The series „Let me just quickly..“ wasn’t actually quite planned that way. After the first few articles, it somehow took on a life of its own.

Then I just quickly created an interactive Live Online training sequence, followed by just quickly writing a book and then I just quickly uploaded an eBook. And in 2014 I just quickly designed a new website.

Well, and all this is already almost 5 years ago. In the digital world, quasi 2 eternities.

Web Relaunch 2.0

And thus it was time for another facelift. With a detox thrown in. After all, the good old website had put on quite a bit of pages over the years.  And that extra weight made it clumsy, sluggish and slow.

Those who remember the drama in three acts from 2013/2014 (you’re welcome to read all about it here!) – I can assure you that, as a rule, I learn from my mistakes.

That’s why, this time, I entrusted the project management to my capable employee Nicole Schmidt, who I’ve been grooming for years with regard to goal definition, mind maps and project planning. I relied on the good collaboration with Sascha (responsible for the backend) and put the lay outing into my talented son Ben’s hands, who demonstrated his impressive talent for fine, innovative layout on his own homepage www.benjaminbaumann.at.

And then I had some professional photos taken by Bernadette Reiter. And used the BusinessMind Alumni Lounge (that takes place 2x a year with eager-to-learn and highly motivated ex-BusinessMind Summer Academy participants) to work through a Design Thinking Process and come up with a new website.

And what was the result? Well, I think the result speaks for itself, don’t you agree?

5+ important points to consider when designing a new website

And to allow you benefit from my experiences too, I asked Ben to sum up the 5 most important points for new website design for this article:

  • Today’s pages should definitely be „responsive.“ This means that they should be easy to read and visually pleasing on every end device (smart phone, computer, etc.) Nobody likes scrolling back and forth and up and down on their smart phone in order to see and use the whole website.
  • „Pictures paint a thousand words.” The images you want to use on your website should preferably be taken by a professional photographer, and then web-optimized (i.e. low res without sacrificing quality). All the better if the photos were taken in a real training setting. This makes for an authentic effect and appeals to the viewers more.
  • Graphics should always be good quality. This reflects professionalism. So forget Power Point screenshots, cut, edited and pasted in Paint.
  • “Keep it short and simple.” And that’s it.
  • Navigation should be as intuitive and simple as possible. Users should always know how to move to the next page (and how to get back again, too!).

Human + Human = People

I personally would like to add another point: although we are taking giant strides towards the age of artificial intelligence, we are nevertheless STILL working with PEOPLE as a general rule. And working with people (especially if they are located in different spots on this planet) means there will ALWAYS be misunderstandings and there will ALWAYS be something that isn’t TOTALLY clear.

Therefore, my personal advice is:always frame everything in advance! Just as in a seminar or a workshop, projects also need a frame, common goals, clarity and communication structures. It even surprises an old hand like me again and again how important these points are, even for the most hitch-free, uncomplicated undertakings.

On that note, I hope you enjoy my new website, stop by for a visit, take a look around, and please don’t hesitate to leave me a comment with your feedback!!