The answers to these questions can vary dramatically based on the size and scope of your project. Our team has designed, developed and launched websites within a month when absolutely required, while other website projects can take a phased approach of more than a year. If you are looking for a turn-key website solution with a short timeline and minimal cost check out our CiviKit Website solution for municipalities.
For any website project, regardless of size and scope, it always makes sense to follow a well-defined design and development process. We establish phases and milestones for each project and ensure that we hit the goals for each stage as we move into the next. This phased approach easily turns into a plan and a clear website timeline. Having designed and built hundreds of enterprise-level websites, our team knows that this process works and builds a foundation for success. See our case studies for some examples of our work and processes.
Here, we've outlined the phases involved when creating a website. There is a variance in time associated with each stage, depending on the requirements for each project; however, this list will provide guidelines for what you can expect.
1. Strategy and planning (2 to 10 weeks)
This is a crucial phase of the project, as it is this stage that determines the foundation for the success of the project. Areas covered at this stage may include research; strategy sessions; writing of creative brief; writing of technical briefs or more detailed architecture, requirements and definitions document; site architecture plan; wireframes and sitemap creation.
2. Design (4 to 12 weeks)
Based on the creative brief and information gathered in the strategy stage, the project will then move to the design phase. It is at this stage that design mock ups are created and presented for feedback to establish a custom or template design that meets the goals for the new website (check out this article about custom and template designs to learn more). Design mockups may include homepage designs, multiple internal page designs, desktop views, and mobile views.
3. Development and programming (5 to 15 weeks)
Using the approved design, site architecture, technical brief, and sitemap the project then moves to the development stage. This is where the website comes to life and all the elements of the site come together to produce a high-quality website. There is little client involvement at this stage of the project, but a good portion of the timeline will be required for this stage. If custom web applications, integrations, or tools are required within the site, the timeline for this phase can stretch even longer.
4. Content writing and assembly (6 to 15 weeks)
The value of good content for any website cannot be underestimated. As important as a good design, quality content can set a website apart. It can be a time-consuming process creating new content and migrating existing content; however, the reward is worth the effort. Content writing and assembly involves establishing key messages and calls-to-action, porting over content from existing sites, writing new text, editing text, creating headlines, page titles, captions and text for SEO purposes, headlines, descriptions and tags. This process typically overlaps with other parts of the site creation process. Upanup offers services such as content training, audits, migration, and more to support your team during this phase (or prior to the project).
5. Beta testing and review (2 to 6 weeks)
Once the content has been migrated to the newly developed site it then goes to a beta testing stage. The opportunity is given to the client to share the site with the necessary stakeholders for review and feedback in a password-protected location. Testing is also conducted during this stage to ensure the site is optimized across multiple browsers, screens and mobile devices and ensure the site is performing as it should prior to launch.
6. Site launch (1 day to 2 weeks)
Upon approval from the beta stage, the new website is then launched with no interruption to the current site. The launch process can be simple and quick, or can be more complex depending on what is involved for the client.
Maintenance and Enhancements (ongoing)
Once a website has gone live, there needs to be ongoing upkeep, in terms of hosting and security, as well as content creation and accessibility. There is also a great opportunity to keep improving on the site based on real user feedback and requests. For some of our clients' sites, we recommend scheduling periodic reviews so that the website is continually enhanced.
We hope this helps to provide insight into the time required in developing a new website. To learn more about website projects view our other news posts:
- The Right Budget for a B2B Website
- The Right Budget for a Municipal Website
- Open-source vs Proprietary Systems
- Off The Shelf CiviKit Website Solution for Municipalities
- Signs it is Time for a Website Redesign
If you would like to discuss your next web project and the likely time requirements, we would be happy to learn about your goals.
Please contact us to start a conversation or request a quote.