Discovery Channel

Following are some discovery questions I have found useful in getting a feel for what the client needs in a website. I found them in the book Web Redesign 2.0 by Kelly Goto and Emily Cotler

General Information
1.               What is the name of your company and your cur­rent (or intended) URL?
2.               Who are the primary contacts from your organi­zation, and who has final approval on the proj­ect?

3.               What is your intended launch date for the new site? Are there any outside considerations that might affect the schedule (for example, PR launch, tradeshow, annual report)?
4.               Do you have a specific budget range already established for this project? Can this project be divided into phases to accommodate budget and timing constraints?

Reasons for Redesign
1.               What are the main reasons you are redesigning your site (new business model, outdated site, expanded services, different audience)?

2.               What are your primary online business objec­tives with the site redesign? What are your sec­ondary objectives? (Examples include increased sales, marketing/branding awareness, and fewer customer service calls.)

3.               What is the main business problem you hope to solve with the site redesign? How will you meas­ure the success of the solution?
4.               What existing strategy (both on- and offline) is in place to meet the new business objectives?
5.               How important is it to maintain your current look and feel, logo, and branding?

Current Site

1.               Do you feel your current site promotes a favor­able user experience? Why or why not?
2.               What specific areas of your current site do you feel are successful? Why are they successful?
3.               What shortcomings exist with the current site, and what three things would you change on the site today if you could?
4.               Have you conducted usability tests or gathered visitor feedback for your current site? If so, how long ago?

Audience/Desired Action
1.               Describe a typical site visitor. How often are they online, and what do they generally use the web for? Give basic demographics: age, occupation, income level, purchasing habits. (Use as much detail as possible in profiling your target user. Profile more than one type if appropriate.)
2.               What is the primary “action” the site visitor should take when coming to your site (make a purchase, become a member, search for information)?
3.               What are the key reasons why the target audi­ence chooses your company’s products and/or services (cost, service, value)?

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