In today's blog post, I'm going to answer the question, what comes first, content or design?
Whether you're building a new website from scratch or revamping an existing website, you might be wondering what comes first, content or design?
Now, at the end of the day both are important. You can't have one without the other. Your website needs both, content and design. But in this blog post, I'm going to cover what should you prioritize, what should you focus on first?
I've personally worked on countless websites, both for my own business and also for client's projects. And I'm sure some web designers are going to disagree with me when I say that I firmly believe, content should come first. Now to prove it to you, let me give you four reasons why.
1. Your website is a communication tool.
The purpose of your website is to communicate with you visitors. And only words can effectively communicate your unique message, the benefits of your products and services, and why people should choose you over the competition. Words can do that, design cannot.
2. Google ranks content, not design.
Did you know that there are over 200 factors that Google looks at when deciding on who it should rank in it's search engine. And the most important factor, still today, is unique and quality content. And that's why you need to focus on content first when you're building or rebuilding your website. Because it's such an important factor in your success as a website.
3. People come for the content, not for the design.
There's a variety of reasons why people visit websites. They're in search of information. They want answers to their questions, or solutions to their problems. And only content can really convey that to them. They might enjoy the design, but they come for the content.
4. It's much easier to write your content first.
It's so much easier to write and edit your content, even share your content with other people in programs like Microsoft Word or Google Docs, than it is to in Adobe Photoshop or Adobe InDesign. And that's what makes so much more sense and is a far more efficient work process, is if you write your content in those programs, Microsoft Word, Google Docs first. Write, edit and finalize your content, so everyone's happy with it, before you then move it onto the design process. It's not so easy to really collaborate and work on content when it's in Adobe Photoshop or InDesign.
I want to end this blog post with a quote from a famous web designer who says that,
"Design in the absence of content is not design, it's just decoration."
And I think that really seals the deal on all of the reasons why I believe as a copywriter, who is probably biased, that content should come first before design does.
But what about you, what do you think? If you enjoyed reading this blog post, then please like it, give it a thumbs up and share with other people.
And if you would like some help with writing content or copy for your website, your blog, or marketing and advertising campaigns, send us a message at support@copywritingcrew.com.