The 11 Emotional Stages of Re-Doing Your Website

Last week my sister, nephew, and I made a trip to IKEA. Now if you’ve been to IKEA, you know it’s quite an ordeal. There was excitement, there was overwhelm, there was drama, and near the end, oh yes, there was a 10-year-old nephew lying in the aisle asking when we could leave.

During our drive home, I read aloud one of my favorite comedic posts, The 21 Emotional Stages of Shopping at IKEA From Optimism to Total Defeat (By HuffPost – highly recommended if you’ve ever been to IKEA and know what I’m talking about).

And the following day, I got to thinking… redoing one’s website is a bit of a journey as well (and a fun one at that).

So I thought it might be fun – as well as informative – to write a post about the emotional stages of a website redesign and build. The initial excitement, the joy and relief at the end, and everything in between. Enjoy!

Stage 1: Mulling it Over

Something’s amiss in your business, and after living with an unsettled feeling for some time, you realize it’s your website. You should be excited, even proud to send prospective clients there, but you feel the opposite. Your website is causing you stress and embarrassment. Not good. You know you need to do something about it but what? Should you set up a Squarespace template yourself or hire a professional? And when? You’ve got a busy year and it never feels like the right time to take on an extra project. You decide you’ll mull it over for a while…

Stage 2: Let’s Do This!

At last, the pain your website is causing you becomes too great to ignore. Maybe you have a high-profile conference or speaking engagement approaching, maybe you’re publishing a book, or maybe you’re just tired of avoiding sending people to your website at all costs. One day, it hits you. You are ready to get a new website. NOW.

Stage 3: Exciting Times

This is going to be FUN! Once you decide you’re getting a new website, you start looking at all sorts of websites online to see what you love and what you hate. You even make a mood board on Pinterest to share with your web designer. You’re going to be the best client EVER! Woot woot.

Stage 4: The Commitment (Eeeeek!)

You contact three different web designers, two of whom were recommended by a colleague and one who you found online. They’re all professional enough, but one in particular makes you feel at ease – as if they already understand you and your business during your first conversation. You feel they’ll create a website that truly represents you – so you decide to go ahead! Eeeek! This a big commitment for you, but something inside tells you it’s the thing to do.

Stage 5: Honeymoon

After the kickoff meeting, you’re ultra excited. You definitely chose the right web designer! They know all the right questions to ask and lay everything out so you don’t have to worry about a thing. You feel savvy and smart, knowing you picked the best person for the job. This is going to be GREAT!

Stage 6: Content Creation Freak Out

But. Then. They give you your content to-do list. Big gulp. How will you manage to get all this content together amidst your existing client workload? You’re not sure you’re going to be able to do it, plus, writing about yourself and your own business is hard. Really hard.

Stage 7: Turning the Corner

A light appears in the darkness! Your web designer reminds you that you chose a package with content assistance, and she is here to help! “Don’t worry about getting the words right,” she tells you. “Just get me the information you need on the site I’ll take care of the wordsmithing.” Ok, maybe you can do this after all. You decide to hack away at your content task list for 20 minutes each day until…

Stage 8: Sweet Sweet Relief

…it’s done! You can’t believe you did it. After hitting “SEND” on that email that has all the content your web designer requested of you, you decide it’s a great time to take yourself out for a cocktail.

Stage 9: The Waiting Game

Waiting, waiting, waiting. Your web designer told you the date they’d be sending over a link to view your website, but still, you’re tempted to email them just to ask how things are going. It’s hard, but you decide to be patient. You download the NY Times Games app to pass the time and become addicted to Wordle.

Stage 10: Euphoria

OMG. Your web designer sent over a link to view your website, and looking it over literally brings tears to your eyes. Whatever you had imagined it would be, it’s ten times better. You think back to that feeling of knowing this was the thing to do. Oh yeah, it definitely was.

Stage 11: Tell It to the World!

Launch day! Once your new website is live, you want to tell everyone you know. You post it on all your social media channels, write to your email list, and text your closest colleagues. But the sweetest part? You know that in the future whenever you meet a new prospective client, you’ll be thrilled to send them to your new website. You know they’ll be impressed with what they see. What a feeling.

So… where are you?

Are you in that first stage, mulling things over? If so, when you reach stage two and feel that the time is now, I’d love to chat! I pride myself on getting to know each and every one of my clients, so I can create a website that’s a perfect reflection of YOU. Contact me today for a no-obligation 30-minute get-to-know-you chat.