The web design process for most websites follows the same steps: a first call and brief, planning the pages, the words and images, design, build, review and launch, then looking after the site afterwards. As a rough guide, most websites take four to eight weeks from the first call to launch, with online shops and bigger sites at the longer end. Quick feedback at each stage makes a big difference.
Below is what happens at each step, what you’ll be asked for and where the time goes. If you’re still deciding whether you need a new site at all, these signs it’s time for a website redesign are a good place to start.
1. First call and brief
What you’ll be asked
A good designer asks about your business before they talk about design: what you sell, who buys it, what the site needs to do (more enquiries, bookings or sales), the pages you think you need and anything it has to connect to. If you’ve already written a brief, send it over. If not, our guide on how to write a website brief has a template you can fill in.
It’s your chance to ask questions too. The ones people ask us most are what it’ll cost, how long it’ll take, whether they can update it themselves, who writes the words, whether it’ll show up on Google, whether they’ll own it and who looks after it afterwards. Each of those comes up in one of the steps below. For a longer list, here are the questions worth asking a web design company.
What you get back: a plan and a price
After the call you should get a proposal: what’s being built, what it costs and roughly when it’ll be ready. Read it for what’s included, not just the total. If it doesn’t say how many pages you’re getting, who writes the words or what happens after launch, ask before you sign.
2. Planning the pages
The page list
Planning starts with a list of pages and how they fit together: home, about, a page for each service or product range, contact, and anything else the site needs. It sounds simple, but it decides how people find their way around and how Google understands what you do. Our guide to website structure explains why that matters.
What each page needs to do
Give every page one main job. A service page explains the service and makes it easy to get in touch. A contact page makes getting in touch quick. Agree each page’s job early and you’ll save a lot of rewriting later.
3. Words and images
Who writes the content
Writing the words is one of the most common reasons a project slows down, so agree who’s doing it at the start. Some studios write the copy with you, some expect you to supply it, and some do a bit of both. Any of those works, as long as everyone knows. It helps to have the main pages’ words drafted before the design is finished, so the design fits what you actually want to say. Every site we build includes the copywriting, stock imagery and SEO set-up, so that’s one less thing to organise.
Photos, logos and stock imagery
Your own photos of your work, your team and your premises nearly always beat stock. If you don’t have them, stock images can fill the gaps, or you can plan a shoot. Have your logo files ready (ideally the original files from whoever designed it), along with any brand colours and fonts.
4. Design
Homepage first, then the rest
We start with the homepage, because it sets the look, feel and direction for the whole site. Once you’re happy with it, the other pages follow the same style, which is much quicker than designing every page from scratch.
How feedback works, and why it sets the pace
Feedback is where projects speed up or stall. Gather everyone’s comments into one reply rather than several. Be specific: “the headline feels too formal” is more useful than “not sure about it”. Say what you like as well as what you don’t, so the good parts stay. And before the project starts, ask how changes work and how many rounds are included, so there are no surprises.
5. Build
Building in WordPress so you can update it yourself
Whatever platform your site is built on, make sure you’ll be able to update it yourself. On a WordPress site, for example, you can change text, images and blog posts once it’s live, without calling a developer.
Mobile, speed and the SEO foundations
A lot of your visitors will see the site on a phone, so it should be checked on phones throughout the build, not just at the end. Speed matters too: nobody waits long for a slow page.
A good studio will also set up the SEO foundations as part of the build rather than leaving them for later: a title and description written for every page, one clear heading per page, image sizes and alt text sorted, your business details marked up for Google, Google Search Console set up with a sitemap submitted, redirects from any old pages, and a speed check on mobile. If you’d like to track enquiries and key events on the site, ask about setting up Google Analytics (GA4) as well.
6. Review and launch
Checking everything before it goes live
Before launch you should get the chance to go through the finished site: every page and every form, on your phone as well as a computer. Check the details only you’ll spot, like prices, opening hours, phone numbers and the spelling of your team’s names. Send a test enquiry through each form so you know it arrives.
Launch day, and asking Google to index the key pages
Launch usually means pointing your domain at the new site and checking everything works. If you’re replacing an old site, this is when redirects matter most, so anyone following an old link still lands in the right place.
After launch, it’s worth asking Google to look at your key pages through Search Console. Google says crawling can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, and that asking doesn’t guarantee a page will appear, so check Search Console over the first few weeks to see how Google is reading the site.
7. After launch
Your logins, a short guide and who owns what
Once the site is finished and paid for, it should be yours. Our clients have always owned their sites, and they get the logins and a short guide at handover. Whoever you hire, check that the site, the content and the domain will be in your name, and get it in writing.
Looking after it afterwards
WordPress, its theme and its plugins need regular updates, and every site needs hosting and backups. Ask who’ll do that, how often, and what happens if something goes wrong. Some people like to handle it themselves; plenty prefer to leave it with the studio that built the site.
How long it takes to build a website, and what speeds it up
A single landing page can be quicker than the guide above, and online shops and bigger sites take longer. Where your project lands comes down to a few things: how many pages and features it needs (a shop, bookings, connections to other systems), whether the words and images are ready when the design needs them, and how quickly feedback comes back at each stage. For us, most websites take four to eight weeks from the first call to launch: brochure sites usually four to five weeks, shops and bigger sites six to eight.
If you’ve got a project in mind, have a look at our web design packages and tell us what you need.
You can email us at hello@thesocialbay.co.uk, fill in our start a project form, or call or message us on 07441 918230.
Frequently asked questions about the web design process
How long does it take to build a website?
As a rough guide, most websites take four to eight weeks from the first call to launch, with online shops and bigger sites at the longer end. Quick feedback at each stage makes a big difference.
What are the stages of the web design process?
Broadly seven: a first call and brief, planning the pages, words and images, design, build, review and launch, and looking after the site afterwards. Studios split or combine them in different ways, but the order rarely changes.
Who writes the content for a website?
Whoever you agree on at the start. Some studios write the copy with you, others expect you to supply it. Settle it before the design begins, because it affects both the price and the timeline.
Will I be able to update the website myself?
On a WordPress site, yes: you can change text, images and blog posts yourself. Ask for the logins and a short guide at handover, so you know where everything is.
Do I own the website once it’s finished?
You should. Our clients always have. Check that your agreement says the site, the content and the domain are yours once it’s paid for, and that you’ll get the logins.