Over the years we’ve developed a repeatable, efficient process for developing small to medium sized web sites. These web projects are usually completed in one iteration in about 2 to 3 months.

The process we’ve developed involves considerable interaction with and feedback from the client throughout the project. We’ve broken up the project into 6 or 7 mostly overlapping phases:

• Inception
• Requirements
• Functional Definition
• User Interface
• Development
• Quality Assurance
• Go Live 

It’s important to note that the UI design is determined about half-way through the project. This helps ensure that the design is driven by the business need and functionality instead of the other way around.

• •Goals (of project/website)
• •Scope List
• User List (Primary. Secondary & Tertiary)
• User Objectives
• Use Case List
• Design Needs (Look and Feel)
• Search Engine Optimization Analysis (Current state, if any, and future needs)
• Seed Keyword List
• Competitor List
• •Company Strengths & Weaknesses
• Key Messages
• Technical Requirements
• •Assumptions

Functional Definition Phase

• Competitor Analysis (Navigation, Messaging)
• Site Map
• Page List
• Navigation Elements
• Wire Frames
• Messaging
• Creative Brief
• UI Design Concepts
• Prioritized Target Keyword List
• Alignment of Use Cases to the Site Map/Page List
• Alignment of Keywords to Page List
• Forms (Fields & Validation)
• Technical Operating Environment Definition

Development

• Page Template Creation (From UI Concepts) (HTML/CSS)
• Template Image Creation (category specific images, etc.)
• CMS & Database Setup for Development
• Style Guide
• Custom Client Specific Coding (Functionality Not Available in CMS) 
• Configure Content Management System to create categories, pages, menus, lists, etc.
• Seed Content
• Page Content Creation & CMS Integration

Testing & Go Live

• Integration Testing (plugins, content, etc.)
• User Acceptance Testing
• Deploy Solution to Production Environment
• Turn Site Live
• Training
• Support

Every project is unique. So expect to modify your plan with each and every project. Hopefully, this plan will give you a decent baseline to start with.