Every few years, it happens.
You look at your website and feel a little embarrassed. The colours feel old. The photos feel like someone else’s business. A competitor launched something shiny.
So you think: it’s time for a redesign.
Maybe it is.
But before choosing fonts and colours, I always like to slow down and ask a few honest questions. Not because redesigns are bad. Because they’re expensive in time, money and energy, and I want that energy to land somewhere useful.
1. What is the website supposed to do?
Not “look modern.” Do.
Bring in inquiries? Sell products? Answer the same five questions so you stop answering them by email?
If we can’t name the job, we can’t design for it.
2. What is actually not working?
This is different from “what don’t I like.”
Sometimes the problem is visual. Often it’s structural. People can’t find the price range, the contact button, or the one service that makes up most of your work.
A beautiful website with the same structure will have the same problem, just with better typography.
3. Has the business changed?
This is my favourite question, because the answer is usually yes.
You offer different things now. You work with different people. You’ve learned what you love and what you’d rather not do again.
Sometimes a website feels wrong because it describes a version of you that doesn’t exist anymore. That’s not a design problem. That’s a story problem. And a story problem is a great reason to redesign.
4. Who will take care of it afterwards?
A website isn’t a painting. It’s more like a garden.
Who will update the hours? Add new work? Fix the broken link? Renew the domain?
If the answer is “nobody,” the new website will slowly become the old website. Better to plan for that now, with a simple setup you can actually maintain.
5. What does success look like for this cycle?
I like to think of projects in cycles. A redesign is one.
Define what success looks like before you begin. More inquiries? Fewer repeated questions? A brand that finally feels like you?
Then, after launch, look back and close the cycle. What worked? What didn’t? What’s next?
A redesign is not a new coat of paint. It’s a new chance to be clear.
So, should you redesign?
If these questions made you nod, probably yes.
If they made you realize the real issue is a confusing menu or a missing call to action, maybe you need a tune-up instead.
Both are valid. Both are work I enjoy. And if you’re not sure which one you need, that’s a good first conversation.
