally natural, non-robot-sounding way 🤖
So if you haven’t already grabbed your free copy of my Home Page Content Planner, definitely take a second and do that now!
How to help your web design client give you better images
So the only thing more awkward than bad copy on a website is bad photos.
They are the first thing that a visitor sees when the page loads, and can totally make or break the rest of your design.
Some of the best companies out there with the top-notch service and insanely useful products never see the traction they are hoping they will from their websites.
Why?
Because their photos stink…
And no one is taking their business seriously.
But again, many of your clients will have no idea just how important photos are to the finished product, and half of them were actually hoping you would be the one to provide them.
So how can you make sure you’re not stuck working with cringeworthy photos?
1) Ask about photos on the original consult call!
You want to get a feel for where they are at with photos, or if they are even down to invest in something like proper images for their site.
This is the perfect time to mention that many clients opt for scheduling a brand photoshoot at the same time so that they will have professional, on-brand imagery to use in their site build.
2) Talk about the importance of photos again in your welcome package
You can even include a few of your favorite resources for buying professional stock imagery if they don’t have access to custom branding photos.
3) Include a service to source photos yourself for an additional fee
By offering to source the photos yourself, not only have you increased the revenue you’ll see from that client, you’ll also have wayyyy upped your creative control over the project!
So if sourcing photos is something you wouldn’t mind doing, and you like the idea of having much more creative control over the content. Consider adding that as a new service!
How to help your web design client gather social proof for their site
Most of your non-designer clients won’t know that social proof is even a thing, so honestly half the battle here is just bringing it up early enough in the project to give them a chance to properly prepare it.
Ask them if they’ve been featured anywhere in print or online.
Ask them where their clients and customers tend to leave reviews (ie. Google, Yelp, Facebook, or testimonials set straight to their DM’s or inbox?)
Educate them on what makes for a client-winning testimonial, and how to go about getting a handful of them from past clients or customers.
Help them to get creative about where to look for opportunities for social proof!
Name dropping & testimonials tend to be a lot more effective when there’s an actual face or logo tied to it.
So encourage your client to reach out to past customers to ask permission to use their photo or stick their logo in your client’s ‘as seen in’ section.
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