That is the question. Not how do we start the redesign, or should we do it in-house, or what color palette should we use. Ask yourself, 'Should we redesign?'

It is a decision that should not be made lightly.

Why? A quick lesson about people: People hate change. People especially hate change when they aren't deriving a direct benefit from said change. And they had better be able to see that the change is beneficial to them or they'll still hate it.

Of course you'll always be tweaking your site to make minor improvements, but before you start planning for any fundamental changes -- changes that will force your existing users to re-learn the navigation and/or features on your site -- you need to strongly consider whether those changes are necessary.

Don't redesign just because you have the money to do it.
Direct from the school of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it': Overhauling your site because you can is a waste of resources and could seriously backfire if your users don't like it. People hate change...make that your mantra.

Don't redesign just because the company is restructuring.
If the only problem created by corporate shuffling is cosmetic -- company switched to a new logo or is under new ownership and graphics need to be altered -- then your solution need be only cosmetic as well. Your need to update graphics should not translate to a need for your users to re-learn where to find their favorite features or to go through and re-bookmark their favorite pages.

Don't redesign just because you're tired of the same old design.
You spend 40 hours a week looking at your site, maybe more. The chances are very good that you will eventually tire of it, that you'll start to think the graphics and colors look outdated. And you might start to think your users must be tired of it too. Chances are, they aren't. Chances are, they never even think about it. If you're lucky, your users spend a couple hours a week on your site and they probably aren't there because they think it's pretty. They are there for your information, your products, your services. They come back because they like what you have to offer.

And remember, from the moment it's launched, the look of your site is branded to your company. If you change the look of your site, you are implying a change in your company. Users will wonder, has the ownership changed? New marketing strategy? Are they just wasting money? Am I going to pay more for my (fill in blank) now? They will want to know what's really behind the change. Don't re-brand your site unless there is a legitimate business need to do so.

So when should you redesign?

The company is undergoing fundamental changes.
If your company is changing focus, or combining/dissolving divisions, or otherwise altering strategies in such a way that the products/services/information available to your users will significantly change, it will probably be necessary to re-tool your navigation to reflect those changes.

Your current site structure isn't working.
If your users can never seem to find the information they seek or you're dropping sales because people can't figure out how to order the products/services on your site, it may be time for that overhaul. You've won half the battle in recognizing the problem. Plan the next iteration of your design carefully and thoughtfully.

Change is necessary to improve site functionality.
If you want to implement a content management system and/or redesign the site using style sheets to make its use and management more dynamic, it may be necessary to alter some aspects of the navigation and appearance. If this is the only reason for the change, it is probably a good idea to maintain the current branding to the extent that it's possible.

A final note: When you implement a major redesign, please, please do it all in one fell swoop. Don't make your users suffer through multiple iterations featuring partial changes which force them to re-learn, then re-learn, then re-learn.

The disclaimer: Clearly, this collection of conditions is not all-inclusive and you may be facing several issues simultaneously. The information here is meant simply to illuminate some of the most common errors in redesign reasoning.

Feb. 2, 2003