The Ultimate Website Design Questionnaire Template

Have you ever encountered problems in properly communicating with your customers regarding what they want? If yes, then you definitely need to learn why a website design questionnaire is the best option you have.

Asking purposeful questions that help you determine what the client desires from you is paramount in website design, and there is no better way to address these questions other than creating a website design questionnaire.

This article will help you put together a good website checklist. Read the tips from Amelia (probably the best WordPress scheduler plugin) below to learn how.

Table of Contents

• The importance of a website design questionnaire
• The questions you should include in a website design questionnaire explained

The importance of a website design questionnaire

First of all, you need to understand why website design questionnaires are so important in the first place. Well, in website design clients require a lot of changes because there was a misunderstanding when communicating their needs and requirements.

A website design questionnaire can help both clients and designers understand how the website is going to look like, by discussing relevant details such as the wanted product, the available budget, the timeline that needs to be respected and so on.

Basically, a website questionnaire helps you dig deeper and find out all the necessary information from your client in a very organized form. This way, you will be more accurate when delivering the final product. Next, you will find out what questions you should include in your website design checklist to make it effective.

The questions you should include in a website design questionnaire explained

What kind of services does your company offer?

The web design client questionnaire should start with one simple question – what is the client offering through his website? The answer to this question is supposed to include all basic details related to the company of the client. These details should at least include:

• • Phone number

• • Email address

• DBA
• Business name
• Business type

Ask your client to tell you more about the company’s purpose and vision. The more background information the client provides, the easier it will be for you to put together a compelling website. It would be great if the customer could also provide you with their company’s mission statement. The product/service type will help you understand what design elements to include on the website to suit the respective category.

Who is your target audience?

The target audience is the most important element you need to know about when putting together a website. This question should be part of any website design questionnaire, as it gives designers the main idea of what elements to include on the site.

Having clear information about the target audience will give you enough insight to put together an initial look for the website the client wants.

Did you invest in quality web content?

Another question to include in the web design checklist has to do with web content. If the client doesn’t have any content to publish on the website you build, your company might be able to provide that service as well and this could represent an up-selling method. You can include multi-choice questions into your checklist design. Here is an example:

Do you have any web content we could use?

• Yes, you can take it from my previous website.
• Yes, I have it prepared in separate documents.
• No, but I will provide it when required.
• No, I would like to discuss more web content.

What is the purpose of clients visiting your website?

A web design questionnaire should include information related to visitors. If the client knows why visitors kept returning to their previous website, it would be best to ask about this detail to include it in the new version of the website as well.

Depending on the purpose of each visitor, the website may or may not be relevant to them. Discussing with your client about this aspect is mandatory.

What would your website need to contain to become successful?

All website design checklists should include questions related to what element the client considers relevant for achieving success.

For instance, your client can provide you with a pitch that should convince customers to buy products from that website. Without the wow element, customers might not be impressed with the site.

Do you currently own a website?

Some people choose web design services because they want to start a website for the first time, while others already have a website and they want to change it with something fresh.

If the customer already has a website, you can check it out to see if it only requires some tweaks or a rebuild from scratch. Include this in your website design questionnaire to know where you are standing.

What are the keywords you want to focus on?

Websites must be SEO friendly, so you need to ask your customer about the keywords he wants to focus on. The answer to this question will also help you assess the state of the customer’s previous website (if existent) in terms of rankings.

Moreover, you will be able to do keyword research and see if there are better choices that you can make for the new website. This is another paramount question that can’t be excluded from the website design client questionnaire.

What elements do you consider important on a website?

Through the website design questionnaire, you also want to find out the opinion of the person you are working for. In some cases, designers must make plenty of changes in terms of design because the preferences of the client don’t align with the designer’s vision. It is also important to ask about what the customers liked about his previous website if there is any.

Why do you want to invest in a new website?

Understanding the reason why the client desires to invest in a new website will help you understand what to include in your project. By including this question in your website design questionnaire, you find out what works for the client and what doesn’t. Plus, it defines the purpose of the website in a clearer manner.  

Do you know how to purchase a domain?

The website design client questionnaire must include such questions to determine what other tasks will be involved in the web design process. For instance, if the client desires to stick with his previous domain, there might be some problems on the way. It would be recommended to handle the domains for the client, even though this involves an extra charge. The client might not be as informed as a specialist is, and the domain can expire or work improperly.

Can you give us an estimated budget for the website?

A lot can be done with a website, but this depends on how much the client is willing to spend on it. It is paramount to include this question in the website design questionnaire to avoid unpleasant situations in the future.

If the budget of the client is too small, you can decide whether it would be worth it to close the deal or not. The budget can also determine how important the website is.

What features do you want to include on the website?

This question has to receive a detailed answer, so make sure to add all the features you can think of to a list. This list is a central part of your website design questionnaire, do take your time building it. Include features such as:

• Call-to-action buttons
• Social media buttons
• Click-to-call buttons
• Search function
• Portfolio or photo gallery
• eCommerce features
• Map integration
• Forms
• Pricing tables
• Menus, etc.

Encourage your client to write an in-depth description of what features they would like to include on the website.

It would be a good idea to ask the customer to give an example of another website that includes all the details he wants on his own website. This will give you an idea of what your customer wants. Ask your customer to point out the features and details that they like about the competitor’s websites.

Who will provide new content for the website?

In the eventuality that your client does not have any content prepared for the website, you should ask who will provide this content. Website content involves copy, graphics, branding details, typefaces, HQ images and so on.

If the client doesn’t have a provider for these elements, you can present your company’s offer. In case the company already has an established brand, you will have to use the previous materials (as long as they are provided in the needed formats). Otherwise, you will need to rebuild them from scratch.

Do you want to change the URL?

Depending on how tech-savvy the client is, you may need to explain what the URL is in the first place. If the client already knows what an URL is, he can decide whether he needs a new website address or not.

Do you need a new hosting company?

The same goes for hosting. If your client doesn’t know much about hosting, it would be best to recommend the web hosting companies you trust to your client. This way, no problems will occur after putting together the website.

Do you want to migrate your old website to a new location?

If the customer wants to migrate his old website to a new location, it involves much more time and work than building a website from scratch. This will, of course, involve a substantial increase in the overall cost of the project. Discuss the details with your client and clearly state the requirements and prices for such an operation.

Do you have a deadline to respect?

This question should be among the first in your website design questionnaire. An abrupt deadline would influence the entire project and you might need to charge the client more for the extra hours you have to work to get the website ready when the client wants. Ask your client to provide an extensive timeline with all the things he wants you to complete by that date. It’s the easiest, most transparent way to get things done.

What makes your services unique in this field?

If the client’s website is too general or there is nothing unique about it, you need to find out what is the differentiating factor between the client’s website and other similar websites directly from the source.

The website design questionnaire will definitely help with getting the client better, so it’s best to recommend the client to answer all of the questions involved. The answers guarantee a high-quality website in the end, that suits the needs and preferences of the client.

Do you possess a competitive advantage?

This question is about understanding what makes the client believe that their website is better than others. The competitive advantage is a feature that makes customers select one website over another. It can be represented by many positive client testimonials, good feedback from all past clients, product reviews listed on the website and so on. Usually, proof of excellence goes a long way.

Check the special features you want to include on your website from the list below

Include a similar-looking question in your web design questionnaire to assess what you need to include on the website faster. It is a multi-answer question and the list should look something like this:

• Single-column layout
• Multi-column layout
• Email forms
• Call-to-Action buttons
• Uploading and downloading files
• Login/Sign up forms
• Blog modules
• Image sliders
• Video streaming
• MySQL integration etc.

Does your website need SEO improvement?

Most website design questionnaires include questions related to SEO improvement, as it is usually charged separately by the company who runs the campaigns. Having a website that is ready for translation, that includes proper copy content with good keywords and links is a condition of success.

Ask your client whether he wants SEO improvement with his website or not. Handling SEO improvement on an existent website is even more difficult and more expensive, so discuss these aspects clearly.

Do you want further assistance with the website?

If the client also requires further maintenance of the website, it involves an additional cost that has to be discussed depending on what the customers want. For instance, if your team has to handle updates, adding new features, and making ongoing changes, a monthly fee might be set. It is best to offer the client multiple pricing options to choose from, to suit all budgets.

Do you want us to handle content marketing strategies?

Applying a content marketing strategy is another separate service that is charged extra as long as the customer opts for it.

Content promotion includes SEO practices, social media handling, ad campaigns, email campaigns, writing promotional articles, and so on. If your company provides such services, present your offer to the client after the web design questionnaire.

Are there any branding guidelines to respect?

The client may have certain branding guidelines that you need to respect when building the website. If that is the case, ask your customer to list all these guidelines and discuss further on this topic. Not respecting these guidelines can result in making changes.

Check in with your client often to make sure that the way you build your website fits his preferences. If the client has printed materials such as business cards, the website should fit these.

Other questions you can ask:

• The images you can provide are high-resolution ones?
• Do you want an online live chat feature included on the website?
• Do you want to add video/audio files to the website?
• Can you manage content marketing strategies?
• Do you need multiple levels of access to the website?
• Have you previously used a content management system?
• Do you have a preference in terms of eCommerce platforms?
• Are there any specific plugins you would like to include on the website?
• Will you need third-party application integration within the website?
• Do you require a database for the users?
• Do you have previous experience with Google Analytics?

You can come up with other questions that will help you create a good website and include them in the web design questionnaire.

Ending thoughts on using a website design questionnaire

Each website is different, and the result is so various because of respecting the preferences of the client. Finding out about these preferences can only be done by applying a complex web design questionnaire. Take your time to create it and ask your customers to complete it entirely for the best results.

If you enjoyed reading this article on website design questionnaire, you should check out this one about portfolio website templates.

We also wrote about a few related subjects wireframe examples, web designer resume, website mockup, coming soon page, sketch plugins, dummy text generator, web design contract, and free landing page templates.

Author Ivan Zdravkovic

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