Well … I agree, you may think that defining objectives prior launching a new website project looks so obvious that it is not worth stating a lesson learned. Unfortunately I have seen the wrong arguments put on the table too many times .
Frequently people stay at the doorstep, focusing on the visual aspect, thinking the objective is to turn the old web pages into a modern look and feel. We also often hear about a showcase website. But while aesthetical criteria is subjective, the beauty of a website or a fancy home page do not contribute much to a positive business case.
When talking about objectives we can think about the marketing objectives. Do we want to improve awareness ? boost conversion (ex : sales) ? Generate engagement ? …Whatever, we need to be clear about it. Because every step along the project, every block during construction (would it be UX design, content, or search engine optimization), will be built having them in mind.
To help clarify where we stand, we can rely on the famous digital customer journey from McKinsey.
Image parStefan Keller de Pixabay