5 Website Strategy Lessons to Fix Before You Redesign (Part 1)
In 2025, I built more than 25 websites, and I left my 9–5.
I worked through the learning curve, the growth spurts, and the messy middle. And as I write this, I’m booked into February 2026.
And I did all of that alone. No team. No assistants. No behind-the-scenes support.
Just me, my clients, and a lot of time spent inside websites. I don’t say this to brag. I say this because I noticed a lack of a strategy pattern.
The same issues showing up again and again, regardless of industry, experience level, or how “pretty” a site looked.
That’s what this series is about.
I’m breaking down the 10 biggest lessons I’ve learned from building websites into two posts. This first one focuses on strategy and clarity, the decisions that need to happen before design ever begins.
Because when those pieces aren’t in place, design can’t do its job.
My hope is that these lessons help you step back and look at your own website differently. Not through the lens of what needs to be tweaked or redesigned, but through the lens of what actually needs to be clarified first.
Before you touch another font, layout, or color. Let’s get into it.
LESSON 1: Your website shouldn't showcase more than 1-2 main offers
I get on a lot of discovery calls where business owners come to me in a frustrated state. They know their website is bad, but when we really get into the conversation, I quickly realize it isn't just about their website. It's also about their offer ecosystem.
People think more offers equals more money in their business. But a lot of times there's no rhyme or reason to their offers. They're just throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks. Here's the problem with that: if YOU are confused about your offers as a business owner, the person you're asking to pay you thousands of dollars for a service is certainly MORE confused than you.
And honestly, they just aren't going to buy.
So they come to me with a million pages on the backend that look like a confusing mess and what I like to call an offer graveyard. Pages for old services, outdated packages, things they tried once and abandoned. When they were DIYing their website, they'd just throw up a new page for everything, and now their site is a museum of pivots.
Here's what I do instead:
I really guide my prospects and clients to streamline their offers to one or two and get crystal clear about who they're for, what transformation they provide, and to package them up like buy-it-off-the-shelf offers.
My process looks like this:
First, we look at what they're currently selling (or not selling). If nothing is converting consistently, that's our first clue that confusion is the issue.
Then, we identify which 1-2 offers should be front and center. I help them choose based on what they actually want to be known for, what their ideal clients need most, and what creates the best transformation.
Finally, we package it clearly. People want to feel like they're buying something clear and defined. That makes the decision easier. Offering them the world is overwhelming, and people want an easy yes.
The transformation this creates:
I get it though, you have so much expertise and you want to share it with the world. But ultimately, for you to grow your business, you need to get clear on your offers.
Since streamlining my own offer to one singular package, I've been fully booked out and 20x my revenue from 2024 to 2025.
When your website showcases 1-2 clear offers instead of 10, your visitors can actually make a decision. And when they can make a decision, they're more likely to book.
LESSON 2: Design your website to filter out wrong-fit clients (and attract right-fit ones)
My client Kelly's website was designed years ago. And when it was designed, the main goal was to sell her clients life insurance. Since then, Kelly has grown and scaled an agency and needed her website to showcase joining her life insurance agency as an agent. A completely different goal.
Because her website was confusing and still focused on the old offer, she was getting on calls with potential agents that were the wrong fit. We needed to shift the focus and goal of her website and start filtering for fit before she ever got on a call with a prospective agent.
The shift in my thinking:
If you would have asked me in 2024 if I thought "not every client is for you" was true, I would have laughed. Like, what do you mean? Any money is good money, right?
Boy, have things shifted.
As you grow and scale, you start to realize that filtering for fit is key to growth and peace in your business. I'm not for everyone and everyone is not for me, and that is okay. Dare I say it's actually good.
Good because as service providers, we want people to work with other people they align with. This makes the partnership so much better and more fruitful. When someone isn't a fit for me, there IS a designer out there who's perfect for them.
Here's how your website can do the filtering for you:
That's why I now ensure that every website I design actively helps attract aligned, right-fit clients while it repels the ones that are misaligned. Your website should be working as a filter 24/7.
Here are 3 things to add to your website to filter out wrong-fit clients:
1. "Who this is for/not for" sections Be explicit about who you work best with and who might not be a good fit. This saves everyone time and attracts people who see themselves in your "ideal client" description.
2. Clear process/values sections that show how you work When you lay out your process, timeline, and what you expect from clients (like homework or collaboration), people who don't want to work that way will self-select out. The ones who stay are already aligned with your approach.
3. Showcase your specific approach/requirements upfront Don't wait until the discovery call to reveal what makes you different or what you require. Put it on your website. If you require a brand strategy before design, say that. If you have a particular design philosophy, share it.
The transformation this creates:
Better client fit equals better results and a better experience for everyone.
For Kelly, this meant redesigning her entire website around attracting agents, not life insurance clients. We added clear sections about her agency's values, the support agents receive, and what kind of person thrives in her system. Now she's getting on calls with people who are already pre-qualified and excited about her specific approach.
LESSON 3: Less pages = more clarity
I recently worked with a florist who has been in business for many years. When I got into the backend of her website, she had FOURTEEN pages. Many of them were disabled, but still there, cluttering up the navigation and creating confusion about what she actually offers.
You know how when you clean out your closet and finally donate clothes, you feel like you actually have more to wear? Same goes for website pages.
We were able to take her from 14 pages down to 5. Now, her website finally felt clear, focused, and actually showcased what she does now. Not what she used to do five years ago.
The pattern I see over and over:
I see this constantly when I get into the backend of my clients' websites. Page after page of content where old offers used to live. The back to that offer graveyard, y’all.
When people are DIYing their websites, they think "Oh, I have a new offer? Better create a new page!" And they do that over and over without ever going back to clean up what's no longer relevant. Before they know it, their site is a museum of pivots and their visitors have no idea where to click.
Why this happens:
Clients are overwhelmed by all the tech they have to maintain in their business. Email platform, scheduling software, CRM, social media, and on and on. Their website feels like "one more thing" to keep up with, so pages just pile up and never get removed.
There's also this old belief that more pages equals a better website. Like somehow having 10+ pages makes you look more legit or professional.
When in reality most clients don't need 10-page websites. They need clear, focused ones that make it easy for visitors to understand what they do and take the next step.
How to audit which pages you actually need:
When I work with clients on this, I ask three simple questions for every page:
Does this page serve the main goal of the site? If your goal is to book discovery calls, does this page move people toward that action?
Is this offer/info still relevant? Are you still offering this service? Is this information up to date? If not, it needs to go.
Would removing this reduce confusion? Sometimes having multiple service pages actually makes it harder for people to choose. Consolidating can be more effective than having everything separated out.
The transformation this creates:
Streamlined websites are easier to maintain and clearer for visitors.
For my florist client, going from 14 pages to 5 meant her site actually represented her current business. Visitors weren't clicking around trying to figure out what was real and what was outdated. And she wasn't stressed about updating 14 pages every time something changed.
Less really is more when it comes to website pages. Your visitors will thank you for the clarity, and you'll thank yourself for the ease of maintenance.
LESSON 4: One-size-fits-all booking flows don't work
This is another place where I see websites quietly losing good leads.
Most business owners set up one generic booking flow and assume it should work for everyone. Book a call. Answer a few questions. Done.
But what works for your ideal clients won’t work for everyone.
I see this come up when business owners tell me they’re getting “interest,” but bookings feel inconsistent. Or they’re getting on calls that don’t go anywhere. Or people ghost before even scheduling.
Here’s the problem:
Their booking flow wasn’t designed for how their audience actually makes decisions.
So instead of feeling clear and confident, the process creates friction. And when something feels even slightly hard or unclear, people don’t move forward. They just disappear.
Here’s what I do instead:
I spend time on kickoff calls talking through what makes the most sense for your specific audience, not what’s easiest to plug into a website.
We talk through questions like:
Who is your ideal client, really?
How do they prefer to communicate?
What does their buying journey actually look like?
What information do you need before a call feels productive?
Where are people currently getting stuck?
From there, we design a booking flow that lessens friction instead of adding it.
The transformation this creates:
When your booking flow is designed around your audience, the right people book. They show up to calls prepared, and the conversations are easier and more aligned.
Remember, it’s not about getting more calls. It’s about getting the right ones.
LESSON 5: The homework/"legwork" before design matters (maybe more than the design itself)
This one is hard for people to hear, especially when they’re excited to finally fix their website.
But the clients who rush the homework phase almost always struggle the most later.
They come to me wanting their website as soon as possible, but they haven’t slowed down to clarify their messaging, their offer, or what the website actually needs to do.
And even if they love the design visually, something still feels off.
Here’s why:
Design can’t fix confusion.
If visitors don’t understand what you offer, who it’s for, or what to do next, they won’t take action. No amount of beautiful layout or branding can solve that.
When the foundational work gets skipped, it shows up as endless revisions, second-guessing, and frustration.
Here’s why the pre-design work matters:
This phase helps clarify messaging and positioning.
It identifies the real goal of the website.
It surfaces what visitors actually need to see.
And it prevents expensive changes later.
Here’s the shift:
The waiting period before design starts isn’t a delay. It’s a vital time where the real work gets done.
This is your space to think, get clear, and make intentional decisions. So when we do move into design, we’re not guessing or backtracking.
The transformation this creates:
When strategy leads, design feels easier. The website feels intentional instead of pieced together. And the results are better.
Better clarity upfront always leads to a better website in the end.
Why all of this comes before design
If there’s one thread running through all five of these lessons, it’s that clarity has to come before design.
Every issue we talked about (too many offers, wrong-fit clients, page overload, clunky booking flows, rushed timelines) comes back to strategy decisions that were never fully made. And that’s not a personal failure. It’s just what happens when you DIY, grow fast, and don’t have someone helping you see the label from outside the jar.
These lessons aren’t about fonts, layouts, or aesthetics. They’re about getting clear on what your website is meant to do before worrying about how it looks.
Because when the strategy is solid, design stops being stressful. It becomes supportive.
What’s coming next
This is just Part 1!
In Part 2, I’ll walk through the design and conversion lessons I’ve learned from building and rebuilding websites. The tactical decisions that actually help websites convert.
We’ll talk about things like:
Navigation choices that reduce confusion
Font decisions that impact readability and trust
CTA strategies that guide action without pressure
And the small design details that quietly influence behavior
Ready for support?
If you’re reading this and realizing your website might need more than a visual refresh, and you want someone who applies all of these insights to your website, you can explore working together here:
