Everything to Decide Before You Build Your Wellness Website So You're Not Changing It All Six Months Later
It’s common for people to start with colors, design inspiration, photos, or a domain before deciding what their website actually needs to accomplish. The problem with this approach is that building a website is an investment of both time and money for your wellness business. Moreover, the expensive part isn’t necessarily building the site; it’s realizing six months later that the structure, messaging, branding, or functionality no longer works.
If you’re a therapist, coach, psychologist, or another wellness professional, your time is very valuable. A little preparation beforehand can make your design process much smoother. Before you choose your web design inspiration, book your photoshoot, or start moving text boxes around your Squarespace website, let’s take a look at the decisions worth examining in advance.
Planning your website before you build it? The Wellness Website Content Planner can help you organize your pages, services, messaging, FAQs, and other important website details before your design process begins.
Photo by Ann H
1. Decide What Your Website Actually Needs to Do
Your website should be built around your client’s journey, what they may be feeling when they visit, how you make them feel seen, and how you build enough trust for them to reach out.
When you first start brainstorming what your wellness website should include, there are some important questions to ask yourself as a wellness professional:
Ask:
What is the primary purpose of your website?
Do you want visitors to book consultations?
Inquire about services?
Learn about your practice?
Purchase digital products?
Join your email list?
Read your blog?
Find you through Google?
The answers to these questions will influence the pages, navigation, CTAs, integrations, and content you need.
Example:
A therapist may primarily need:
Homepage → About → Services → FAQ → Contact/Booking
A coach may need:
Homepage → About → Programs → Resources → Blog → Contact
A massage therapist may need:
Homepage → Services → About → FAQ → Booking → Contact
Although it’s fine to use other websites in the wellness niche for inspiration, it’s important not to copy those websites verbatim. Instead, think carefully about your current business needs and how they may develop over time as you serve your target audience.
Photo by Werner Pfennig
2. Get Clear on Who You're Speaking To
In this section, we’ll discuss your client avatar and how to clearly identify as much as you can about them so that your website feels familiar and comfortable once it’s built.
Before writing your copy, determine:
Who is your ideal client?
What are they struggling with?
What are they searching for?
What do they need reassurance about?
What makes them hesitate?
What outcome are they hoping for?
Why would they choose you?
As a wellness professional, you don’t want to make the mistake of sending the message, “I work with everyone,” as this can actually make it harder for people to see you as a specialist within your particular niche.
For example, instead of stating:
“I provide compassionate therapy for adults.”
Try something more specific:
“I help women navigating anxiety, burnout, and major life transitions find practical, compassionate support.”
Getting clear on who you are speaking to will directly affect your homepage messaging, service descriptions, photography, blog topics, SEO keywords, CTAs, and overall design direction, creating better cohesion throughout your wellness website.
Still figuring out exactly who your website is speaking to? That's one of the reasons I created The Wellness Website Content Planner—to help you work through the questions behind your website copy before you ever hand your content to a designer.
Photo by Saif71.com
3. Decide What You're Offering—and How People Will Access It
Before you build, you should determine what services you want to offer on your wellness website and what the experience will look like for your ideal client.
Think about a recent website that you used and how its services were displayed on the homepage and Services page. When you clicked on the service you were interested in, how did the website function? These are all clues and influences you can use when planning your own wellness website.
Before your website build, determine:
What services are you offering?
Which is your primary service?
Are there different packages?
What does each service include?
How much does it cost, if applicable?
Do clients inquire first or book directly?
Are sessions virtual, in-person, or both?
Do you need payment processing?
Will you sell digital products?
The way you answer these questions will ultimately influence your website structure, functionality, navigation, and booking process.
Booking example:
If someone needs to schedule a consultation, decide whether you want:
Contact form → Response → Scheduling
or
Direct scheduling → Consultation
Scheduling tools can be embedded or linked from your website depending on your design preference.
Need a simple way to let prospective clients book a consultation? I use Cal.com for discovery call scheduling because it gives potential clients a straightforward way to choose a time without making the booking process unnecessarily complicated.
Photo by Brett Jordan
4. Gather Your Brand Assets Before Design Begins
Everything doesn’t need to be perfect or completely organized before building a website, but having the basics ready will make the process of working with a wellness web designer much easier. As an experienced coach, therapist, or other mental health professional, it’s important to have core brand assets that reflect your wellness business and connect with your client avatar.
To help ensure a smooth process, here are some brand assets to have organized and ready for your design project in advance:
Logo files (JPG & PNG)
Brand colors
Fonts
Professional photographs
Headshots
Lifestyle images
Brand graphics
Social media visuals
Existing marketing materials
Photography is a major part of the web design process, and having professional photos can make a significant difference in the overall presentation of your site. For this reason, your photos should be clear, high-quality, and directly connected to the feeling you want your practice to convey.
For example:
Therapist → warmth, safety, professionalism
Massage therapist → calm, physical comfort, relaxation
Coach → confidence, clarity, transformation
Don't have enough images for your website? A small collection of styled stock photography for your wellness website can help fill visual gaps while keeping your site cohesive and on-brand. Be sure to check them out here.
Photo by Pixabay
5. Decide How You Want Your Website to Function Long-Term
You don't necessarily need to predict your entire five-year business plan before you start the web design process. With that said, it’s helpful to think about your current business needs, how much you are willing to manage now, and what you may want to add in the near future.
Ask yourself:
Will I blog?
Will I sell digital products?
Will I grow an email list?
Will I add services?
Will I need appointment scheduling?
Will I eventually offer courses?
Will I need landing pages?
Will I be managing the website myself?
The way you answer these questions should ultimately help determine which website platform is best suited to your current needs while also giving you room to grow as your wellness business expands.
Photo by Iam Hogir
6. Prepare Your Website Content Before the Design
Unlike brand assets, website content isn't something you simply collect. Instead, it provides the framework and messaging that will shape your wellness website.
As a wellness professional, it's possible that you have an established business that has served many clients, but it can still be difficult to put into words exactly what you do, who you serve, what clients can expect when they work with you, and the other important details that are part of their journey to you.
When working with a designer, they will need more specifics than “I want this to feel warm,” “I like beige,” or “Make me a website that looks like this.”
Instead, they will need your brand assets along with copy that answers the following framework questions:
Your services
Your audience
Your story
Your positioning
Your messaging
Your FAQs
Your CTAs
Your client journey
This is exactly where a website content planner can save you from staring at a blank screen. The Wellness Website Content Planner walks you through the information you'll need to prepare for key website sections, helping you organize your ideas before the design process begins.
From a wellness website designer's point of view, design and copy should work together so that your target audience can immediately feel at home on your website and connect with you more easily.
Photo by Walls.io
7. Don't Forget the Supporting Content
Sometimes, when you’re busy getting your brand assets and website content in order, it’s easy to forget about some of the supporting content that may not be part of your larger services or offerings but can still be instrumental in helping your clients and bringing in more business.
Supporting content is important because sometimes ideal clients need to slowly develop a sense of familiarity and trust with you before they are ready to invest in a service that may require more of a commitment.
Beyond your main pages, think about:
Blog content
Lead magnets
Email signups
Social media graphics
Pinterest content
Educational resources
Downloadable products
If you're planning to promote your new website on Instagram, having a few branded templates ready before launch can also make the transition easier. You don't want your new website to launch beautifully and then have no idea what to post about it. If you’re a coach, be sure to check out The Confidence Edit Instagram post templates for a bold and empowered approach to representing your business.
Photo by Jakub Zerdzicki
8. Your Pre-Website-Build Checklist
We covered a lot of steps to keep in mind as you prepare to build your wellness website so that you don’t have to worry about changing everything six months from now. Since your time and money are valuable, it’s important to summarize everything you should have in place before your website is built.
Here is your core checklist before your website build:
☐ Who your website is for
☐ What you want it to accomplish
☐ Your core services
☐ Your booking process
☐ Your brand direction
☐ Your photography
☐ Your website content
☐ Your future functionality
☐ Your SEO keywords
☐ Your supporting marketing content
Photo by DS Stories
Final Thoughts: Build With Intention
Although there are many aspects of a website to sort out before a web design project begins, the goal isn't necessarily to have every detail of your business figured out first. Naturally, there will be some answers you're unsure of, you may need more time to make certain decisions, or you may simply need to speak with a wellness web designer for professional guidance.
Collectively, it's important to keep in mind that a thoughtful website begins long before the first section is designed. When you know who you're speaking to, what you're offering, how clients will move through your website, and what you want your business to grow into, the design process becomes much easier to navigate.
If you're ready to take those ideas and turn them into a professionally designed Squarespace website, Nomadic Virtual Solutions can help bring the strategy, messaging, and design together. Feel welcome to reach out to me here when you're ready to discuss your vision and how I may be able to assist.
